Weakest conkers in 57 years leave competitors fighting shortest bouts ever at world championships
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Our Conkers Have Gone Too Soft: Weakest Chestnuts in 57 Years Make Competitors Fight Shortest Ever at World Championships
- A summer drought and autumn storms were responsible for the soft conkers
- At last week’s world championships, some nuts were split after just one stroke
- The event in Northamptonshire was described by the organizer as a ‘freak year’
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The softest chestnuts in 57 years left disgruntled conkerbashers fighting the shortest bouts ever at this year’s world championships.
A summer drought and severe autumn storms were responsible for some conkers being smashed to smithereens in seconds.
At last week’s event, which has been held in the village of Southwick in Northamptonshire since 1965, as it has every year since 1965, some notes were split after just a single strike and a record number of games lasting under two minutes.
The softest chestnuts in 57 years caused disgruntled conkerbashers to fight the shortest bouts ever at this year’s world championships
Experts claimed the lack of rain in July and August slowed conkers growth, before a sopping September triggered a late spurt that left the nuts with weak outer layers too weak to withstand attack.
Championship organizer St John Burkett said: ‘It’s been a bizarre year. We’ve never seen conkers so soft since the event began in 1965. Some literally broke in seconds.
“They are big conkers this year, but they break easily. A bigger note isn’t stronger for conker fights.’
In the past, organizers had to be wary of shuffling, with some desperate duelists artificially hardening their conkers. “It’s ironic that our sport now has a problem with soft nuts, after players soaking them in vinegar or baking them in the oven for years,” added Burkett.
A summer drought and severe storms in the fall were responsible for some conkers being smashed to smithereens in seconds
Hundreds of participants from around the world took part in the championships last Sunday, which required several thousand conkers. Experts say the strongest are medium-sized and round, plucked fresh from the ground under an older tree.
Twin conkers in a single shell are not preferred because they break more easily because their flat side is weaker, conker cognoscenti argue.
Participants in the World Conker Championship cannot use their own conkers, but must draw a nut from a bag before their match. School nurse Fee Aylemore won the women’s title after 30 years of trying, while Randy Topolnitsky of Calgary, Canada, was named the men’s champion.