The Detroit Highland Games featured some of the top American Highland Games athletes competing in top form and Eric Frasure took top honors.

Francis Brebner has filed this report.


The Detroit Highland Game by Francis Brebner

This weekend at the Detroit Highland Games, a record crowd of 25,000 spectators saw records tumble and fierce competition between some of America's finest athletes, including Kerry Overfelt, Will Baron, Ryan Vierra, Dave Baron, Eric Frasure, Mark Valenti, Kurt Pauli, Lannie Pullon, and Doug Steiger.

In the 18-lb. open stone, Craig Smith showed top form, blasting out a putt of 51' 3" for a new field record, marginally breaking the ground record held by Ryan Vierra at 51' 1".

The 28-lb. weight for distance was won by Kerry Overfelt with a worthy distance of 85' 7".

In the 22-lb. hammer, Eric Frasure, who has been having a great season so far, kept up his winning form and did not let us down with a gigantic throw of 119' 6", establishing a new field record, breaking the previous ground record of 119' 1" held also by Vierra.

In the open caber, which was 19.6 ft. and 130 lb., it was Frasure with a perfect 12 o'clock toss that captured the win over his rivals.

In the 56-lb. weight over the bar, the records did not stop there, with Kerry Overfelt and Harrison Bailey III tying at 18' 6" to share the win, and joining Smith and Frasure in setting a new field record.

The next Games for Frasure will be in Portland, Maine, in two weeks time. The following week, "I will be in Pleasanton for the IHGF World Hammer Championships, which will be a very tough championships looking at the athletes who will be competing there, but I am looking forward to it," said Frasure.

Overall placings were Eric Frasure, first; Kerry Overfelt, second; and Harrison Bailey III, third.