What is this sporting event? Teams compete to move a functioning artillery cannon from one end of an obstacle course to another, requiring them to disassemble, move, and re-assemble the cannon.
I recall seeing this on a news show, like 60 Minutes or something. It seemed to be an annual British sporting event, with teams drawn from the various military services.
The object seemed to be a timed competition for teams to move a functioning, 19th century, artillery cannon from one end of an obstacle course to another. In order to move it over the obstacles, teams would have to first disassemble the cannon and then move it and all of its parts and ammunition over the course. The course, about the size of a soccer pitch, included hills, water hazards, etc.
If I recall correctly, the obstacles change every year, and there are few fixed rules as to
how the cannon is moved, just that it
is moved and assembled to working condition, and fired three times. The fun, then, is seeing how the different teams solve the obstacle course problems with different strategies ("OK, you four guys carry the barrel...").
What is this event? Is it really an annual thing? Tell me more!
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It's not on the telly anymore as a result of the inevitable defence cuts, but is still run quite often, mainly amongst naval types. I used to love watching this when I was a kid...
posted by prentiz at 3:09 PM on May 29, 2007 [1 favorite]