PoohSticks

According to Wikipedia--yes, there is an entry for it--PoohSticks, for those who aren't card-carrying members of the A.A. Milne Fan Club, is "a simple sport which may be played on any bridge over running water; each player drops a stick on the upstream side of a bridge and the one whose stick first appears on the downstream side is the winner. "  Apparently, there are detailed rules and an annual World Championship that is held on the River Thames.

The start of the race.

We like to keep it simple.  Our favorite place to play is on a much-loved bridge in the mountains of southern Virginia--right around the corner from the cows, of course.  My youngest and I simply choose sticks of mostly-equal size, count to three, and let them drop.  After carefully looking both ways, we zip to the other side of the bridge to root our sticks on to victory.  This year, we had to modify our "rules" a bit.  Because of the cows.

The Anti-Cow Crossing Barrier.

The wise farmers built a "fence" to keep the cows from crossing this portion of the creek and escaping down the road.  Yes, we once witnessed their daring escape; thus, we understood the need for the contraption.  So, we decided that the winner would be determined by the first stick to go through the narrow "goal".  It's not as easy as it looks--you have to sneak by the rocks, hope the creek flow is on your side, and trust that your highly-refined PoohSticks skills have not gotten rusty since the last match.

After multiple displays of PoohSticks prowess, we decided to call it a draw.  Just wait till next year.

Beyond the finish line.