Centuries ago, when Scottish kings chose the best men at arms, they used tossing and wrestling contests to gauge candidates' accuracy and strength, and dancing to build endurance and agility. Here are two fun feats inspired by those Highland games to test your family's mettle.
HEAVE HO
In this version of the classic hay sack toss, use a spatula (in lieu of a pitchfork) to pitch a newspaper-stuffed lunch bag up and over a clothesline or makeshift crossbar. Whoever succeeds the most times out of ten is the winner.
SHOOT FOR THE NOON
Traditionally, the caber toss entails hoisting a 20-foot, 120-pound pole onto your shoulder and flipping it onto the ground so that the end you were holding points toward 12 o'clock on an imaginary clock (your feet are considered to be at 6 o'clock). To see just how tricky it can be, try this scaled-down spin-off: take turns flipping an unsharpened pencil at the floor. Whoever lands a pitch with the eraser nearest to noon wins.
