Why Throw a Tree Trunk? A Sport Judged on Direction, Not Distance

The log is judged on the direction it finishes rather than how far it goes. A successful throw makes the log rotate through the vertical and fall with its far end away from the competitor, and the score is the angle at which it lands, described by reference to a clock face with twelve indicating a perfectly straight result directly away from the thrower. A throw of eleven or one is close but imperfect. A log that fails to pass the vertical, falling back or sideways, is judged on how near to vertical it reached, which is the mark of an unsuccessful attempt. Distance thrown is irrelevant entirely, and a competitor who hurls one a long way sideways has done badly.

The sequence is the same for every competitor:

• •The log is stood upright and stewards hold it while the thrower prepares
• •The thrower crouches, cups both hands under the narrow lower end and lifts
• •The log is rested against the shoulder and balanced upright with both hands
• •A short run builds momentum while keeping the log vertical
• •The thrower stops and heaves upwards and forwards, pushing the base ahead
• •The log rotates about its own far end, which must strike the ground and pivot

The difficulty is balance rather than raw strength, which is why large strong people frequently fail at it. The log is held vertically against the shoulder with the hands cupped underneath and no grip available at all, since the surface is smooth and the hands are supporting weight from below, so the entire thing is balanced rather than held. A log wavering out of line cannot be corrected once it starts to fall, and the run must be made while maintaining that balance. The throw itself requires lifting the far end through the vertical, which means supplying enough upward force at the base to rotate several metres of timber, and mistiming it by a fraction leaves the log short.

The log throw is the most photographed of a programme of heavy events that share a common character. The hammer throw uses a weight on a rigid shaft, swung around the head from a fixed stance with the feet planted and frequently with blades fitted to the boots to grip the turf. Weight throws for distance and for height use a metal block with a ring handle, the height version thrown one-handed backwards over a raised bar. The stone put resembles the shot put and uses an unshaped stone. The sheaf toss pitches a bundle over a bar with a fork. What unites them is that each uses an object that was once an actual working implement or load, thrown in a manner that has been formalised into a rule.

The origin is genuinely uncertain and the popular explanations should be treated with caution. The usual account has foresters tossing logs across streams or lifting them onto carts, which is plausible and has no documentary support, and the same is true of accounts involving bridging gaps or storming gates. What is documented is that the event appears in organised Highland gatherings from the early nineteenth century, when such gatherings were themselves being deliberately revived and elaborated as part of a broader construction of Highland tradition, so the event as practised is Victorian in its organised form whatever its earlier origins. Logs are not standardised, which means every gathering uses its own and results cannot be compared between them.

The log is scored on the direction it finishes, with a result directly away from the thrower being perfect and distance counting for nothing. It is balanced against the shoulder with no grip available, which makes it a problem of balance rather than strength. Organised competition dates from early nineteenth century Highland gatherings, and the logs are not standardised, so results are not comparable between events.