Confession Friday - Add a Little Steam to Get the Wrinkles Out

Once again, it is Confession Friday. Today's confession comes in two parts.

For the first part, I confess that I do not like ironing.  I LOATHE ironing.  I did way too much ironing for the first half of my marriage.  I search for things to wear that do NOT require ironing.  Is there any household chore that is more boring or mindless?  I can't remember the last time my ironing board was in an upright position and the iron was plugged in and heated. And this is where the irony sets in. (oh, gee, an unintended pun.)

The second part of my confession is this:  I love unusual activities - wild and whacky activities that people find to do to amuse themselves. It is a quirky personality trait that I have. Some of these activities I want to try - if I were younger and in better shape and not afraid to die!  (Bear with me... I will make the connection back to my first confession in a second.)  It is fascinating to me how people think of these off-the-wall things to do and then the word spreads and from it is born a new sport that catches on across the world, complete with competitions and awards, maybe not mainstream, but still fun to think about all the same.

Which brings me to EXTREME IRONING..... 

Extreme Ironing  is considered a "sport" involving taking an ironing board and iron to a remote location, then ironing items of clothing. It is a danger sport combining the thrills of an extreme outdoor activity with a well-pressed shirt.

Extreme ironing has been performed in locations such as mountain tops after a difficult climb, in boats, forests, underwater, while biking or skiing or parachuting, in the middle of a street, underwater, in Arctic conditions and much more.

According to Wikipedia, Extreme Ironing was "...started in 1997 in Leicester, East Midlands, England by resident Phil Shaw in his back garden. Shaw came home from what he recalls as a hard day in a Leicester knitwear factory.^[3] Preferring the idea of an evening out rock climbing, he decided to combine the two activities into a new extreme sport. In June 1999, Shaw, who uses the nickname "Steam", embarked on an international tour to promote the activity. The stops included the United States, Fiji, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. An encounter with German tourists in New Zealand led to the formation of a group called "Extreme Ironing International"..."

There are now competitions across the world with teams representing their countries, just like the Olympics or other international sports.  I am not sure of what the rules are, how points are won or what the final prize is (other than bragging rights). Are there tryouts?  Rankings?  Handicaps?
Best out of three? Does it matter if the iron has a steam setting?

Okay, let's face it.  I will likely NEVER participate in Extreme Ironing.  In my world, the only way that the word "extreme" will ever occur in connection with me and ironing is if I would iron more than one item of clothing in a six month period.  But the next time I have to iron anything of any sort, I will imagine myself on a mountaintop, blissfully pressing French pleats.

I wonder how much a little used, like new ironing board and iron would sell for in a used sporting goods store?  If you feel like this is an activity you would like to take up, I will make you a good deal.  Happy ironing!