"Run as fast as you can, but you can't catch me because I am the Gingerbread Man" exclaimed the Gingerbread Man. And he successfully hoodwinked all the people on the way. But unlike him, a 7 lb wheel of cheese in Cooper's Hill knows no such luck. Its sad fate ends with a soft woosh and an enormous thud at the bottom of a very steep hill.
Sounds like a silly story or nursery rhyme? That's the Gloucester Cheese Rolling and Wake at idyllic Cooper's Hilll, England. What began as a pre-Roman tradition has stuck on for hundreds of years. Man, woman, child, old, young, and everyone in between is welcome to participate in this entertaining and wacky race. The Cheese Rolling event is usually held on the last Monday in May and it coincides with the Spring Bank holiday.
The Race: Down or Up?
You either race to the top or dash down the hill. The race down is the hardest and downright nasty. The cheese is set in motion from the top of the hill by a special person chosen for the occasion. And then begins the fun. The crazed participants immediately start running down the slope behind the cheese. The cheese actually gets a bit of a head start and usually reaches the finish line before the contestants! The sight of the mad dash down the hill is hilarious and entertaining. With mud and grass all over their clothes, the participants and onlookers have the time of their lives. There are shrieks and screams of excitement in the air and everyone is cheering for the participants. The contestants also have to be prepared to be pummeled, jostled, bumped, and knocked over by people and the wheel of cheese. The winner of the race gets the wheel of cheese of course, while the second and third place winners receive cash prizes.
The uphill races on the other hand are kinder on your bones. Cheese is neither rolled up nor down. You just have to put yourself up through the steep climb and claim a prize if you get to the top first. The prize you'll get is a small round of cheese. Sigh! For all that hard work.
The Cheese
The type of cheese used for the race is a scrumptious Double Gloucester (pronounced Gloster), a type of hard cheese. It weighs between 7 to 8 lbs (about 4 kg) packaged in the traditional white wrapper and tied with a blue and red ribbon. Fit to be the perfect prize for the occasion.
