THE CATOWA

Windsor, NS - September 19, 2003

Located in the heart of Nova Scotia at the eastern gate to the famed Annapolis Valley, Windsor is renowned as "The Birthplace of Hockey" and home to "Hants County Exhibition", the oldest agricultural fair in North America.

Tug-of-War is a tradition which has been a part of the Hants County Exhibition for 238 years. All one has to do is pass by the arena on an evening when the competitors are engaged in a tug-of-war battle and hear the capacity crowd roaring its support for the home-town teams to understand just how seriously the sport is regarded in this part of the country.

I had the pleasure of visiting this exhibition in 1996 when I was first vice-president of the Canadian Amateur Tug-of-War Association on an invitation by Victor Oulton, one of the organizers of the tug-of-war event that year. The warm hospitality of the people whom I met on that occasion and the excitement of the tug-of-war competitions left me with a wealth of memories which I will never forget.

2003 Martock Ladies Team On The Scale

Tug-of-war in the Canadian Maritimes probably has its roots in an old Celtic style of the sport, reflecting the background of the people who settled there in the 1700's. Although I had heard of this variation of the sport years earlier when researching material for a historic article about tug-of-war, I didn't really get a true picture of the kind of intense competition which it produced and the excitement that was generated for the spectators

until my visit there that year.

SUMMARY OF THE RULES:

In the Men's Division, each team consists of ten pullers. There are three weight classes, 2000 lbs , 1700 lbs and 1550 lbs. Pulls are limited to 15 minutes.
For the Women's Division, each team is made up of eight pullers. There is only one weight class, 1100 lbs., and an 8 minute time limit.
Teams are weighed in one hour prior to the event using a livestock scale.
1/8 " hobnails or flat plates are allowed on the footwear. Gouging the ground surface prior to the start of a pull is allowed.
A team must pull the entire opposing team over the centre line to obtain a win. However, in the event that the time limit is reached, the team with the most rope over the centre line is declared the winner.
Although "locking the rope" on the hip or knee is not allowed, the "back-lock" is used regularly as an alternative to the basic style of pulling, offering pullers a chance to use a different set of muscles when they begin to tire.

Back-lock Position

The switch to the "back-lock" position not only gives a team a "second breath" but is also exciting for the spectators as there is always a change in the momentum of the pull at the time a back-lock is executed. According to Barry Brown of Wolfville, NS, the Falmouth men's team is very difficult to beat and if you do, you have to regroup and wait for a chance to break them down on the back-lock. Falmouth has been in full 15 minute pulls where they

rolled in and out of the back-lock 3 times. Brown, a strong advocate of the back-lock, uses the following example to prove his point. "Take two ropes and attach them to a barn wall. The first rope has a man who will walk the rope up the wall and hold his weight on the hands. The second has a man with a suede jacket on who will go into the back-lock position and hold his weight off the wall. Who comes down first? Easy. The guy on the hands won't last long pure power. The man on the rope in the back-lock is using the friction of the jacket and the position to hold his weight and rest his hands. How long will he stay there maybe 15 minutes. Time for the other guy to have a coffee and check his email."

When asked what constitutes a good tug-of-war puller, Brown replied,
"Many people think it takes a big man to pull tug of war but this couldn't be further from the truth. All of my family pulled heavy and weighed around 165 lbs. A heavy man usually doesn't have the hands to hold his weight on the rope. My brother used to train in his basement. He had a regulation length of rope bolted to the wall about 2 feet above the floor with a mattress underneath. He would put his feet on the wall and hold himself horizontally off the floor over the mattress. He could stay on that rope for 15 minutes. A lot of big men couldn't last a minute. I have seen two teams put 15 minutes with no rope given. At the end of the pull many of the men passed out from the strain. It is a great sport that few understand but a few minutes into a good pull even a casual passer-by will get drawn into the excitement."

Another difference in the style of pulling in the maritimes, is in the function of the last puller (or anchor). The Anchor uses a leather belt which is hooked onto the rope. When the pull begins, the anchor turns and pulls in a forward direction opposite to the rest of the team who are moving in a backward direction.

Martock Ladies in Competition

The rules say that the Anchor may from time to time touch the ground with his hand in order to maintain his balance however he must not use the hand as a third foot.

This year's competition in Windsor resulted in a major upset when Falmouth, the defending champions for five consecutive years were defeated by the Fundy team.

During the preliminary round of events held on September 12th:

In the Ladies Division, Windsor Ladies defeated Grafton Ladies
In the Men's Division, Fundy won against Curry's Corner and Stewiacke defeated Martock

In the Championship round held on September 19th:

In the Ladies finals, Martock defeated Windsor.
In the Men's finals, Curry's Corner defeated Martock and won 3rd place, and Fundy finished 1st with their upset of Falmouth.

Fundy Men's Team - 2003 Champions

Thanks to Ken Ledstone and Barry Brown for their contributions to this article.