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Ferret legging, also known as put 'em down, is a sport that seems to have originated among coal miners in Yorkshire, England. The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English defines it as "an endurance test or stunt in which ferrets are trapped in pants worn by a participant". The male-only contestants put live ferrets inside their trousers; the winner is the one who lasts the longest before releasing the animals. Reg Mellor, a retired miner from Barnsley, holds the world record at five hours and twenty-six minutes, a feat he achieved in 1981 at the age of 66.

Following a brief resurgence in popularity during the 1970s, ferret legging has now been described as a "dying sport", although a national ferret legging event has been held in Richmond, Virginia every year since 2003.

Origin

Ferret legging is a sport that seems to have become popular among coal miners in Yorkshire, England. According to Marlene Blackburn of the Richmond Ferret Rescue League ferret legging originated in pubs "where patrons would bet on who could keep a ferret in his pants the longest." The sport may alternatively have originated during the time when only the relatively wealthy were allowed to keep ferrets, forcing the animal poachers to hide their illicit ferrets in their trousers. This was also done by the poachers to keep the animals warm.

The pastime gained attention in a humorous article written by Don Katz, entitled "King of the Ferret Leggers," in the October 1987 issue of Outside magazine. The Fresno Bee's James Howard said Katz failed to explain why anyone would want to participate in a sport such as ferret legging, but the article "offers a glimpse into the human need to challenge the edges of human endurance".

Description

Competitors tie their trousers at the ankles before placing two ferrets inside and securely fastening their belts to prevent the ferrets from escaping. Each competitor then stands in front of the judges for as long as he can. Competitors cannot be drunk or drugged, nor can the ferrets be sedated. In addition, competitors are not allowed underwear beneath their trousers, which must allow the ferrets free access from one leg to the other, and the ferrets must have a full set of teeth that must not have been filed or otherwise blunted. Competitors can attempt to dislodge the ferrets, but only from outside the trousers. The winner is the person who lasts the longest. The sport is said to involve very little "native skill", simply an ability to "have your tool bitten and not care". The current world champion, Reg Mellor, is credited with instituting the practice of wearing white trousers in ferret legging matches, to better display the blood from the wounds caused by the animals.

The ferrets are occasionally put inside the contestants' shirts in addition to their trousers. An attempt to introduce a female version of the sport—ferret busting, in which female contestants introduced ferrets down their blouses—proved unsuccessful.

Record

Retired miner Reg Mellor, from Barnsley, set his world record time of five hours and twenty-six minutes on 5 July 1981 at the Annual Pennine Show at Holmfirth, Yorkshire. Mellor's "trick" was to ensure that the ferrets were well-fed before they were inserted into the trousers. In 1986 Mellor attempted to break his own record before a crowd of 2,500 spectators, intending to beat the "magic six-hour mark—the four-minute mile of ferret legging". After five hours most had become bored and left, and workmen arrived to dismantle the stage, despite Mellor's protests that he was on his way to a new record. According to Adrian Tame of the Sunday Herald Sun, Mellor retired after that, "disillusioned and broken-hearted," but with his dignity and manhood intact. Mellor had hoped to organise an annual national competition held in his home town of Barnsley, and offered a prize of £100 to anyone who could beat him.

Reception

Christopher Borrelli of The Blade describes ferret legging as "remarkable" sport in which you get "more agony of defeat than thrill of victory," and Louis Mahoney of the Richmond Times-Dispatch said it is "sure to bring a laugh." The Atlanta Journal's Scott Bernarde commented that anyone who has tried ferret legging "will agree that falling off a mountain isn't all that bad." American sportswriter Rick Reilly of ESPN tried ferret legging as part of his quest to find "the world's dumbest sport" for a book to be publish in 2010.

Reg Mellor made a brief appearance in the 1976 television documentary presented by actor and wrestler Brian Glover titled It's no joke living in Barnsley, during which he demonstrated ferret legging. During his appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in May 1996, actor Paul Hogan (Crocodile Dundee) spent much of the interview with Leno talking about ferret legging, which he identified as "a new Australian Olympics event." In November 1992, the J. Walter Thompson advertising firm produced television commercials for the California State Lottery that compared keno with ferret legging. One of the commercials concludes that keno "as you can imagine, is lots better than a ferret in your trousers."

According to a 2005 report published in the English Northern Echo newspaper, whether due to a "lack of brave contestants or complaining wives", ferret legging is "a dying sport" that is being replaced by ferret racing, in which the animals race through a plastic pipe. Although the sport is now uncommon, annual competitions have been held at the Richmond Highland Games & Celtic Festival in Richmond, Virginia since 2003. Blackburn, who works with the Ferret Rescue League to ensure that no ferrets are harmed in the sport, admits that during the years the competitions have been held in Richmond, no contestant has ever been bitten, though one may get a few scratches. Jay Lugar, spokesman of the Richmond Highland Games & Celtic Festival, said ferrets are "generally very harmless, fun-loving creatures."

