Extreme ironing

Extreme ironing (or EI) is an extreme sport and a performance art in which people take an ironing board to a remote location and iron a few items of clothing. According to the official website, extreme ironing is "the latest danger sport that combines the thrills of an extreme outdoor activity with the satisfaction of a well pressed shirt." Part of the attraction and interest the media has towards extreme ironing seems to center on the issue of whether it is really a sport or not.

Some locations where such performances have taken place include a mountainside of a difficult climb; a forest; in a canoe; while skiing or snowboarding; on top of large bronze statues; in the middle of a street; underwater; under the ice cover of a lake; and in warzones. The performances have been conducted solo or by groups.

The Guardian said of extreme ironing that it carries on a tradition of British eccentricity.

History

Proponents of the sport claim that it was started in 1997 in Leicester, East Midlands, England by resident Phil Shaw in his back yard. Shaw came home from what he recalls as a hard day in a Leicester knitwear factory. Preferring the idea of an evening out rock climbing, he decided to combine the two activities into a new extreme sport. In June 1999, Shaw, who uses the nickname "Steam", embarked on an international tour to promote the activity. The stops included the United States of America, Fiji, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. An encounter with German tourists in New Zealand led to the formation of a group called "Extreme Ironing International", and the German Extreme Ironing Section or GEIS.

A documentary, titled Extreme Ironing, was filmed for Britain's Channel 4. The programme concentrates on the rivalry between the EIB (Extreme Ironing Bureau) and a breakaway group called Urban Housework.

In 2003, Phil Shaw released a book published by New Holland Publishers, also entitled Extreme IroningISBN 1843305550. The following year saw the release of a DVD titled Ironing Under the Sky, which was produced by Hot Under the Collar (HUTC) Productions. A follow up documentary was made in 2004, this time by RDF and HUTC, which was aired on Sky's Adventure One channel the following year.

In 2003 the Rowenta Trophy was won by a group from South Africa by ironing across a gorge at the Wolfberg Cracks. Later that year, the sport's founder, Steam brought out a book, also entitled Extreme Ironing, published by New Holland Publishers.

In 2004, the EIB traveled to the US on the Rowenta Tour to recruit additional ironists and ironed at Mount Rushmore, New York, Boston and Devils Tower.

In 2006, a team of extreme ironists from Devon, England, broke the underwater ironing depth record, for ironing 126m under the sea, off the Eqyptian coast.

Tournaments

In September of 2002, the first and last World Championship for the sport took place in Valley, Germany, near Munich. Organized by the German Extreme Ironing Section, the 1st Extreme Ironing World Championships were considered a success, drawing international media attention. The competition included eighty different teams from ten different countries, including Austria, Australia, Croatia, Chile, Germany, and the UK. The second annum of this competition was rumored to take place in England, but the sport has now been banned due to various fatal accidents.

Suggestions of Olympic eligiblity

Following the 2004 Summer Olympics, five-time Olympic gold medalist Sir Steve Redgrave backed extreme ironing to become an Olympic sport. "It is a fantastic sport. It's a little bizarre in some respects, but in a few years' time, rowing could be chopped from the Olympics and extreme ironing could be in!"

Steam commented on the topic on the EIB website: "Although, Sir Steve obviously wasn't really proposing the demise of rowing as an Olympic sport, it's still fantastic to get the backing of arguably Britain's finest ever athlete. And you never know, it might see the start of a new style of extreme ironing with competitors balanced on rowing boats."

In defence of these opinions, Steam asks doubters to consider synchronised swimming and its status as an Olympic sport.

References in popular culture

On the August 2, 2004 episode of EastEnders, EI was referenced. According to the EIB, the characters made reference to the current altitude record holders.

"As the party loving Kat and Zoe Slater are preparing to go out, they are invited to the launch party at Angie's Den by a couple of "media types". The pair say that there'd be celebrities in the shape of the Hot Plate Brothers there."

Extreme Ironing has been featured in news stories on CBS Sunday Morning, in The New York Times, The Sun, The Sunday Times, The Guardian, The Sydney Morning Herald, Calcutta Telegraph, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Toronto Star, TIME Magazine, ESPN.com, The Financial Times, and CNN.com.

Additionally, Extreme Ironing has been a frequent topic of discussion of "Macho Man" Randy Savage, who on recent occasions has mentioned his interest in the sport, going so far as to claim it can "easily trump professional wrestlbibbity ooing ... when the time is right".

Notes

External links

Performance art | Extreme sports