The Porridge adventure
Every once in a while, if were lucky, life throws something different at us. You get the opportunity to sample something a little different, maybe even a little strange. It should certainly not be what you’ve been used to. This doesn’t have to involve leather or baths full of chocolate! For some of course it may, but for me and 4 other brave souls representing Sunne, it was porridge.
I was asked to travel to my homeland and attend the World Porridge making championships. I had never heard of such a thing and for the life of me couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to take part in it. That being said, it was being held in Scotland and I actually quite like porridge, so off I went.
Carrbridge is what they would call in the old west a one horse town, infact it’s probably more of a one pony town. The infrastructure consists of a main road running straight through its centre. Here you can window shop outside the village’s general store or take a look into the local art shop. That’s the village shops taken care of.
At one end of the main road you find the village hall (perfect venue for a porridge championship) at the other end sits a local tourist attraction, a bridge (as in Carrbridge). I have to say the bridge is impressive, it’s very old and constructed from enormous blocks of stone. Looking at it you definitely get a sense of the amazing craftsmanship that must have existed back when it was first built. That being said, the coliseum or Arc de triumph it is not!
Running off from the main road are one or two small side roads, and a very large village green (perfect site for a market, if you wanted to hold a porridge championship).
There are quite a few bed and breakfast establishments scattered along the side streets and at least 2 hotels situated right on the main road. Luckily one of the hotels has a license allowing it to serve alcohol (much needed if you are to survive 2 days at a porridge championship).
Mobile phones can be used in Carrbridge, unfortunately though, they only function on one side of the main road. The best spot being directly across from the pub (hotel) turn left at the wooden gate, walk forward 4 steps and then turn to your right and talk away! (Directions given to me by the owner of my hotel, to his credit he was smiling as he told me).
Our first night in Carrbridge involved a cocktail party to welcome the participants and the chance to listen to a guy play the guitar. We headed off there at 6.30pm and finally got there at 6.31pm.That was to bode well for any staggering home later (joking of course).
As soon as he thought was appropriate, Per Thomas (one of the Sunne gang) knocked the guitar player off his chair and proceeded to play the violin for the rest of the night. The locals loved him. Yes, things were looking up for me! I was in a room filled with people whose passion in life was porridge and non-stop violin music (thank god for the cocktails).
I was asked by a guy with a microphone and camera if I would do an interview for an internet TV station, it was a chance for us to get some publicity for Sunne so of course I said yes. Unfortunately I had forgotten to bring my makeup artist and stylist with me but managed to muddle through without their help. On my return to the main hall (did I mention the interview was done in a car? Seemingly there was too much background noise inside the hall for the internet!) I was immediately cornered by a man who asked me with a straight face; how I made my porridge?
I humoured him and answered, with salt and water of course. Unfortunately this only seemed to agitate him and he said in a very loud voice;
NO, what do you use? A pan? I ventured. I began to slowly try and ease myself away from this obvious porridge fanatic. What else do you use? He asked, his voice still slightly too loud.
A spoon? I answered scanning the room as I spoke looking for a way out. When I turned back to him he was holding a piece of wood in his hand, it looked like a spoon that hadn’t been hollowed out yet.
You need a spawn. He was definitely shouting now and getting quite excited as he waved the wood in front of my face.
What I asked? A spawn he said, waving this piece of wood at me again. I suddenly realised this must be a spawn.
Is that a spawn I asked? Yes he said, a big smile on his face, I invented it. But it’s just a piece of wood, I said, realising as I spoke that I should not be poking the bear.
No its not, he growled at me. It’s a spawn. Spoons are terrible for making porridge; it sticks to them and makes it lumpy. This invention will change the way people think when making porridge.
I realised then I was speaking to a mad man. Just as I thought I was going to have to fight my way past him, an older man wearing a kilt joined us. I sighed with relief. Hello, he said, my name´s Bob Baxter, I live here in Carrbridge and you’re with the Swedish lot aren’t you? I was about to reply when he continued on. What do you think of Duncan’s spawn? Going to change the face of porridge making you know! I mumbled my admiration of this god given tool and headed straight for the bar.
The rest of my stay in Carrbridge followed pretty much along the same lines. It was a surreal experience from start to finish. But you know the strangest part of the whole thing was that I had a great time.
This little village was full of people like Duncan.
People here believe in the impossible and work hard to convince others of their beliefs. Whenever I looked around me during the weekend I saw people with smiles on their faces. The market being held on the village green may not have been the biggest I’ve ever seen, but it was fun, nowhere else have I ever been able to buy a wild boar burger! There were newspaper reporters and TV cameras everywhere. The winners of the competition were awarded the golden spurtle (a porridge making tool, which Duncan had overlooked when deciding the spawn was going to revolutionise the porridge world) by Miss Scotland. The newly crowned worlds porridge champions came all the way from America to win their prize and were joined by teams from Canada, Germany, Sweden, Scotland, England and Belgium.This was the 15th year the competition was being held and the judges this time were two top class chefs and a TV personality/author who presents programs about food. News coverage over the next 2 days was amazing. Full pages in National newspapers fought for attention with interviews and reports on both TV and radio stations.
