The history of cockroach races and the features of their conduct today

The cockroach race has all the signs of gambling: the uncertainty of the outcome, the possibility of betting, the real struggle. And of course, the entourage: excitement, fans, real struggle. And although these are not underground dog fights or horse races, which cockroach races do not live up to in terms of entertainment, but the races of man's six-legged friends have other advantages:

• Exotic entertainment - indeed, few people can boast of having seen or, moreover, participated in such competitions. And even fewer people made real bets here.
• Tickling of the nerves, especially in women. Still, a typical "stallion" here causes a lot of ambiguous emotions among slender viewers.
• Ease of conduct - a large enough room or front lawn is enough to conduct cockroach races. No rings, no stadiums.

In serious cases, cockroach races can withstand the entire entourage of serious games: here is a trained participant in the "race", and rates, and each "horse" has its own nickname, and a large audience, and even a mini-hippodrome!

History of Entertainment

Cockroach racing is an ancient entertainment. There is evidence of cockroach races in the history of Ancient Egypt, Byzantium, and the Roman Empire.

It is believed that this type of gambling reached its peak in Turkey.Writers write about cockroach races in Turkey, and the most famous cockroach breeders live here.

It is interesting

One of the most famous suppliers of running cockroaches was the Kurdish Shahin Fesah, who was most active in the middle of the 20th century. He carefully concealed this side of his life, as he was repeatedly convicted of numerous crimes related to sweepstakes and gambling, but restless journalists managed to find out that on a special farm, a man kept up to half a million cockroaches at the same time, and the most famous cockroach sports stars in Turkey were bought from him.

The first serious mention of cockroach races dates back to the 18th century. There is an opinion that this type of entertainment was invented in Russia, but historians are increasingly inclined to believe that it owes its origin to sailors sailing from the Caribbean. They had a lot of free time, a huge number of cockroaches in cargo from tropical countries, and a desire to somehow entertain themselves during long flights.

Not surprisingly, several English writers told of sailors in the dens of Jamaica who enthusiastically bet on the fastest cockroach.

It is known that cockroach races were widely used at the beginning of the last century in Turkey. However, this occupation was clandestine and mainly Russian emigrants participated in it.

On a note

During the filming of the Russian film "Running", the film crew could not find evidence that such races were held in Istanbul in the 20s of the last century.However, more thorough research by historians has confirmed that after the closure of the club, which regularly held lotto, its regular customers switched to cockroach races.

Today, Australia is considered a trendsetter in the field of cockroach racing. It was from the small town of Brisbane on the east coast that they became widespread throughout the country.

The tradition was started by Brisbane students who held competitions in the hostel, which invariably attracted a large number of spectators. So big that very soon the cockroach race became a real show, and until now, every year on January 26, a holiday is held, which is called “Australian Cockroach Race Day”. Special costumed balls - "Miss Cocky Races" - are dated for the same event.

On a note

Cockroach races are well described in Russian literature. For example, in the novel "Running" by Mikhail Bulgakov and in "The Adventures of Nevzorov or Ibiscus" by Alexei Tolstoy.

Competition Rules

This type of competition is considered traditional: each cockroach is placed in a separate groove about one and a half meters long. At the same time, a light is turned on at the starting point, frightening the insect. The cockroach tries to get away to a darker place and runs to the opposite end of the track.

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Usually 5-8 cockroaches participate in one race. The owner of each cockroach can drive his participant by various means. Usually, the participants do not have their own cockroaches, and they simply choose the most liked “horse” from the insects provided by the organizers, give it a nickname like “Cockroach-Meteor” and try to bring it to the finish line faster than the rivals.

Drivers are given almost complete freedom of action: a cockroach can be urged on by shouting, highlighting its path with a flashlight, blowing on it so that it runs faster. You can even slightly push with a stick if he has lost his way. In Australian cockroach racing, there is a main limitation - you can’t be too zealous, otherwise you can cripple the athlete.

In Australia, there is another system of competitions, in which there are no running tracks or special "race tracks". In any convenient place, for example, on the front lawn, on the table, on the beach, draw a wide circle. Participants of the race are placed in the center of the circle and covered with an ordinary pan.

At the “Start” signal, the pot is raised, and the cockroaches crawl in an arbitrary direction. The one that crosses the circle first wins.The “arena” is really full of passions, because every driver strives to lead his ward along a straight trajectory to the finish line and win. Sometimes practiced and races with overcoming obstacles.

The desire to win against the cockroach drivers is truly incredible. In one of the Tokyo universities, they found a way to train cockroaches in the best way. After conducting research, scientists came to the conclusion that cockroaches endure heat worst of all, so they attached a heated controlled wire to the insect shell. Researchers have become so good at "managing" a cockroach that they know how to guide it through a maze of pipes!

cockroach sports stars

The most famous champion is considered "Soft Cocky", which translates as "Soft and cheeky", who came first at the race in Australia in 1982. There is even a special "hall of fame", which lists the winners with the most unusual names - Cocky Balboa (Daring Balboa), Cocky Dundee (Daring Dundee), Drain Lover (Lover Leak), Priscila-Queen of the Drains (Priscila - Queen of Leaks).

Drivers usually show unprecedented originality in choosing nicknames for their wards. So in the cockroach race, which was timed to coincide with the Berlinale-2001 film festival, "Ruthless Ivan", "Unsurpassed Olga," Uncompromising Ural "," Stubborn Nina ", etc. participated.

One of the most famous races in Moscow under the leadership of Nikolai Drozdov was attended by "Procuror", "Woland", "Impeachment", "Zyugan", "Zhirin".

Most often, Madagascar cockroaches participate in the races - the largest and frisky of cockroaches, and one of the fastest running insects in general.

It is interesting

In terms of speed developed over short distances, Madagascar cockroaches are second only to horse beetles, being able to run a distance equal to 50 lengths of their body in a second. If humans ran at proportional speeds, champion sprinters would run the 100m in one second.

In the Caribbean, Colombian cockroaches are in great demand, slightly smaller, but not inferior to Madagascar in agility. But the Prussians and black cockroaches, traditional for Russia, are not very suitable for such amusements: they are too small, unpredictable in the direction of running and fussy.

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Where today you can watch the races and show your "stallion"

In the classic form, cockroach races are officially held in all major Australian cities. In our country, there are several agencies that provide all the accessories for such competitions for hire as entertainment at the party.

It is enough to call such a company and place an order, and at the right time, the cockroaches themselves, treadmills and the necessary paraphernalia will be delivered to the specified address. The kit comes with a specialist who knows how to conduct such competitions.

It is interesting

At the Berlinarle 2001 film festival, cockroach races were held for art and film stars. The attraction received incredible praise and good reviews, and all the winnings, among which there were quite large ones, were donated to charity.The Hippodrome was not left unattended until late at night, and according to the results, the organizers could confidently say that such competitions can bring bright colors to any event and remain a bright trace in the memory of all spectators and participants.

Be that as it may, but from a purely legal point of view, cockroach races are a violation of animal rights and an encroachment on cruelty to them. It is unlikely, of course, that the security forces of any country will close the dens in which races are held only for this reason, while cruel experiments on animals are being carried out in higher educational institutions simply to educate students. But as a reason for another round-up, such a wording is quite suitable.

Interesting video: cockroach race