Do you remember the old school sports days? Sun shining and fellow students and parents all gathered around chanting and cheering as you ran in the egg and spoon race, wheelbarrow race or a three legged run. Ha barefeet on the cool prickly fresh cut grass playing fields, going to school in your PE kit.
Blimey, that was a long time ago for me! :-) Around six decades in fact.
I never participated but the sack, wheelbarrow, three-legged and egg-&-spoon races were events in only the Infants' and perhaps, lower Primary, School sports-days.
Dont remember ever having a sports day until I went to high school . I looked forward to seeing my parents at the boarding school for a long weekend but hated the run up to sports day . Being forced to do something you were totally crap at was no fun at all . Every weekend about 2 months before sports day we were forced to practice for sports day trying our hand at everything . Javelin , shot put , long jump all the distance running etc . Being forced to do polevault was no fun and none of the other things like uneven bars etc .
@Rhode57 Did it be barefoot or had you a choice. I would as a lad have always gone barefoot and at boarding school it was the thing that All lads went barefoot and day pupils mostly joined us as they hated to bring trainers.
@Rhode57 Was this indoors or outdoors. Did the boarding school insist that you were NOT allowed to do PE indoors barefoot or in the evenings when at playing indoors you could not go in barefeet. Pretty strict I would say. What if a a person forgot their PE shoes, were they disciplined or allowed to be barefoot for that lesson. In the boarding houses were you not allowed to run around in Barefeet to relax? Very strict indeed. Did pupils and parents never complain to the PE staff or your housemaster/mistress regarding this. Sorry to hear.
@onewithshoes Was the same for us too although outside for cross country and netball girls were allowed a choice of bare feet or trainers. Did you ever try and wear your shoes?
@Ross19 No. I never tried wearing shoes. No one did. The only real challenge for bare feet was the cinder track. I couldn't ever cross it barefoot withough terrible ouchies. The boys who ran track seemed to manage it all right, but only 3 or 4 girls ever did track. I used to walk home with one of them and she had feet like leather, and was proud to let me touch them. She carried her shoes and walked home barefoot just like a boy. I must say I was totally awe srtricken, and I might have had a bit of a crush on her,😕 -- but I turned out straight.😉