It was only a Porridge competition for god’s sake. But somehow it had captured the imagination of the world. To be honest I think it could have been any type of competition being held in this feisty little village. The truth is that the committee who organised this event have managed to create a very big something out of nothing. They had managed to attract the world to their doorstep for the weekend and have been doing so for years and years.
The reason my self and the others were there was not just the porridge. It was to see what part of that success we could emulate here in Sunne.
I truly believe that Sunne has a big opportunity to over take all the success that Carrbridge enjoys. We have so many wonderful and exciting things that go on here; we only have to start thinking a little more globally and who knows in the future what the results may be?
Let me finish by saying that we were treated superbly by everyone we met in Carrbridge and I admit to using a bit of poetic licence in my description of this lovely (very small) village. I hope, if by any chance any residents get to read this you will smile with the knowledge that once again people are reading about where you live. After all, that is what the porridge championship really is. A tool used to advertise a beautiful village. Where once you have been, you will love and want to return.
Comments or questions? Please let me know. David
I was asked to travel to my homeland and attend the World Porridge making championships. I had never heard of such a thing and for the life of me couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to take part in it. That being said, it was being held in Scotland and I actually quite like porridge, so off I went.
Carrbridge is what they would call in the old west a one horse town, infact it’s probably more of a one pony town. The infrastructure consists of a main road running straight through its centre. Here you can window shop outside the village’s general store or take a look into the local art shop. That’s the village shops taken care of.
Running off from the main road are one or two small side roads, and a very large village green (perfect site for a market, if you wanted to hold a porridge championship).
Mobile phones can be used in Carrbridge, unfortunately though, they only function on one side of the main road. The best spot being directly across from the pub (hotel) turn left at the wooden gate, walk forward 4 steps and then turn to your right and talk away! (Directions given to me by the owner of my hotel, to his credit he was smiling as he told me).
Our first night in Carrbridge involved a cocktail party to welcome the participants and the chance to listen to a guy play the guitar. We headed off there at 6.30pm and finally got there at 6.31pm.That was to bode well for any staggering home later (joking of course).
As soon as he thought was appropriate, Per Thomas (one of the Sunne gang) knocked the guitar player off his chair and proceeded to play the violin for the rest of the night. The locals loved him. Yes, things were looking up for me! I was in a room filled with people whose passion in life was porridge and non-stop violin music (thank god for the cocktails).
I was asked by a guy with a microphone and camera if I would do an interview for an internet TV station, it was a chance for us to get some publicity for Sunne so of course I said yes. Unfortunately I had forgotten to bring my makeup artist and stylist with me but managed to muddle through without their help. On my return to the main hall (did I mention the interview was done in a car? Seemingly there was too much background noise inside the hall for the internet!) I was immediately cornered by a man who asked me with a straight face; how I made my porridge?
I humoured him and answered, with salt and water of course. Unfortunately this only seemed to agitate him and he said in a very loud voice;
NO, what do you use? A pan? I ventured. I began to slowly try and ease myself away from this obvious porridge fanatic. What else do you use? He asked, his voice still slightly too loud.
A spoon? I answered scanning the room as I spoke looking for a way out. When I turned back to him he was holding a piece of wood in his hand, it looked like a spoon that hadn’t been hollowed out yet.
You need a spawn. He was definitely shouting now and getting quite excited as he waved the wood in front of my face.
What I asked? A spawn he said, waving this piece of wood at me again. I suddenly realised this must be a spawn.
Is that a spawn I asked? Yes he said, a big smile on his face, I invented it. But it’s just a piece of wood, I said, realising as I spoke that I should not be poking the bear.
No its not, he growled at me. It’s a spawn. Spoons are terrible for making porridge; it sticks to them and makes it lumpy. This invention will change the way people think when making porridge.
I realised then I was speaking to a mad man. Just as I thought I was going to have to fight my way past him, an older man wearing a kilt joined us. I sighed with relief. Hello, he said, my name´s Bob Baxter, I live here in Carrbridge and you’re with the Swedish lot aren’t you? I was about to reply when he continued on. What do you think of Duncan’s spawn? Going to change the face of porridge making you know! I mumbled my admiration of this god given tool and headed straight for the bar.
The rest of my stay in Carrbridge followed pretty much along the same lines. It was a surreal experience from start to finish. But you know the strangest part of the whole thing was that I had a great time.
This little village was full of people like Duncan.
It was only a Porridge competition for god’s sake. But somehow it had captured the imagination of the world. To be honest I think it could have been any type of competition being held in this feisty little village. The truth is that the committee who organised this event have managed to create a very big something out of nothing. They had managed to attract the world to their doorstep for the weekend and have been doing so for years and years.
The reason my self and the others were there was not just the porridge. It was to see what part of that success we could emulate here in Sunne.
I truly believe that Sunne has a big opportunity to over take all the success that Carrbridge enjoys. We have so many wonderful and exciting things that go on here; we only have to start thinking a little more globally and who knows in the future what the results may be?
Let me finish by saying that we were treated superbly by everyone we met in Carrbridge and I admit to using a bit of poetic licence in my description of this lovely (very small) village. I hope, if by any chance any residents get to read this you will smile with the knowledge that once again people are reading about where you live. After all, that is what the porridge championship really is. A tool used to advertise a beautiful village. Where once you have been, you will love and want to return.
Comments or questions? Please let me know. David
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