Highland Games Basics: Caber Carry

Highland Games Basics: Caber Carry

When I first started throwing, I struggled greatly with the caber, and that’s no exaggeration. Just ask some of my fellow HASA members and they’ll tell you.. So, I did what any newbie would do - I turned to YouTube. Through my rigorous research, one man kept coming up as a dude who crushed monster cabers; legend was that there wasn't a caber this guy couldn't turn. Mike Smith is this man's name, and I quickly decided that if I want to be even pedestrian at this event (it took me five games before I even turned my first one), I had better replicate what this man was doing. His "pick" was pretty standard, but it was his carry that set him apart. Mike Smith would carry the stick so high, it was almost at shoulder level, it seemed. In each instance I saw, he made a conscience effort to get the caber positioned higher.  I'm no smart man, but I did the math:

Dude turns more monster cabers than anyone
+
No one carries it like him
____________________________ 

Worth trying

Now, before I describe a caber carry or even defend it, know that I'm not saying there aren't plenty of different, and successful, ways to carry a caber. I'm just explaining how I do it and how I coach it.

We've already gone over the "pick" so let's jump into the carry. Once you've gathered yourself after catching this huge toothpick, work your hands up to chest level. So, what you have now is you're holding the caber with your elbows bent and the stick tucked in tight against your neck and shoulder.  It doesn't matter what side you carry the caber on (I throw right-handed but carry the caber on my left side), just that you're comfortable with the caber and feel as if you can somewhat control it … yeah, I know, I know..

I like to carry it high for a few reasons:

Less Drop - When I'm about to pull the caber and flip it, the "drop" of that caber is critical. If you jump stop your approach (don't, by the way, but again, more on that later), you're fighting yourself. The lower my carry is, the longer pull I have at the finish, and the more momentum I have to fit as I pull that stick all the way up. With a high carry, I can more easily hit that explosive finish position I want, without having to drop down in the basement to gather for a big turn.

Tight Shoulder - I want to feel in control of the caber. The higher I hold it and the tighter it is against my chest, shoulder and neck, the more control I feel that I have on it. I can pull it in closer to my body as needed for counter-balance and more easily give it a final "nudge" when it's time to pull it (more on that in another section). This all leads me to the last reason ...

Drive the Caber - I think a lot of people make the mistake of a simple mindset; don’t just run with the caber, drive it! With a high carry, I can really drive the caber - kind of like a football sled. You cannot carry a sled and run, you have to drive it forward – let’s do the same with a caber.  I even go to the extreme of keeping my head down during the entire "drive" phase.  In my thought process, if I can apply forward force to the caber, then I am speeding up the top end of the stick, making it that much more likely to turn.

And if you've not Googled Mike Smith by now, I've done you the favor of linking one of my all-time favorite caber tosses.

Carry on. 

 

678 comments

  • Edwin Tomas

    Hello everyone, I’m Edwin Tomas from New York , USA. and a few weeks ago, I was swindled off $325,000 worth of Bitcoins and Ethereum by a cryptocurrency trader who promised me huge returns on my investment.

    I was not aware it was a scam until I tried to withdraw my profits and I was logged out asking to pay tax. I thought I had lost everything until I came across an article just like this about TROJANHACK CYBER SECURITY COMPANY.

    A cryptocurrency recovery team who was able to recover stolen funds for many other people. I contacted TROJANHACK CYBER SECURITY the following day and to my surprise. I was able to recover my money in less than 72 hours.

    Their service is truly remarkable and I must commend them for getting my funds back from the hands of these swindlers.

    TROJANHACK CYBER SECURITY COMPANY can be contacted through

    E-MAIL: Trojanhack@qualityservice.com
    Whatsapp: +1 802 681 3837
    Telegram: @trojanhackqservice

  • Susan Gary

    I had the most terrible moments of my life few weeks back when I lost all my savings to a self acclaimed crypto investment platform which promised me a massive return on my investment to lure me into debt which I went bankrupt. They kept asking for more and more money while I tried withdrawals of my profits. I lost both profits and my investment until I read about Century Web fund recovery services. I wrote this agency immediately and they requested for some info. Within 24 hours, all my funds were restored and I could smile again. I’m grateful I met the most reliable fund retrieval team. You can as Well Contact Them if you have similar issues Email: century@cyberservices.com WhatsApp: +13862608052

  • Frank Wallace

    Can Seed Phrase to My Crypto Wallet Be Retrieved?

    That was the question that went through my mind for weeks after I lost my seed phrase, and not until I attempted to research it that I found out about Morphohack Cyber Service, a crypto recovery company that has been able to help others like me recover their seed phrase which was lost, access to crypto wallet and recover crypto funds from con men.
    I’m hugely grateful for the services of Morphohack Cyber Service in helping me retrieve my seed phrase and access to my crypto wallet, I was depressed for weeks without any luck of ever getting my seed phrase back until I came across Morphohack Cyber Service, their professional team was very helpful, supportive and carried me along with the process of retrieving my seed phrases. I can confidently give you a 100% guarantee that you can trust them to recover any amount of crypto funds, data, and private information. These guys were a genius and that is just the word I can find right now to explain how amazing their service was. You can contact Morphohack If you are ever in need of a service of a professional crypto recovery team, their contact information below (MORPHOHACK@CYBERSERVICES . COM) WhatsApp(+1 213 672-4092)

  • Frank Wallace

    Can Seed Phrase to My Crypto Wallet Be Retrieved?

    That was the question that went through my mind for weeks after I lost my seed phrase, and not until I attempted to research it that I found out about Morphohack Cyber Service, a crypto recovery company that has been able to help others like me recover their seed phrase which was lost, access to crypto wallet and recover crypto funds from con men.
    I’m hugely grateful for the services of Morphohack Cyber Service in helping me retrieve my seed phrase and access to my crypto wallet, I was depressed for weeks without any luck of ever getting my seed phrase back until I came across Morphohack Cyber Service, their professional team was very helpful, supportive and carried me along with the process of retrieving my seed phrases. I can confidently give you a 100% guarantee that you can trust them to recover any amount of crypto funds, data, and private information. These guys were a genius and that is just the word I can find right now to explain how amazing their service was. You can contact Morphohack If you are ever in need of a service of a professional crypto recovery team, their contact information below (MORPHOHACK@CYBERSERVICES . COM) WhatsApp(+1 213 672-4092)

  • Jyoti Luke

    Goodday to anyone seeing this post i recently enlisted one of personal chargeback recovery services and I must admit I was more than impressed. If you have been a victim of bitcoin or any cryptocurrency scam, I feel like it’s my duty to connect you all with a legit hacker like him. I started having a lot of issues with an investment company that goes by the name drip coin when I placed a withdrawal order for 297,000 USD From which I had with them. The so-called accountant disappeared, the support team did not respond to any of my emails and I thought it was over because I made the payments in crypto but I didn’t give up to have my funds back. Luckily for me with the help of Mr. JamesMCKAYWIZARD I was able to recover my funds. I salute him for his service his emails: jamesmckaywizard at gmail dot com or WhatsApp +31657446248.

Leave a comment