Throw your hat into the ring
A lot of people seem to be talking about throwing their hat into the ring at the moment. But you never see them do it. I wonder why not. Seems like a job for Man versus Clichés.
There must be something about hats because a few years ago I investigated knocking things into a hat. A cocked one at that.
But being the other way round this poses two problems. What sort of hat? And what sort of ring?
It seemed sensible to start with the ring. One that would fit on a finger would require a tiny hat to hit the target. Only one from the head of a Lego character model might fit the bill. I can't imagine people are throwing those.
Large hooped earrings don't seem big enough for a standard-sized hat and then at the other end of the scale there is the Birmingham Bull Ring or an actual bullring. I didn't fancy travelling so had to apply a bit of lateral thinking. Mrs Cliches has some sort of fitness hoop in the cupboard. Hoop, ring. Same difference.
I had several hats that I could try; an assortment of baseball caps, a wide-brimmed cricket hat or a cyclists casquette. The hard peak of the baseball cap meant throw control was more difficult with regards to spin. The wide brim nature of the cricket hat meant more uplift than ideal. The softer, compressed casquette worked perfectly.
I placed the ring on the floor and tossed the hat gently towards it. Bam! In the ring first time! And then nothing. I don't see what all the fuss is about. This was easy.
Hat - in a ring |
Conclusion One - You don't see people throwing their hat in a ring because it wouldn't make great tv. Olympic Hat in a Ring throwing is unlikely any time soon.
Conclusion Two - People talking about throwing their hat into a ring should really be getting on with more important stuff.