From the Southern Sentinel. Sent in by Pappa Clip. Ed
A new street sport is springing to life in certain parts of the Isle Of Wight.
Under the general title of ‘pothole athletics’, its most popular component is the ‘pogopot race’, in which competitors compete with each other to pogostick race from one end to the other, of an agreed stretch of road, touching down only in potholes.
Choose your own route
Competitors can choose their own route along the track, with the less proficient ‘pogo-stickers’ leaping the short distance between closely adjacent potholes and the more adventurous over leaping several potholes at once.
As touching any part of the road surface outside a pothole, or touching down with either foot at all, brings instant disqualification, the game is not always to the swift. The rules provide an automatic handicap system, which can often result in a close finish between the novice and the more experienced.
Variations for the proficient
There are variations, such as hopping and stilt walking and even using the areas of good road surface in between potholes in place of the potholes themselves.
This last, however, usually proves much too difficult for all but the most skilled.
Regretfully there are no plans at present to include the sport in the Island Games. “We just don’t think other islands will be able to come up with stretches of road of the required standard,” a spokepersonyouth explained.
We hope you enjoyed Pappa Clip’s latest spoof.
