LOGAN — Athletes will toss stones, throw heavy weights and flip towering wooden poles when the Sagebrush Highland Games come to the Cache County Fairgrounds on Oct. 24.
About 40 athletes are expected to participate in the Scottish-style competition, which athletic director Ben Kitchens said will be the first Highland Games held in Logan in nearly 20 years.
“I just kind of wanted to jump on it and try to get something going again locally,” Kitchens said.
Admission is free. Competition will take place in the northwest corner of the fairgrounds, in the area typically used for carnival rides.
Athletes compete in nine events rooted in Scottish tradition, with their combined performances determining the overall winners in each division. Scottish ancestry is not required to participate.
Events include putting a stone in a motion similar to the shot put, throwing a weight over a raised bar and tossing the caber — a long wooden pole competitors attempt to flip end over end.
“One that’s probably the most widely recognized is the caber, where it kind of looks like a large tree or telephone pole that you’ll pick up and you’ll try to flip over,” Kitchens said.
Some competitors throw a 56-pound weight over a bar. Equipment weights and caber sizes vary by division to accommodate different skill levels, ages and weight classes.
Men and women compete separately. Along with skill-based divisions, the sport offers lightweight categories and masters divisions for athletes 40 and older. Groups rotate through designated areas of the field until they complete all nine events.
Kitchens competes in the men’s A division, which uses a longer, heavier caber than the men’s B and C divisions.
“They’d use something a little bit lighter and easier to turn,” he said.
The Logan event also will feature a stone-throwing championship, with separate trophies for the men’s and women’s longest throws, regardless of their regular competition divisions.
Kitchens said prizes at Highland Games vary by organizer. Over his years competing, he has won swords, daggers, a chalice and donated gym gear. This year, the Sagebrush Highland Games will award winners with a combination of daggers, axes and swords for the top three finishers.
But he said the Logan gathering is primarily an opportunity for athletes and spectators to enjoy the sport together.
“This one’s really just for fun, just people come and hang out,” Kitchens said.
A novice division gives beginners an opportunity to learn the events while competing against other newcomers. Although competitors generally wear kilts, first-time novice participants can wear comfortable athletic clothing.
“For the novice group, you don’t need one,” Kitchens said. “But if you decide to keep going after that, you will need a kilt.”
Kitchens said organizers expect to begin throwing between 9 and 10 a.m., depending on the temperature. Competition is expected to continue until about 4 or 5 p.m.
This year’s event will focus on athletics, but organizers hope to expand it into a small Scottish festival in Cache Valley.
“We are kind of behind the scenes looking to build it out and hopefully next year, maybe turn it into like a smaller festival so that local vendors can come through,” Kitchens said.
That could include Scottish and Celtic vendors from elsewhere in Utah.
Kitchens has competed for about 12 to 15 years, traveling to events throughout Utah as well as Boise and Enumclaw, Washington. He said the Highland Games community welcomes people interested in learning about the sport.
“We’re wanting the sport to grow, so we love new people to do outreach and ask questions about it as well,” he said.
He encouraged spectators to talk with competitors if they are unfamiliar with an event.
“Feel free to ask somebody that’s there, because we love to interact with you guys as well,” Kitchens said.
More information about the event and the group organizing it can be found at utahheavyatheltics.com or at the group’s Facebook page: Utah Heavy Athletics.