Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawirewestphotossix580851
It was complete accident and good luck that lead me to the art and science of EXTREME IRONING (EI in future reference). Whilst browsing through photos of sport competitions on Newscom, I stumbled upon some glorious pictures of this particularly unique one. The pictures were so great I felt they needed to be shared. A pretty controversial topic, many non-participants scoff at the perceived absurdity of calling it a “sport”. Technically a sport is “an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others.” Have you seen what these people do (scroll down)? From jumping out of an airplane, to scuba diving, to horseback riding, to lodging oneself betwixt to boulders whilst dangling several hundred feet in the air, I would have to say that this activity does indeed, qualify as “physical exertion”.
Naturally, a sport as tongue in cheek as this, originated in England. It all began on a not-so-grand day for Phil Shaw (aka “Steam”) after coming home from a long day of work at the Knitwear factory; he didn’t want to do something as tedious as ironing his pile of clothes. It was a sunny day and Phil preferred the idea of rock climbing, and that was when EI was born-when the thought struck him to combine the exciting with the unexciting. He grabbed his roommate, Paul and made sure to practice their technique in the backyard before heading out.
It was a slow growing sport but as time went on Steam took it international. The sport soon spread to Germany and when Shaw left the Germans set up a sister-office, “Eso-ironing”and began exploring the affects of meditation and ironing.
The first ever World Championships for EI was held in 2002, near Munich, Germany. Since then, other countries have begun to turn their eyes to the brilliancy of this new sport and art. Newcomers are hoping to organize another international event and try their own luck at winning.
Follow us back to Newscom.com for more pictures of EXTREME IRONING (I feel like this always has to be in all caps, it makes it seem far more dramatic).
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawirewestphotossix580808
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawireworldphotosfive337796
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawireworldphotosfive337810
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawirewestphotossix580785
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawirewestphotossix580849
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawireworldphotosfive337781
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing!
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawireworldphotosfive337795
The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing!
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawirewestphotossix580786
Extreme ironing.The English East Midlands City of Leicester has never been known as a place of excitement or danger. Yet, in 1997 the city, often thought of as a little dull – mundane perhaps – gave birth to an extreme sport that combines the dangerous and exciting with the dull and mundane: extreme ironing! Extreme Ironing/Whitehotpix/ZUMA Press/Newscom. Find it at Newscom.com: zumawireworldphotosfive337800
You may also be interested in these other blogs back at FocalPoint:
Pictures of the Week: Extreme Fishing
Pictures of the Week: Fun with Legos
Tags: ei, extreme ironing, phil shaw