The bagpipes were playing at the 14th annual Scottish Gathering and Games that were held at Bakersfield College for the first time on April 4.
The event started at 9 a.m., and the Ceilidh dinner and dance was held in the evening at 6 p.m. on the soccer field. The Scottish Games moved to BC because organizers said they had outgrown Stramler Park.
There were 15 different entertainment groups: 40 clans, 25 vendors, the Scottish Heavy Athletes and about 5,000 plus visitors.
One of the clans, Clan Henderson, had a booth with all kinds of information about the clan and where the clan was from.
Commissioner Joe Henderson for Clan Henderson in California, Hawaii and Nevada has been providing information about the clan for the last seven years at the gathering and games.
When asked about the relocation of the Scottish Games, he said, “This is so much nicer, and there is so much space. The only problem people have been telling us is the parking is really limited.”
The games at BC had more room for the “strong” men and women?in kilts to compete in Scottish Heavy Athletic events?like the Caber Toss, Braemer Stone Put, Weight Throw, Beer Keg Toss and new this year, the Hammer Throw.
The Caber is a wooden pole that can weigh 85 pounds for the A group, 75 pounds for the B group and 45 pounds for the women. The caber is basically a telephone pole. The object is to make the caber turn end over end and land as close to straight as possible. The winners were Scott Hutchison, men’s A group; Richard Rocker, men’s B group; Kym Ross Pollard, women’s group.
The musical groups that were at the event were The Wicked Tinkers, Tempest, Banshee in the Kitchen and High Ground.
The Wicked Tinkers have been together for 13 years, and they are a professional band that travels the country. The band has played at the Scottish Games in Bakersfield for nine years.
Warren Patrick Casey plays the tapan/bass drum and bodhran. He explained the band’s name: “Wicked” comes from the Bostonian word “wicked” meaning “wicked good and fun.” Other band members include Aaron Shaw, who plays bagpipes, trumps and lead vocals; Keith Jones, who plays snares and percussion; CJ Henderson, who plays the didgeridoo, the Irish horn, or bangs on a drum.
“‘Tinkers’ is a politically incorrect term in Britain meaning ‘the traveling people,'” Shaw said. “Tinker Pipers were not always good, but they had fun, and they played music for the people, so it kind of ended up in Scotland. So, having said that, I think Tinkers are pretty good pipers,” Shaw replied.