Wacky English Bed Race Celebrates 46 Years

While there are some pretty wacky races out there, the Knaresborough Bed Race, which entails contestants, to not only dress themselves, but also, their beds in costumes and then drag them through cobbled streets, up steep hills and across a river - has to be wackiest of all!

Now in its 46th year, the annual race, which takes place in the historic English town of Knaresborough, was initially considered so difficult, that it was open only to military personnel. However, over the years, they have loosened up the entry requirements and now allow anyone over the age of 12 to compete. Today, the event. which also raises money for charity, has become so popular that the 90 competing teams are picked by lottery. This year's event which took place on June 11th, attracted competitors from as far as, Germany and even the USA.

The rules of the race are fairly simple. Each team comprises of seven members - Six bed carriers and one passenger who spends the entire time trying to stay balanced on the bed. No substitutions are allowed once the team members have decided their positions.

The beds must be rolled with the just power of four wheels each measuring no more than 10 inches in diameter. All participants and beds have to 'dress up' in accordance with the designated theme and participate in an opening parade prior to the race. This year, the theme was 'British History'.

The 3km route begins innocently enough as contestants drag their beds along a fairly flat countryside road. Then begins the nightmare, as the teams pull their beds up and down the five steep hills that lead up to Castle Fort. Following that comes the real doozy - dragging the beds across the Nidd River - which explains, why contestants have to know how to swim.

This year's winners, the Harrogate Harriers completed the entire course in an impressive 14.24 minutes or less than half the time it took for the last stragglers to roll in. However, judging from their costumes and antics, most competitors seemed to be focused on winning the 'most entertaining' or the best-dressed awards. And even if they didn't win, they went home satisfied knowing that they had helped raise over $150,000 USD for charity from the 25,000 generous spectators that had gathered to cheer them on.

Resources: Odditycentral.com,www.knaresborough.co.uk