Yufan’s trip to Xinjiang is underway. Yesterday we personally participated in the winter fishing activities of local fishermen on the surface of Bosten Lake, the largest inland freshwater throughput lake in my country. It was very interesting and left a deep impression on us. It is for this reason that we are still staying in Bohu Lake in Bazhou today. County, and under the prompt of local friends, we watched a very lively sheep picking competition on the shore of Bosten Lake.
According to local friends, the sport of carrying sheep originated in the Middle Ages. At that time, wolves were very harmful to livestock. Herdsmen especially hated wolves. Once they hunted wolves, they would put them on their horses and run. Then everyone swarmed up and scrambled to snatch it, so as to have fun. Later, this activity developed into a special form of entertainment, and evolved from picking wolves to picking sheep.
As for when it was introduced to Xinjiang, there is no detailed record in the historical records, but at least it has a history of hundreds of years. Now it is a traditional activity that Bohu and even people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang like very much. One of the most interesting traditions after horse racing.
Holding sheep is a sport with strong antagonism and fierce competition. It is generally divided into two types: picking sheep on foot and picking sheep immediately. In contrast, the competition of picking sheep right away is more intense and more enjoyable. It is a sport held only when local people get married, have children, traditional festivals or tourism activities. sports.
Diaoyang used to be a purely folk activity, but in recent years it has begun to receive domestic and international attention. On June 7, 2008, Diaoyang was approved by the State Council to be included in the second batch of national intangible cultural heritage; since then, this ancient The sport has gradually begun to enter some international and domestic official competitions. For example, in the 2016 Kyrgyzstan tourist resort, the 2nd World Nomad Games held at the Chopon Ata Racecourse in the Issyk-Kulu State, included sheep in the official competition.
There is a saying in Xinjiang that "strength is seen in wrestling, and courage is seen in holding a sheep", because holding a sheep is a comprehensive contest of riding skills, strength, courage and wisdom of competitors, and almost none of them is missing. A complete game of catching sheep lasts 180 minutes. During these 3 hours, the players need to fight non-stop, fight each other, chase and intercept, cooperate with each other, use various strategies to pursue victory, and in the end, the game The more intense it is, even the fur on the horse will be soaked with sweat, and sometimes people will turn their backs on their backs, so it is also dangerous. Many people regard it as a "sport of the brave".
Diaoyang is undoubtedly very unfamiliar to Yufan, who was born in the south. If it wasn’t for the introduction from a local friend, I wouldn’t even understand what the rules are. I understand why so many people are going to grab a ball. In fact, in my opinion, the feeling of holding a sheep and watching a basketball game is the same as that of Xiaobai.
But in fact, holding sheep is not that simple. For example, the sheep used in the sheep holding competition are very particular. Generally, a strong goat aged 2 or 3 years is selected. First, the head and four hooves are cut off, and the esophagus of the sheep is tightly tied. Soak it in clean water or pour water into the sheep stomach. This is to maintain a certain weight and increase the toughness of the sheepskin, so that it is not easy to be torn apart in fierce competition.
In addition, the place where the sheep are held immediately is also very particular. Although the requirements are not as high as the football field, it also needs a large flat land or grassland. If the area is too small, the horses will definitely not be able to run away; Flat, both humans and horses are vulnerable to injury.
In addition to the sheep and the venue, the most important thing is the rules of the game. When the gunshots of the host's game sounded, the heroic riders galloped off and waited for a moment. The center of the field rushed.... A thrilling sheep fight started like this. The leading rider quickly bit the whip in his mouth, threw his hands away from the saddle rein, leaped to grab the sheep carcass, flew out of the crowd with flying arrows, smashed the horse and galloped towards the target, while the rest of the riders rushed to catch up with the whip. Shout out.
Others who did not grab the sheep would naturally not be reconciled, so they swarmed after them. If they caught up, they would grab the sheep's carcass and fight vigorously. One person snatched it and dropped the opponent. In this way, you fight against each other, many riders are fighting, and the heroic horses are cheering, each other does not show weakness, and each does not give in.
While running while holding the sheep, the rider who finally caught the sheep carcass and put the sheep carcass in the designated place is the real winner. According to Yu Fan, although the scale of the sheep picking competition we encountered was not large (twenty or thirty horses participated), the competition was very fierce. When we left, the game was still going on, but there were more and more tourists around, and they responded with warm applause and shouts of applause when they met wonderful people.
Although the sheep picking competition in Bohu is not comparable to those international competitions, it is spontaneously organized and participated by local people. We can see their happiness from the inside out from their smiles. And judging from our experience in the past two days, Bohu is really a good place with outstanding people and rich resources. Although the natural scenery is slightly worse than that in summer, there are still winter fishing, horse racing, and sheep in winter. You can choose to participate in various play methods such as ice sports, ice sports, etc. There are also many delicacies (especially the fish in Bosten Lake, which is the most delicious) for you to taste. . Everyone who is interested can't bear to come here to have a look, it's really beautiful.
