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Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships (St. Ursen, Fribourg, Other, St. Ursen FR) Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships | 30.08.2008 09:00 - 31.08.2008 15:30
Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
Calendar: Social Events
HeatherM
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30.08.2008 to 31.08.2008 09:00 to 15:30
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City/Town: St. Ursen, Fribourg
Event Type: Other
Meeting Point: St. Ursen FR
Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games
If you've ever secretly dreamed of wearing a kilt and tossing a caber in front of a captive audience, here's your chance!



The 6th Annual Swiss Highland Games Championships will take place in St. Ursen, Canton Friboug August 30-31st. This competition is the Swiss Championship for bagpiping and heavy events, and is always good entertainment. (That is, if your version of entertainment is to watch a bunch of burly men and women in kilts fling around heavy objects while rousing bagpipe music is playing in the background.)


Competitions
Solo and band piping and drumming competitions will be held over the Saturday and Sunday, and heavy events (weight over the bar, stone put and caber toss) are also contested on both days. (Men's qualifications are on Saturday, and men's and women's finals are on the Sunday.)

The heavy events competition is open to anyone brave enough to enter, no prior experience necessary.* You can register until August 1st, and there will be an open training session for competitors held on August 10th where you can go have a few trial throws of all the heavy objects. There is no charge, and you can sign up online. Here's the form.


Concerts
The highlight of the weekend is always the Saturday night beer tent and concert, where they bring in a few excellent Celtic bands and the beer flows freely. This usually ends around 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning. They also have the reigning world bagpiping champion, Robert Watt, as a special guest for the weekend, and he'll be performing in the main tent Saturday afternoon and on the field Sunday morning.


Details
Information about the games (Including maps, public transport information, and a complete schedule of events) can be found on the official website. It's worth noting that entrance to the site is free, but there is a 10.- CHF charge for the Saturday evening concert.


Bidh mi 'gad fhaicinn!

Heather

*About that whole no experience necessary thing... some Swiss friends convinced me to enter the heavy events competition two years ago despite having never tossed a caber in my life. I definitely lowered the overall calibre of the competition (although funnily enough, Swissinfo mistakenly thought I was a ringer), but I had a blast, and would encourage anyone contemplating it to just give it a go. If it's any consolation, you'd be doing well to put in a worse performance than I did. I really wish there was a smaller font right now.
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Old 24.07.2008, 08:08
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
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If you've ever secretly dreamed of wearing a kilt and tossing a caber in front of a captive audience, here's your chance!


a common occurence chez Polorise ....

thanks Heather, am planning to head down on the Sunday, if anyone else is planning on going.
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Old 24.07.2008, 08:38
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
Was thinking about taking my mom to the Highland Games at Flugplatz Speck Fehraltorf (Aug.1-3) as a birthday surprise, she's a Glaswegian who turns 88 on the 3rd of Aug.

Maybe I could take her to the games in St. Ursen as well at the end of August, it'll be her last week in Switzerland before she has to fly back home to California in September.
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Old 25.07.2008, 15:25
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
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am planning to head down on the Sunday, if anyone else is planning on going.
I'm not yet sure if I can make it myself (my brother flies back to Canada the next day), but come to think of it, it might be fun to sign him for the heavy events without telling him, and then spend two days watching him suffer.

Heather
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Old 29.07.2008, 16:30
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
My husband used to compete in Highland Games held in Texas and Oklahoma. I wonder if he'd consider competing again
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Old 30.07.2008, 09:09
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
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Was thinking about taking my mom to the Highland Games at Flugplatz Speck Fehraltorf (Aug.1-3) as a birthday surprise, she's a Glaswegian who turns 88 on the 3rd of Aug.

Maybe I could take her to the games in St. Ursen as well at the end of August, it'll be her last week in Switzerland before she has to fly back home to California in September.
My husband and I and two of his coworkers are planning on going to the games this Saturday. And I'm pretty sure my husband and I and a visit friend from Ireland are going to go to the games in St. Ursen as well.

We'll be pushing a brown Graco stroller with a wee bairn inside, if anyone wants to meet up, that might be nice.
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Old 30.07.2008, 09:16
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
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We'll be pushing a brown Graco stroller with a wee bairn inside, if anyone wants to meet up, that might be nice.
I'll be working there all 4 days so come along to the cheese tent and say hello

I just got some Lanark Blue in, it's a very strong blue sheeps cheese from Lanarkshire and at a tasting last night it was nick-named the "Kilt Lifter"!
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Old 30.07.2008, 11:26
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
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I'll be working there all 4 days so come along to the cheese tent and say hello

I just got some Lanark Blue in, it's a very strong blue sheeps cheese from Lanarkshire and at a tasting last night it was nick-named the "Kilt Lifter"!
That sounds awesome! We love blue cheese!

