http://www.odditycentral.com/page/92 Oddities Central Modern-Day Chariot Races in Rome By Spooky on May 5th, 2009 Category: Events, Funny, Pics LIKE DISLIKE 1 Comment Stumble it Icon digg it Icon On April 21 2009 Rome celebrated 2762 years of existence, and its modern-day Romans organized all sorts of events in honor of this occasion. As most of you know, old Rome loved competitions. Gladiator fights and chariot races were social events that everyone loved. As a tribute to the old times, the current inhabitants of Rome organized an old fashioned chariot race. Well, sort of… The modern chariots were pulled by bicycles instead of horses and the riders were actually cyclists. The competitors had to race three laps around the old Circus Maximus. ===================== http://eternallycool.net/2009/04/games-in-honor-of-romes-2762nd-birthday/ EterallyCool.net Games in Honor of Rome’s 2762nd Birthday! post info By idcrome Categories: Historic Sites, Humor, Past & Present and Sports 1 Comment Chariot Bike Race in Honor of Rome's 2762nd Birthday A bit later this week, on the 21st April, Rome will celebrate its 2762nd birthday–she’s looking good for her age, wouldn’t you say? In honor of this big event, a long series of concerts, historic reenactments, speeches, and inaugurations began today and will continue through Tuesday. Chariot Bike Race in the Circus Maximus The fesivities were scheduled to kick off this morning at 10:00am with the traditional parade staged by the historic reenactment organization called the Gruppo Storico Romano. Rain made the parade a bit less impressive and less photogenic than those of other years, so if you’re interested, we suggest you click over and take a look at our 2008 photos of the birthday celebration. The rain did hold off long enough, however, to allow the for a “chariot race” in the Circus Maximus–a new event devised to honor the Eterna. Chariot Bike Races in Rome's circus Maximus A patriotic group of bikers sporting giallo e rosso (yellow and red) athletic gear cleverly transformed their bicycles into race horses that pulled bigas, or two-wheeled chariots, manned by enthusiastic charioteers. While ancient Roman chariot teams were divided by color into the greens, the blues, the whites, and the yellows, these modern day Ben-Hurs formed two teams distinguished by their headgear–the helmet heads and the brush heads. Eager for a bit of Sunday-morning competition, they lined up at one end of the Circus and at the signal, the race for glory and fame began! Each horse and chariot were required to complete three turns around the spina or central spine of the circus. Just as in antiquity, things got a little hairy on the tight turn opposite the starting line. Ancient sources suggest that seating in that area of the circus was desirable, as one of the attractions of the chariot races were the “shipwrecks” or crashes that occurred when chariots took the tight turn at a high speed. Down the Back Stretch in the Bike Chariot Race in the Circus Maximus Though the highly trained horses and charioteers of today’s race managed to navigate the turn without any crashes, spectators were still pleased as the terrain is rough at that end of the Circus Maximus and thus it gave the racing teams an opportunity to exhibit their superior skills. At the finish, a helmet-head (no doubt aided by the aerodynamic design of his headgear) nosed ahead of the leading brush-head chariot, taking the prize! Stay tuned! We’ll be covering more of the birthday festivities in coming days! And, we’re wondering if anyone out there has a She-Wolf cake pan we can borrow? Chariot Bike Races in Rome's Circus Maximus ========================= http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chariot_racing Wikipedia Chariot racing (Greek: ??µat?d??µ?a/harmatodromia, Latin: ludi circenses) was one of the most popular ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine sports. Chariot racing was often dangerous to both driver and horse as they frequently suffered serious injury and even death, but generated strong spectator enthusiasm. In the ancient Olympic Games, as well as the other Panhellenic Games, the sport was one of the most important equestrian events. In the Roman form of chariot racing, teams represented different groups of financial backers and sometimes competed for the services of particularly skilled drivers. These teams became the focus of intense support among spectators, and occasional disturbances broke out between followers of different factions. The conflicts sometimes became politicized, as the sport began to transcend the races themselves and started to affect society overall. This helps explain why Roman and later Byzantine emperors took control of the teams and appointed many officials to oversee them. The sport faded in importance after the fall of Rome in the West, surviving only for a time in the Byzantine Empire, where the traditional Roman factions continued to play a prominent role for some time, gaining influence in political matters. Their rivalry culminated in the Nika riots, which marked the gradual decline of the sport.