Scottish Highland Games—The Sheaf Toss



The Sheaf Toss

By Dawn Marie Hamilton


The sheaf toss is a games event in which many a farm lad might excel, or not. Tossing hay with a pitchfork onto a pile isn't quite the same as hurling a bag of the stuff into the air over a horizontal bar. A lad must dedicate time to practicing in order to develop the required skill. Not every Highland games runs this event, but I snapped this picture at the Northeast Florida Scottish Games and Festival in February while on winter vacation.



Given three chances, an athlete uses a three-tined pitchfork to hurl a 16-pound burlap bag stuffed with hay over a crossbar set between two standards. The bar is raised in one or two foot intervals after all competertors have completed their attempts. As the bar rises, the field of competitors is reduced until one athlete remains as the winner.

Other events:
The Caber Toss
The 28-lb Weight Throw
The 56-lb Weight Throw

Stop back, I'll discuss more events in future posts.