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Cheese Rolling 101 Trivia Quiz

Cheese rolling has been taking place in Cooper's Hill near Gloucester since the 15th century. How much do you know about this crazy annual event?

A multiple-choice quiz by garymeadows. Estimated time: 6 mins.

Author
garymeadows

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
395,309

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
209

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Cheeserollers meet at Cooper's Hill on Spring Bank Holiday Monday. There are three men's races and one woman's race. If you want to race, what do you need to do? Hint

Attend 30 minute briefing in pub that morning, fill out application form and donate �10 to St John Ambulance

Send in application form, doctor's note and �50 donation to St John Ambulance a week before

Turn up at the top of the hill

Attend 3 minute briefing at bottom of hill, hand over name, emergency contact & token �1 donation to St John Ambulance

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. The objective is to catch the rolling cheese, which is released a second before the runners take off! What is used as the cheese? Hint

A wooden disc measuring three inches thick and nine inches in diameter

An eight pound wheel of Double Gloucester

A foam disc measuring three inches thick and nine inches in diameter

A forty pound wheel of cheddar cheese

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. Which record did Chris Anderson break in 2018? Hint

Lifetime most bones broken

Lifetime most races won

Fastest time down the hill

Unable to complete three years running

NEXT>

Question 4 of 10

4. Stephen Gyde was the first man to achieve what feat? Hint

First one armed man to win

First to win the race whilst under the influence

Won all three races in one day

First man to win over the age of 45

NEXT>

Question 5 of 10

5. The 2018 event was a record breaking year for Flo Early, when she became the first ______________ . Hint

person to win with dislocated shoulder

transgender winner

person to complete three-generation dynasty of winners

woman to win three separate years

NEXT>

Question 6 of 10

6. The second year Chris Anderson won (in 2006), he sustained a concussion that went undiagnosed. What strange behaviour got him sent home from work the next day? Hint

Putting a kettle in a fridge

Writing a reminder to himself directly on the staff room wall

Stripping to his underwear after getting overheated

Collapsing during a staff meeting

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. What happens if you reach the bottom of the hill upright? Hint

You will be given a token for a pint of scrumpy in The Cheese Rollers pub

You will be dowsed with a bucket of water

You will be given an obligatory check-up by St John Ambulance

You will be caught or tackled by a rugby player

8. After its release the cheese soon reaches a speed of 70 mph and doesn't follow a fixed course, meaning it is rarely caught by participants. What safety measures are in place to stop the cheese from hitting a spectator? Hint

The cheese is attached to a bungee guy-line, pegged in nearly halfway up the hill

Two volunteers with high pressure hoses will slow and divert it

No safety measures are in place

Spectators at the base of the hill are shielded by perspex

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. As if this annual event wasn't dangerous enough, what act of god marred the event in 1982? Hint

Lightning stuck eight spectators

Heavy rainfall overnight resulted in a landslide after the first race

A tree branch fell and hit three spectators

The Master of Ceremonies suffered a heart attack the night before

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. Cooper's Hill has a population of 39. How many people come to the village every May to watch the annual event? Hint

1,500

15,000

5,000

500

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Cheeserollers meet at Cooper's Hill on Spring Bank Holiday Monday. There are three men's races and one woman's race. If you want to race, what do you need to do?

Answer: Turn up at the top of the hill

Previously there were up to forty racers per race, but St John Ambulance, a volunteer organisation, complained that they did not have enough members to treat the invariable casualties.

2. The objective is to catch the rolling cheese, which is released a second before the runners take off! What is used as the cheese?

Answer: An eight pound wheel of Double Gloucester

Diana Smart and her son Rod have been providing the cheese for the races since 1988. A foam disc was used in 2013 after police warned a then-86 year-old Mrs Smart that she could be held responsible for injuries as the event has no clear commissioner, but regular cheese has been used since.

Wooden discs of equivalent size were used from 1941 to 1954 due to rationing. The Ministry of Food gave special permission to use a small amount of genuine cheese in the middle of the disc. A forty pound wheel of New Zealand cheddar was donated by the New Zealand Dairy Products Marketing Commission to celebrate the return of full-size cheeses after World War II. It must have been terrifying!

3. Which record did Chris Anderson break in 2018?

Answer: Lifetime most races won

He tied Stephen Gyde's record of 21 cheeses in the first race, and then made a surprise appearance in the third race, which he also won! Despite having won roughly 175 lbs of Double Gloucester, Anderson ate none of it as he only likes cheddar! He has been known to auction-off the cheeses to make money for Joseph's Goal, a charity set up to fund research into Nonketotic Hyperglycinemia.

4. Stephen Gyde was the first man to achieve what feat?

Answer: Won all three races in one day

Not only did he accomplish this incredible feat. he managed it twice! He held the record for most races won over a lifetime until Chris Anderson equalled and then beat him in 2018!

If you guessed "First to win the race whilst under the influence" you may be surprised to learn that racers often reach for some liquid courage before they race, traditionally in the form of scrumpy.

5. The 2018 event was a record breaking year for Flo Early, when she became the first ______________ .

Answer: woman to win three separate years

Early also won in 2008 and 2016. Remember there is only one woman's race per year, whilst there are at least three men's races, so this is quite an accomplishment. Though she did dislocate her right shoulder, I can't imagine she was the first winner to suffer such an injury, and sincerely doubt she'll be the last!

6. The second year Chris Anderson won (in 2006), he sustained a concussion that went undiagnosed. What strange behaviour got him sent home from work the next day?

Answer: Putting a kettle in a fridge

"The second year I won it went... I wasn't knocked out. I took a big bang to the head, a concussion, and the next day at work I put the kettle in the fridge, and in a glass factory you're not allowed to be in that condition." Anderson is now a soldier with 1st Battalion, The Rifles.

7. What happens if you reach the bottom of the hill upright?

Answer: You will be caught or tackled by a rugby player

This is done to reduce the momentum of the runner before they hit the safety fencing. The Cheese Rollers pub is a real pub in the nearby village of Shurdington, though there are two other pubs closer to Cooper's Hill.

Answer: No safety measures are in place

A 59 year-old grandmother was knocked out by an errant cheese in 1990. She was one of 22 recorded casualties that year.

9. As if this annual event wasn't dangerous enough, what act of god marred the event in 1982?

Answer: Lightning stuck eight spectators

Four adults and four children were zapped by lightning during a sudden thunderstorm during the 1982 races. The racing resumed as soon as the rain cleared. One of the boys hit by lightning wound up competing ten years later, when he broke his thighbone, resulting in an 18-inch pin in his leg.

10. Cooper's Hill has a population of 39. How many people come to the village every May to watch the annual event?

Answer: 15,000

It's one way to spend your bank holiday! Just don't forget to bring the crackers.

Source: Author garymeadows

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor gtho4 before going online.
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