Luton Museum Makers Aiming To Break World Record

Luton Museum Makers targeting a Guinness World Record for the "Largest Gathering of People Wearing Boater Hats"!

On Saturday 16th of August 2014 Museum Makers and Wardown Park Museum in Luton will attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the "Largest Gathering of People Wearing Boater Hats".

The current world record is 250 people, but the team behind the attempt are aiming to get 2,000 people involved!

Luton has a long tradition of millinery and Wardown Park Musuem houses a collection related to hatmaking, with over 700 hats and materials from the trade.

For more information and to register as a participant visit the Museum Makers website.

The Guinness World Record Attempt will take place at 11.30am on Saturday 16th of August.

If you don't own your own straw boater there will be some available on the day.

The event sounds fun and a little less extreme than some of the other Guinness World Record Attempts I've undertaken, such as Hopping and Brussels Sprouts eating. I've also taken part in record attempts for the most people to ‘High Five’ simultaneously, the UK's longest Conga line and the Largest picnic ever in the UK.

The Museum Makers are a new team, consisting of members of the community, who are dedicated to saving, cherishing, running and recreating Wardown Park Museum in Luton.

Links:
- Museum Makers website
- Museum Makers on Twitter
- Museum Makers on Facebook
- Guinness World Record related blog posts

Pirate Adventure Golf at thecentre:MK in Milton Keynes

Playing the new Pirate Mini Golf course at thecentre:MK shopping centre in Milton Keynes.

Spot Richard on the Pirate Mini Golf course at thecentre:MK...?

Having heard that a Minigolf course would once again be returning to thecentre:MK Emily and I were excited to give it a play.

Pirate Adventure Golf at thecentre:MK

Last summer we played the Jurassic Mini Golf at the thecentre:mk. This year the team behind that course have returned with a Pirate Mini Golf layout.

Playing hole 3 of the Pirate Mini Golf course

On Sunday 1st of June we headed over to make the 560th course visit on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and the 12-hole Pirate Mini Golf course became the 336th played since 2006.



The layout looks impressive in its location in Queen's Court at thecentre:MK.

thecentre:MK's Pirate Adventure Golf course in Queen's Court

The centre-piece of the vividly coloured, well laid out and fun looking course is a 20ft moving Octopus!

The GIANT minigolf Octopus at thecentre:MK's Pirate Adventure Golf course

The course itself is of the 'Eternit' type of Miniature Golf - with the addition of felt to the playing surface and a few non-standard hole types and obstacles.

Emily on hole 6

The pirate theming around the site is really well done and the striking blue of the felt on the course makes a nice contrast with the green felt flooring.

Putting in the wake of the Kraken!

It makes for a pleasing playing environment - even if the course is very tricky, with some tough second (and third) putts.

Emily lining up a second shot

In our match-up Emily, the Eternit Miniaturegolf specialist (and British Women's Record Holder on the surface), beat me by one-shot with a result of 33 to 34.

Emily playing hole 10

Both scores were good enough to get us on the course Leader Board too.

Emily in tied fourth place on the Pirate Adventure Golf Leader Board with her 33 

Squire in sixth spot

The course costs £4.50 a round for adults and the second round on the same day is half price. I took advantage of this and had another round after we'd had a bit of a shop around thecentre:MK.

In the stocks

The Pirate Mini Golf course will be in thecentre:MK until the 29th of August 2014 and is open seven days a week. It's an interesting layout, has friendly staff and is worth a play.

Playing the 12th hole

Further details can be found on the Pirate Adventure Golf course website.

The course was another to 'feature' a toilet on it! Though this was was not in use on the course

Women were seen as unlucky on Pirate Ships!

Emily wasn't happy about that.

In recent years thecentre:MK has been home to three courses, the other being a Crazy Golf course at 'The Beach' in July 2011.

This year the team behind the Pirate Adventure Golf course also have a Jurassic themed Mini Golf course at the Oracle shopping centre in Reading.