I'm assuming there's only one cheese tent?

I notice that you are from Yorkshire. We stopped in Scarborough for part of our honeymoon about two years ago!
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Old 30.07.2008, 11:39
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
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I'm assuming there's only one cheese tent?
Not that I'm scared of competition but I'm pretty sure it's only us with cheese. we'll also have some Blue Stilton and Blacksticks Blue from the wrong side of the Pennines - we do have some Yorkshire cheese though, I was in York 2 weeks ago stocking up.

See you Saturday

EDIT - just realised we are on the wrong thread! I think we are talking about the other Highland Games in Ferhaltorf starting tomorrow, not in Fribourg at the end of August. www.highland-games.ch for more info
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Old 30.07.2008, 12:52
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
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See you Saturday

EDIT - just realised we are on the wrong thread! I think we are talking about the other Highland Games in Ferhaltorf starting tomorrow, not in Fribourg at the end of August. www.highland-games.ch for more info
I'm hoping that we'll be going to both, actually. I know for sure that we'll be at the ones in Ferhaltorf on Saturday, hopefully at the opening ceremonies. So, we'll sidle up for some cheese, eh?
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Old 01.08.2008, 14:58
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
Sounds fun! I will definitely be there. Thanks for posting this!!
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Old 14.08.2008, 16:54
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
This sounds pretty cool. Can anybody point me at any campsites nearby? I've been trying to find one through Google and myswitzerland.com, but appear to be a bit useless!
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Old 14.08.2008, 17:31
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
]It's unusual that this event does not have on-site camping - you should find some campsites on this tourism web site for the Fribourg region - the address for the games is 1717, St Ursen

http://www.fribourgregion.ch/en

EDIT - there is a shuttle bus that comes back and forth from a few local towns - details here
Last edited by grumpygrapefruit; 14.08.2008 at 17:38. Reason: bus details
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Old 16.08.2008, 18:40
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
sounds awesome!
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Old 17.08.2008, 00:10
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
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This sounds pretty cool. Can anybody point me at any campsites nearby? I've been trying to find one through Google and myswitzerland.com, but appear to be a bit useless!
dunno if i'll go to these highland games or not, went to the first couple since i live in the next village. if you ask for scottish beer they'll pour ye a guiness........

do you want to camp in a tent or caravan or have you a campervan? there's a big fairly deluxe site on the schiffenensee near düdingen:

http://www.camping-schiffenen.ch/

or if you like the simple life this one on the sense(river) just outside plaffein is nicely located:

http://www.camping-fuellmattli.ch/

or a bit further on schwarzsee:

http://www.camping-schwarzsee.ch/

also this weekend now is another local wee festival:

http://www.guggisberg.ch/tourismus/k...t-programm.htm

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Old 20.08.2008, 09:03
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
THe St-Ursen Highland games are fun. I went to the first and the second edition. My neighbour participated, after a night of many beers. He's only 1,60 m high and shouldn't weigh more than 55 kg!!! Very nice atmosphere.

For a camping, you could also go to the Camping du Lac in Gumefens. The tent and mobilhome section is just in front of the lake.
info@campingdulac-gruyere.chinfo@campingdulac-gruyere.ch

I'll be there!
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Old 20.08.2008, 12:42
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
Definitely going to check it out!

Is anyone familiar with the venue?

If anyone is interested we could pick a spot and time to meet up for a minute? Grab a beer?
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Old 20.08.2008, 14:19
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
¨
anyone else from Bern thinking of heading down & would like to hook up ? I'm pretty free regards which day.
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Old 20.08.2008, 19:18
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
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Definitely going to check it out!

Is anyone familiar with the venue?

If anyone is interested we could pick a spot and time to meet up for a minute? Grab a beer?

A distinctive sign to recognize us? A red handkerchief?
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Old 22.08.2008, 21:04
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Re: Swiss (Scottish) Highland Games Championships
Bugger ... only just found this thread! Would've loved to compete for the glory of the McFarlane Clan, but alas too late for this year... and yes, I've worn a kilt several times before ... hired only, due to the high price of buying one in Australia, but the right tartan at least!
Will have to see if I can get along for a bit, but it's short notice with wife & three kids in tow... :/
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