Water Melon Skiing

The Watermelon is thought to have originated in the Kalahari Desert of Africa. The first recorded watermelon harvest occurred nearly 5,000 years ago in Egypt and is depicted in Egyptian hieroglyphics on walls of their ancient buildings. Watermelons were often placed in the burial tombs of kings to nourish them in the afterlife. It took the Australians to strap them to their feet and make a sport.
Every two years, the town of Chinchilla pays tribute to the melon harvest with the Chinchilla Melon Festival where people not only eat the melons but use them for a number of other activities including headbutting them. The highlight of the festival however is Water Melon Skiing.

Put down a long tarpaulin and make it slippy - the insides of a few dozen water melons make a grand lubricant. Players take it in turns to stand at the beginning of the run, each foot encased in a scooped out water melon. They then hold onto a rope being held by two people standing either side of the tarp - these two players run down the course dragging the water melon skier behind them. The person who remains on his feet for the longest distance is the winner.
Llangollen is too scared to have Bunny Hopping Races and here's Chinchilla strapping melons onto people's feet and dragging them to oblivion.

strange games no 105
weird web: watermelon promotion board