Links:
- Pirate Adventure Golf
- thecentre:MK

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Playing Jurassic Mini Golf at the thecentre:mk
- Crazy Golf at 'the beach' at The Centre: MK in Milton Keynes - Minigolf course played #263
- Milton Keynes

New gluten free rice noodles from Kabuto Noodles

The team at Kabuto Noodles recently got in touch with me on Twitter to let me know about their new gluten free noodles and see whether I'd like to give them a try.

Of course I was delighted to give them a sample and received a box of six pots of the noodles - three Miso and three Chicken flavour.

The Miso and Chicken gluten free rice noodles from Kabuto Noodles

The pots look colourful and the instructions are clear (and fun). It's been ages since I've had noodles from a pot - they used to be a favourite snack of mine in my pre-coeliac disease days - so it was great to see Kabuto launching them.

After boiling the kettle it was a mere four minutes (plus a bit of cooling off time) before I was tucking into the chicken rice noodles, and very good they were too. For a tasty and filling lunch, or quick and easy dinner, I'd recommend them.

The packaging is really well designed and fun, with plenty of fun nods to Ninjas, Samurai and Japan. I really like what they've done to the barcode on the pot too.

There are seven flavours of Kabuto Noodles - with two of them being gluten free. Check out the Kabuto Noodles website for more information.

I've tried both the chicken and miso flavours and my favourite is the chicken.

You can find Kabuto Noodles on sale at Waitrose, Sainsbury's, Tesco and Whole Foods Market, as well as Amazon and Ocado. To find your nearest stockist, or to recommend a shop that could be selling the noodles get in touch with the Kabuto team.

Links:
- Kabuto Noodles
- Kabuto Noodles on Twitter
- Kabuto Noodles on Facebook
- Gluten Free blog posts

Splash Point Open 2014 minigolf tournament

Splash Point Open minigolf competition to tee-off at Denton Gardens on Saturday 26th July 2014.

Splash Point Mini Golf in Worthing has announced the date of the first-ever Splash Point Open minigolf tournament.

The club open competition will take place over three rounds on Saturday 26th of July 2014 at the 18-hole course in Worthing's Denton Gardens.

Richard Gottfried playing hole 4 during the Hole-in-One Charity Challenge at the 2014 BMGA British Masters tournament at Splash Point Mini Golf in Worthing

Tee-off time will be 5pm and further details of the event can be found on the BMGA website here and The UnOfficial British Minigolf Forum here.

Follow Splash Point Mini Golf on Twitter and check out the British Minigolf Association's website too.

Earlier this season Splash Point was the venue for the BMGA British Masters - the third time the course has hosted the event. Back in 2010 the course also hosted the BMGA British Matchplay Championships.

Check out the links below to see videos from two BMGA British Masters competitions filmed by the team at 2 Dog Imaging:
- Video of the 2013 BMGA British Masters in Worthing
- Video of the 2012 BMGA British Masters in Worthing

Splash Point Mini Golf was the 181st course played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Links:
- Splash Point Mini Golf
- British Minigolf Association
- British Minigolf Association Tournament Calendar for 2014 blog post
- Worthing related blog posts
- Splash Point Mini Golf related blog posts

New Gluten Free Pork Crackling from The Real Pork Crackling Co.

More pork crackling launched that is gluten free.

The Cracking Pork Crackling from The Real Pork Crackling Co.

I'm a BIG fan of Pork Crackling, but as a Coeliac it's not a foodstuff that is always easily available. That's why I was very pleased to see that The Real Pork Crackling Co. are now selling gluten free pork crackling in Asda!

Emily and I both spotted the gluten free Pork Crackling while perusing the beverages in Asda

As soon as I got home I dived into the big bag of the 'Cracking Pork Crackling' (weighing in at 75g) and scoffed the lot - they are very good indeed. And they were only a quid.

