Cheese Rolling and Woolsack Racing

So a traditional weekend in the country as requested by our Australian friends which would take in such normal bank holiday activities as hurling oneself down a hill chasing after a piece of cheese.

The rolling takes place in the Cotswolds at a place called Coopers Hill on the outskirts of Gloucester.We set off with plenty of time - or so we thought, but after getting stuck in a traffic jam we knew it was going to be a little tight to get up to the rolling route.
We followed the crowd and that was our first mistake - there was a big queue to get through a gate and an even bigger queue through the footpath leading in a roundabout way to the rolling site. We ended up climbing through fences, through a paddock with some rather unhappy looking cows and then squelched our way through a muddy forest just to get to the bottom of the rolling hill. I was nearly dead by that point - so even if it hadn't looked like suicide I wasn't in any state to do it!
So the actual cheese rolling was mental up a ridiculously steep hill this guy in a white coat comes out with a big round lump of cheese - presents it to the crowd, before chucking it down the slope.At which point a bunch of nutters hurl themselves down after it,skidding on their backsides, and head over heels - it looked virtually impossible to get down keeping your feet, although in the last race one guy seemed to just about manage it
Then we went to Tetbury where they had woolsack racing - a relay race where guys run up and down a hill with a 60lb sack of wool on their backs. We were there just in time to catch the final, the whole town seemed to be out and lining the course as commentators placed in various spots down the hill kept us up to date with proceedings.The town also had a fair on with flaming jugglers and Morris Dancers and other traditional fare We bought some fudge, jam and chutney and went home happy.The Australians left having had a fun day - and wanting to go again next year - safe in the knowledge that the English are mad.