Extreme ironing (also called EI) is an extreme sport in which people take ironing boards to remote locations and iron items of clothing.
According to the Extreme Ironing Bureau, extreme ironing is “the latest danger sport that combines the thrills of an extreme outdoor activity with the satisfaction of a well-pressed shirt.”
Extreme ironing has been done in unimaginable places including mountainside, forest, in a canoe, while skiing or snowboarding, on top f large bronze statues, in the middle of a street, underwater, in the middle of traffic, while parachuting, and the long list just goes on.
History
Extreme ironing was invented by Tony Hiam in 1980, near Settle in the Yorkshire Dales National Park in England.
Inspired by his eccentric brother in law, John Slater, who ironed his clothes even when camping in a tent, Tony illustrated the futility of unnecessary ironing by doing it in bizarre situations such as mountain-lookouts, crowded airport departure lounges, on top of telephone kiosks, and charity clothing bins.
Until 1990 Tony often carried ironing board plus iron in his car-boot, on the lookout for opportunities to cause bystanders to glance twice, thinking: “Did I really see that?” Some purists of the sport, apparently unaware of its early origin, claim that it was started later in 1997 in Leicester, 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. He had a number of chores to do, including ironing his shirts.
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”, and the German Extreme Ironing Section or GEIS. This has yet to popularize in North America.
The sport gained international attention in 2003 after a documentary entitled Extreme Ironing: Pressing for Victory, was produced for Britain’s Channel 4 by Wag TV.
The program followed the British team’s efforts and eventual Bronze and Gold placings in the 1st Extreme Ironing World Championships in Germany.
Extreme Ironing has inspired other forms of unusual extreme activity, such as Extreme Cello Playing.