A nice snack to have with a new Hornsby's Cider (also flagged up as 'Gluten Free' on its packaging) that we spotted on our shop*.

The Real Pork Crackling Company also sell Golden Pork Crunch, which I've previously tried.

On a gluten free meat product related note, we also noticed that the Asda Extra Special sausages are gluten free and have the Coeliac UK Crossed Grain symbol! Great news, and brilliant to see such a variety of flavours available.

Links:

- The Real Pork Crackling Co.

- Pork Crackling related blog posts

* I normally hate grocery shopping, but on this occasion we noticed so many great new products that were gluten free it made such a difference.

New Adventure Golf course opening in Brighton

Photos of the new seafront minigolf course being built in Brighton.

The new Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf course in Brighton is beginning to take shape (photo by Paul O'Connor, May 2014)

My friend, and fan of bizarre photos, Paul 'Flip Flops' O'Connor was recently in Brighton and sent me through some snaps of the new Adventure Golf course being built on the seafront.

Another view of the Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf course under construction (photo by Paul O'Connor, May 2014)

The new minigolf course is from the team behind the Bristol and Liverpool 'Jungle Rumble' Adventure Golf courses.

A tiki type of totem behind the base of a new minigolf hole at the Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf course in Brighton (photo by Paul O'Connor, May 2014)

The new course will replace the Peter Pan's Adventure Golf course on Madeira Drive.

Over the year's we've been to Brighton a few times and played, or at least visited, the Miniature Golf courses in the town when we've been there.

Peter Pan's Adventure Golf course was the 13th course visited on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in March 2007. That same year I returned to the course for the Brighton Open minigolf tournament where I finished in 18th place. It was also the venue of my brother Christopher's one and only appearance (to date) on the BMGA Tour - in the 2008 Brighton Open.

We've also visited and played the other two Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf courses, with both the Bristol and Liverpool courses hosting British Minigolf Association tournaments in recent years.

We're looking forward to giving the new Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf layout in Brighton a play in the future.

Links:

- Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf website

- Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf on Twitter

- Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf on Facebook

Related blog posts:

- Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf Bristol

- Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf Liverpool

- Peter Pan's Adventure Golf in Brighton

- Brighton blog posts

- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Mundesley Adventure Golf in Norfolk

Over the Bank Holiday weekend my brother Christopher had a bit of a tour of the Norfolk coast and sent me through some snaps of the Crazy Golf courses he spotted.

One of the Minigolf courses was in the seaside town of Mundesley and it was a course neither Emily or I have played. Yet.

The Exit of Adventure Island Golf in Mundesley, Norfolk. Photo by Christopher Gottfried, May 2014.

Check out MiniatureGolfer.com where you can see more photos of the Adventure Island Golf course on Beach road in Mundesley taken by our fellow Minigolfing adventurers Paul and Owen Johnson on their visit in 2011.

The course looks good and similar to the Lost World Adventure Golf in nearby Hemsby - itself one of my favourite courses and one that has some excellent theming (when you're over by the Aztec Temple, snake pit and row of skulls on poles at the back of the course you'd never know you were in a busy seaside resort in Norfolk!).

Christopher is a charter member of the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, playing at the first-ever course on the Tour and joining us for a fair few rounds along the way since 2006.

Finding Minigolf courses to be closed on your visit seems to run in the family! Check out the links below for blog posts about other courses visited by Christopher.

Links:
- Mundesley Adventure Island Golf
- MiniatureGolfer.com

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Christopher Gottfried - Minigolf Player Profile
- Minigolf at Letoonia Golf Resort, Belek, Turkey
- Another unplayed Minigolf course, but not visited by me - Newquay
- Some photos of the Little Oasis Crazy Golf course in Margate, Kent
- Visits to the Mini Golf course in Herne Bay
- Minigolf News - A Gottfried visits a closed Crazy Golf course!

