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StrangeSights: “Indiana Stones” revives stone lifting; penny farthings gather in Prague; and, vale Cassius, the world’s oldest crocodile…

DAVID ADAMS provides a round-up of some stories on the odder side of life…


Irish man David Keohan is reviving the ancient tradition of stone lifting. PICTURE: Screenshot/Reuters

Irish man David Keohan, also known as “Indiana Stones”, is reviving the ancient tradition of stone lifting. Putting on a support belt, chalking his hands and squatting beside a stone known as “The Bulk” he successfully lifts and carries the heavy rock around a tree in the village of Owning, in the south of Ireland. The stone weighs 170 kilograms, he says. The tradition, he says, was carried out as part of funeral games and other rites of passage, but also as a form of entertainment. He added that lifting a stone is a very different activity to more mainstream weightlifting with specially-designed equipment. Historically, men would routinely take bets on who could lift “The Bulk” longest and furthest – usually after a few pints of beer in the local pub, Keohan says. The winner would then enjoy great social status, he adds. – Reuters



Penny-farthing bicycle enthusiasts gathered in Prague for a vintage cycling event on 2nd November. Adorned in historical attire, the cyclists participated in formation rides, synchronised to music, and competed in races that tested both speed and balance. The ‘Czech Velocipedist Club’, responsible for organising the event, stated on its website that the first bicycle ride in what is now the Czech Republic, occurred in 1868. Penny-farthings, characterised by their distinctive large front and small rear wheel design, were first introduced around 1870, gaining popularity until the 1880s. The advent of bicycles with two evenly-sized wheels and chains, the model that most contemporary bicycles are based on, eventually replaced them. –  Reuters


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George Craig feeds the world’s largest captive crocodile, Cassius at the Marineland Melanesia on Green Island, Great Barrier Reef, Cairns, Australia on 18th March, 2023. PICTURE: AAP Image/Brian Cassey via Reuters

A 5.48 metre-long Australian crocodile that held the world record as the largest crocodile in captivity has died, a wildlife sanctuary said on Saturday. He was thought to be more than 110-years-old. Cassius, weighing in at more than one ton, had been in declining health since 15th October, Marineland Melanesia Crocodile Habitat said on Facebook. “He was very old and believed to be living beyond the years of a wild Croc,” according to a post by the organisation, based on Green Island near the Queensland tourist town of Cairns. “Cassius will be deeply missed, but our love and memories of him will remain in our hearts forever.” The group’s website said he had lived at the sanctuary since 1987 after being transported from the neighbouring Northern Territory, where crocodiles are a key part of the region’s tourist industry. Cassius, a saltwater crocodile, held the Guinness World Records title as the world’s largest crocodile in captivity. He took the title after the 2013 death of Philippines crocodile Lolong, who measured 6.17 metres long, according to Guinness. – SAM MCKEITH, Sydney, Australia/Reuters

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