The art of Soil

Chess boxing is defined as a hybrid fighting sport. It combines the traditional board game of  chess, involving the a cerebral cortex of the brain, and the physical contest of boxing. The competitors are requires to fight in alternating rounds of chess and boxing. 

Originally invented by the french comic book writer Enki Bilal in 1992, it has evolved into the championship sport chessboxing. It took until 2003 for the the Dutch fighter Lepe Rubingh to finally advance in the sport seen today. Lepe went on to win the first chess-boxing match with a thrilling 11 round spectacular when finally his opponent exceeded the chess time limit and Lepe went down as the worlds first chess boxing champion. 

From this early start the sport has grown into the powerhouse that we see today, european championships have arisen and household names such as: Nikolay Sazhin and Leonid Chernobaev have danced on the chessboard ring. 

The training for an expectant chessboxing champion is nothing short of torture. You need an Elo rating of 1600 and to have a record of at least 50 amateur bouts fought in boxing or another similar martial arts before you can even compete which narrows down the list of contenders to nothing more than the creme of the crop.

In this sport one has to be able to switch effortlessly between a full contact sport and a thinking sport. Round after round. Chessboxing requires you to not only master both sports but above all be able to withstand the constant switch between thinking and fighting.

Digging is also another sport that is taking the world by storm, led by none other than the Japanese. With the golden shovel up fro grabs, every year over 200 teams dig for the coveted prize.

Today I feel we have invented a new sport. Soil sampling. Combining the grueling physical punishment of both boxing and competitive hole digging, and the mental torture of chess. With the added addition of scorching heat and blood draining insects. 

Some people find joy in their sports, runners reach runners high, lifters often talk about the 'Punp' or high they feel after a particularly hard workout. I on the other had have invented "the sampling haze", an emotionless zen in which you complete tasks while the brain jacks into the 'neutral zone' where external stimuli such as: 'frustration of digging through more rock debris', and 'continuous form filling confusion' are muted into a dull roar that fills the ears. This white noise that lasts, like a coma, until you find yourself sitting back on the bus. 

Unfortunately, I was speaking to my girlfriend on the phone and accidentally referred my time here as a "Holiday".

So I must be enjoying it.