Not playing Crazy Golf at Clerkenwell Design Week 2014

Having heard that one of the showrooms at Clerkenwell Design Week 2014 was going to set-up a Crazy Golf course themed with its office furniture and chair designs as obstacles I was intrigued and interested in giving the course a play. Especially as it was a temporary course available to be played between 9am and 7pm at the GGI showroom during the three days of #CDW2014.

A group of us had registered to attend and were really excited to be heading to play the course.

The first of our party arrived at the GGI showroom at 5.25pm on the 20th of May (the first day of CDW) to find the course closed - as Emily and I have found a number of courses closed when we arrive to play on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour I assumed it was a rib from them.

But it wasn't! We arrived at 5.35pm to find the showroom (one of over 60 taking part in Clerkenwell Design Week) to be closed.

Outside the closed GGI showroom at Clerkenwell Design Week. A disappointed Richard Gottfried (centre) with from l-r Chris Jones, Brad Shepherd and Paul O'Connor. Not pictured is a distraught Emily Gottfried

The closest we got to playing the course was peering through the high windows from street level and spotting a bucket of putters.

The bucket of putters and some chairs. Yesterday

Annoyingly when we checked our emails later in the evening we'd received an email from Clerkenwell Design Week which had details of the GGI Crazy Golf course and a reminder of the opening times!?

I hope other visitors are luckier than our group was and get to play the course.

Check out my blog post on the Adventure Golf, Crazy Golf, Minigolf and Golf Putting Green courses we've played in and around London since July 2008.

We have been lucky in London before and played some interesting temporary courses and installations over the years, including at Devonshire Square, the roof of Selfridges, Alexandra Palace, Golf Apocalypse, the Tintype Gallery, Wooly Golf, Carnaby Street, the London Golf Show, Regent's Place and at the 2012 Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery.

London will soon be getting a brand new minigolf course, as Moby Adventure Golf opens in Chadwell Heath, Romford later this month!

Moby Golf Adventure Golf in London

Brand new Adventure Golf course opening in Chadwell Heath, Romford, London in May 2014.

Richard Gottfried playing the Moby Golf course on his Crazy World of Minigolf Tour visit in June 2014

The 18-hole Moby Adventure Golf course will be located at Golf Kingdom in Romford and will have some very BIG minigolf features and obstacles, not least the giant whale!

The theming behind the course centres on the legend of 'Moby Dick' - a whale that washed up in Dagenham in 1790!

Check out the Golf Kingdom website and the Moby Golf Facebook page for more details, including photos of the course under contruction.

We're looking to visiting and playing the course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Golf Kingdom sounds like an interesting place, as you can play 'golf' in seven different ways (including regular golf, footgolf and more) - check out the Golf Kingdom website for details.

Also nearby in Chadwell Heath, on where else but Whalebone Lane North, you can visit a pub called the Moby Dick!

On a whale-related note, back in June 2008 we visited Scarborough, North Yorkshire and the 55th course played on our tour was home to a big whale - though by the sound of it and look of the photos, the Moby Golf course's one will be a lot bigger.

The whale encountered at Scarborough's Adventure Golf in 2008

Links:
- Moby Golf Facebook page
- Golf Kingdom website
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Minigolf and Crazy Golf courses in and around London
- Minigolf and Crazy Golf in Essex

Like the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour on Facebook, check out our YouTube channel and follow me and Emily on Twitter.
 

Subscribe to our mailing list

Funny things about being a Coeliac #7

Disappearing flight attendants!

On a flight to Sweden in 2011 I was surprised to see everyone get served an on-board meal. Well, everyone that is apart from a few poor vegetarians who missed out on the meagre offering of veggie sangers, and me.

The serving of the lunch was very puzzling as the BA website didn't allow you to make a dietary selection for the flight!? I mentioned this to the Steward, who said he’d ask his colleagues and have a look.

I never saw him again!

Odd, as it was a very small plane.

I have had some good experiences with airline food, its not always great, nor always gluten AND wheat free, but gluten free 'special meals' do get served before the normal people's meals.

