Spanish Fiesta

The Basques say they're the strongest and bravest people in the world. And by the end of this week's Basque Rural Games, you won't even think about arguing! These Games, the most primitive of strength contests, are held at the central stadium in Bilbao, Spain, and occur as part of Bilbao's biggest festival, Semana Grande (Big Week, which began on Monday and ends today). The sports, called herri kilorak (or rural sports), stem from agricultural work done in the country since ancient times, and are an important tradition in the Basque country. Spend a day with Basque's stone lifters, log choppers, hay bale tossers, oxen handlers, and tug-of-war heroes, and you'll find out what testosterone is really all about

Plan to spend all of today at Bilbao's central stadium (that rapturous Guggenheim building can wait until tomorrow). Stop by the food vendors and fill up on greasy cod and kaimotxo (red wine and Coca Cola), and then meander among the manly giants while they lift, chop and throw things to impress maidens (and less manly men) with their valor.

Forget about saving the best for last: head straight for the stone-lifting competition. The men who lift stones in Basque country aren't sissies, and they can prove it. For sport, they hoist stones weighing anywhere from 100 to 326 kilograms (220 to 717 pounds)! Wearing leather padding, the strongman levers the massive stone, made of granite and lead, end over end to his chest. Then he boosts it to his left shoulder, removes his hands, and whirls around before dropping it onto a foam cushion. Of course, it takes awhile for the blood to drain from his pained face, but it's all in the name of rural sports. Unlike those over hyped strongman competitions you may have seen on television (watch Igor pull an airplane with his teeth!), herri kilorak are an important and well-established tradition, not to mention proof that the Basques are truly macho men.

Other lifting displays involve speed and are just as fun to watch. One of these involves a strongman who hoists a "measly" 100 kilo (220 pound) ball to his shoulder and whips it around his neck. Whoever maneuvers the stone around his neck the most times in one minute wins. The record is a staggering 36 revolutions! Another competition measures the number of times a man can hoist a 150 kilo (330 pound) stone to his shoulder in 10 minutes--one inhuman warrior did this