Designed to get people outside to have a blast for a good cause, Bayside Brewing Company is running its Chuck a Chicken contest next month.
Taking place Feb. 23, the event will see contestants try to mix their curling, bocce ball and shuffleboard skills to chuck chickens along the ice to try to hit a target area.
Proceeds will go towards Erieau’s Accessibility Park.
Brent Wilken, head of marketing for Bayside, credits Donna Polowick for coming up with the oddball fundraising idea.
Polowick said it actually evolved out of a golf tournament.
“I was in a Caddyshack-themed golf tournament this summer in the Niagara region. We got all dressed up. We were the only ones, except for the bartender,” she said, adding the bartender suggested Polowick and her friends return in the winter to take part in the chuck a chicken contest held there.
She did some research and decided to bring the concept to Wilken.
“What a good way to bring people to Erieau in the winter,” Polowick said.
Wilken said he wasn’t overly surprised by chuck a chicken.
“Donna always has ideas outside the box,” he said.
“She is perfect. She is kind of the party planner for it,” he said of Bayside’s Chuck a Chicken event. “We want to do all kinds of stuff, fireworks, have Acoustic FM play the after party; there will be fire pits burning all around. It should be quite the scene.”
Wilken said interest began as soon as they announced their plans.
“Reception for this has been incredible. Out of anything I’ve ever organized, the feedback for this has been the best. Eighteen people signed up from the Chatham Granite Club,” he said. “Right now, we’re just hoping for 200 participants. That’s what we felt we can host on Bayside grounds if there is no ice.”
So far this winter, it has been unseasonably mild.
Registration costs $35 per person. Teams of four can register together as well.
The chicken drops at 2 p.m. and chuckers will be on the ice until about 5 p.m., Wilken said.
Following the fowl competition, there will be awards and the aforementioned after party at Bayside.
For more information, contact Bayside at 519-676-8888.
The frozen chickens used in the competition will all have previously been designated for use as animal feed, Wilken said, and they will wind up there after the competition.
Heartbreaking. That poor animal lived a miserable short life with a horrible death for its body to be treated like this.
yeah……but NOT a complete intact food source that the under privileged.. hungry people in this community CHATHAM KENT could have utilized
This is sickening, if it were a dog carcass this would be an outrage.. seriously throwing a chicken carcass. What the actual hell are you thinking?
This is down right psychotic
Terrible cause.
I totally agree! I thought it was a joke at 1st but apparently it’s not.
Lol footballs are made from pigskins…
After no doubt being raised in filth and cramped quarters, pumped with antibiotics and the heartlessly carted off in crates to have their throats cut, you add insult to injury by taking their frozen carcasses and using them for sport. You must have no souls in you poor excuses for human shells.
This is actually really disturbing.
Wrong on every level. How the hell can society even condone this or raise children who respect animals when this is considered entertainment. Absolutely no excuse or need to use animals for this, chuck a ball.
Not to mention Chatham Voice running it as a news article………Or perhaps they are doing it for the media attention they knew it would get which is clearly working.
What is the matter with you people? It’s not bad enough these chickens were bred into existence just to be killed for selfish humans, but now you are degrading their corpses for a fundraiser?
Why don’t you throw yourselves around and leave these victims alone!
Respect existence or expect resistance.
Honestly whoever planned this needs to be fired. Throwing chickens in the best way you can think of to raise money? This is so beyond messed up.
Hope they are using the money to relocate the park. Park was placed is 1 meter from a house and ruined a 70 year old neighborhood. Poor kids that have to use it when there are three better places for it.
Absolutely disgusting. It’s bad enough an animal was tortured and killed, but instead of at least having its body go to food, you’re throwing it around as a game. I’m shocked that adults actually think this is acceptable.
These chickens were earmarked to use in animal food, and that’s where they will go after the event.
Stephanie is right. This is not cool guys. Have some respect. Sheldon.