Links:

- Funny things about being a Coeliac #1

- Funny things about being a Coeliac #2

- Funny things about being a Coeliac #3

- Funny things about being a Coeliac #4

- Funny things about being a Coeliac #5

- Funny things about being a Coeliac #6

- Coeliac-related blog posts

- Gluten Free-related blog posts

- A week in the life of a Great Britain International Minigolfer

Award Bathing Beach

Award it what?

Directions to an "AWARD BATHING BEACH" in Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey

On our recent trip to Sheerness (seaside #183 visited) on the Isle of Sheppey (island #9 we've been to) we spotted this incredibly odd bit of signage for an "Award Bathing Beach" on the seafront.

What's one of them then!?

Margate Funpark Crazy Golf

Hearing about a Crazy Golf course at a mobile Funpark in Margate.

During the BMGA British Minigolf Championships in Margate our fellow competitors and minigolf explorers Matt and Helen Dodd let me know they'd spotted that the there was a Crazy Golf course in town as part of the Funpark set-up in Dreamland's car park.

Unfortunately we didn't have time to go into the park to explore and make good use of the entry fee (which give you access to 'unlimited riding' inside). We'll have to keep an eye out for the Funpark in the future as we're intrigued as to what the Crazy Golf course is like.

Links:

- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Funpark at Billy Davis Funfairs

Little Oasis Crazy Golf in Cliftonville, Margate - an update

We revisited the Little Oasis Crazy Golf in Cliftonville, Margate on Friday 9th of May 2014 as we'd heard it'd recently closed down, after being temporarily used as a skate park.

It's in a really sorry state and its terrible to see it now, as it was a 36-hole classic Arnold Palmer Putting Complex.

Related blog posts:
- Course Played #37 Margate (Little Oasis Crazy Golf) Cliftonville - Minigolf (Arnold Palmer) 1 of the 2 18-hole courses - Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Still not played - Cliftonville Crazy Golf!
- Minigolf course played #215 - Arnold Palmer 'South' Course at the Little Oasis Crazy Golf in Cliftonville, Margate
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Pitch & Putt Miniature Golf at Barton's Point Coastal Park on the Isle of Sheppey

A visit to Barton's Point Coastal Park in Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey to look for a Crazy Golf course.

We didn't find one.

However, there was a Pitch & Putt style of Miniature Golf at Barton's Point.

The 9-hole Pitch & Putt at Barton's Point Coastal Park on the Isle of Sheppey

We couldn't find any of the Minigolf courses on the Isle of Sheppey - at Sheerness, Half Way or Minster Beach.

There was however a Miniature Railway at Barton's Point Coastal Park!

The Miniature Railway Station at Barton's Point Coastal Park

Links:
- Barton's Point Coastal Park
- Sheppey Miniature Engineering and Model Society
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Awareness Week: Coeliac Facts from Udi's Gluten Free

New Coeliac Disease infographic from Udi's Gluten Free.

The team at Udi's Gluten Free have put out a new infographic with a range of facts about Coeliac Disease to coincide with Coeliac Awareness Week that is running from the 12th to the 18th of May.

The Udi's Gluten Free Awareness Week: Coeliac Facts infographic (click on the image to enlarge and also available to view here)

Udi's launched in the UK at the end of 2013 and have been in the USA since 1994. Check out the Udi's website for details of their range and stockists.

Further details about Coeliac Disease and Coeliac Awareness Week can be found on the Coeliac UK website and Twitter. May is also Celiac Awareness Month in the USA and Canada - check out the hashtag on Twitter.