References

Notes

1. ^ Fox 1998, p. 13
2. ^ Kershaw, Ronald (31 December 1980), "Mr Mellor sets scene for a Yorkshire test of the ferret-legging custom" (subscription required), The Times, retrieved 2009-08-12 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
3. 2006 & Barrett, p. 114 harvnb error: no target: CITEREF2006Barrett (help)
4. Katz 2001, p. 6
5. ^ "Countryside day may be annual event", Northern Echo, 4 January 2005, retrieved 2009-08-12 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
6. Greene, Jerry (31 December 1995), "Feeling Bowled Over? I Have A Cure - Sort Of", Orlando Sentinel, p. C1 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
7. ^ Wasson, Bill (29 October 2006), "Intimate sport of ferret legging / At annual Highland event, contestants put animal down their pants, then wait, pray", Richmond Times-Dispatch, p. B.1 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
8. ^ George, Isabel (9 February 2002), "They've been companions to royalty and poachers, prized for their hunting skills and even used to lay underground cables. Now ferrets are being cast in a new role - as pets. And they're surprisingly good at that.", The Guardian, p. F3 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
9. Wineke, William (1 July 2001), "Ferreting Out The Fascinating", Wisconsin State Journal, p. F3 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
10. Cavanaugh, Katherine (27 October 1997), "Smart money is on Wayne company's sound idea - Audio to go", The Star-Ledger, p. 57 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
11. Howard, James (23 November 1997). "Outside Takes Readers Inside Good Writing". The Fresno Bee. p. G2. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
12. ^ Tame, Adrian (19 January 2003), "Ferreting out my hero", Sunday Herald Sun, p. 75 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
13. Young, Patricia (29 May 29 2004), "This activity nothing to sneeze at", Guelph Mercury, p. A2 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
14. ^ Mackaness, Charlotte (9 December 2006), "Ferreting Out The Facts", The Daily Telegraph, p. 18 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
15. "China's Olympics snit, etc.", The Washington Times, p. D2, 18 September 1993 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
16. ^ Smith, Tammie (23 October 2008), "Big Guys Toss Anything - Competitions are among the events at Richmond Highland Games & Celtic Festival", Richmond Times-Dispatch, p. D-1 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
17. "Ever met a ferret legger?", Yomiuri Shimbun, 20 October 2002 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
18. ^ Katz 2001, p. 9
19. Williams, Michael; McMullen, Cynthia (28 December 2003), "Is that a ferret in your pocket, or ... ?", Richmond Times-Dispatch, p. G-1 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
20. Wansell, Geoffrey (31 March 1983), "Hob and Jill Make a Comeback" (subscription required), The Times, retrieved 2009-08-12 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
21. Hattenstone, Simon (14 August 2008), "In Praise Of The North", The Guardian{{citation}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
22. Gould, Philip J.; Laue, Ralf (2004), Book of Alternative Records, Metro Publishing, ISBN 1-84358-126-4
23. Gordon, Jim (16 July 2002), "A 'sport' unlikely to draw spectators", Post-Tribune, p. A2 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
24. Borrelli, Christopher (18 June 2004). "Filmmakers score laughs in flaky sports comedy". The Blade. pp. D6. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
25. ^ Mahoney, Louis (22 October 2003). "Celtic Fare". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. D-1. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
26. Bernarde, Scott (20 December 1998). "Plentiful targets - From tools to software, holiday choice of presents for outdoorsmen varied". The Atlanta Journal. p. E24. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
27. Greenstein, Teddy (30 May 2008). "New life of Reilly: ESPN's everyman". Chicago Tribune. p. 4. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
28. Bisheff, Steve (23 May 1996). "Beard's 'Tonight' to remember". The Orange County Register. p. D01. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
29. Magagnini, Stephen (22 November 1992), "Keno Providing A Lot Of Action, But Few Riches - Except To State", Los Angeles Daily News, p. N10 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
30. ^ Ruggieri, Melissa (23 October 2003). "Ferret Out What's New At Festival". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. D-12. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)

Bibliography;

• Fox, James G. (1998), Biology and Diseases of the Ferret (2 ed.), Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins, ISBN 0-683-30034-2
• Katz (2001), King of the Ferret Leggers and Other True Stories, New York: Random House, ISBN 0-8129-9152-4 {{citation}}: Text "Donald" ignored (help)

Further reading

• "Ferrets plus pants equals hours of entertainment", York Daily Record, 20 February 2006 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

• Sport in England
• Ferrets