South Down Cheese Race
Tomorrow is the tenth annual cheese chase. The rules are simple, a cheese is rolle from Jack and Jill windmills down the hill, the racers charge after it and the person the collect it from the bottom gets free cheese for life.
I spoke to the guardians of the Jack and Jill windmills - owned by the national trust but managed by volunteers - they told The Bogus that it was the highlight of their year. “There is a proud tradition of milling the cheeses on the south downs and this reminds people why the windmills are here” he said, “and in these credit crunch times then I expect the races to be even more competitive than usual.”
Nobody is sure why the race started but one theory is that it is a re-enactment of an incident in 1887 when a cheese thief tried to make off with a round and was caught. His punishment was to be trussed into a circle and pushed to the bottom of the hill. He died.
Be at the windmills at midday for a prompt “cheese off”