Link:
- Udi's Gluten Free

Related blog posts:
- Udi’s Gluten Free – more than just mince pies
- Coeliac UK Awareness Week 2014 and the Gluten-free guarantee
- Gluten Free
- Coeliac

Crazy Golf at the Strand Leisure Park in Gillingham

Playing the 18-hole Wild Frontier Crazy Golf course at the Strand Leisure Park in Gillingham as part of the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

At the Wild Frontier Crazy Golf course at the Strand Leisure Park in Gillingham, Kent

On our way to Whitstable on the 8th of May we decided to make a stop in Gillingham, Kent to visit the Strand Leisure Park and play the Crazy Golf course we’d heard was there.

On this occasion the course was open to play. Emily decided she didn’t want to play so I paid the man the £2.70 for a round on the 18-hole ‘Wild Frontier Crazy Golf course’, plus the £2.50 deposit required for the putter and ball and headed off for a quick round as the weather wasn’t all that great.

Oddly the course didn't have a pathway, or stepping stones, between holes, just grass – which was a bit annoying as it was wet underfoot.

Each of the holes on the good looking scorecard had a different ‘Wild West’ name and the course was split into three parts – Holes 1 to 6 were in ‘Dodge City’, holes 7 to 12 were in ‘Indian Country’ and holes 13 to 18 were in ‘Gold Valley'.

Hole 1 - Cowboy Hat

There was a big cowboy hat on hole 1, some horseshoes on hole 6, a snake on hole 7, wig-wams on hole 9, a US flag on hole 10 (named ‘Death Valley’) and a peace pipe on hole 11.

Playing hole 1 - Cowboy Hat

Hole 2 - Cliff Edge

Hole 2 - Cliff Edge

Hole 3 - Wagon Wheel

Hole 3 - Wagon Wheel

Hole 4 - Deadmans Creek

Hole 5 - Horse Shoe

Hole 6 - Six Shooter

Hole 7 - Snake

Hole 7 - Snake

Hole 7 - Snake

Hole 8 - Canyon

Hole 8 - Canyon

Hole 9 - Wig-Wam

Hole 10 - Death Valley

Hole 11 - Peace Pipe

Hole 11 - Peace Pipe

Hole 12 - Ravine

Hole 12 - Ravine

Hole 13 - Gold Pan

Hole 13 - Gold Pan

Hole 13 - Gold Pan

Hole 14 - Hill Billy Ridge

As we approached hole 15 (‘Rock Tunnel’) and the end of our round we noticed the man emerge from the hut and walk along the path away from the course towards the car park. He didn’t say anything to us, but we assumed he’d be back in a couple of minutes to take the putter and ball back and refund me my £2.50 deposit.

However, he never reappeared!

So, for only the second time* on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour we’d returned to the hut to find it abandoned and so had to leave the putter and ball leant up against the door. On our walk back to the car park we saw no sign of the man – or anyone else for that matter.

Hole 15 - Rock Tunnel

Hole 16 - Devil's Drop

Hole 17 - Mine Collapse

We left the Strand Leisure Park slightly dejected and £2.50 lighter.

Having arrived back home and looked at the prices for the Crazy Golf course on the Medway Council website it says that the Crazy Golf is £2.20 for adults and £1.50 for the club deposit and 50p for a ball!

The highlight of playing the course was the solitary hole-in-one I scored on the 18^th hole (‘Mine Entrance’) – which in my mind was the hardest hole out there.

Hole 18 - Mine Entrance

As well as the 18-hole Crazy Golf there was also a Pitch & Putt miniature golf course at the park. But with the man doing a disappearing act we were unable to find out how much it was to play.

The Par 3 miniature golf course at the Strand Leisure Park

A view of one of the holes on the nice looking course

The Strand Leisure Park also had a miniature railway. Unfortunately it wasn’t running on our visit.

The siding and depot of the miniature railway

The miniature railway station next to the Crazy Golf course

En route to Gillingham we passed through one of the other Luton's! It's in Chatham.

Luton, Kent

Link:

- Strand Leisure Park

Related blog post:

- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour - List and links for all Miniature Golf courses visited to date

* The other time was at Coalville in Leicestershire where the man at the Minigolf course was also the bailiff for the fishing lake on the same site.