Colemanballs is originally an English thing in which a TV, film or radio personality says something funny or ridiculous which was unintentional. They get their name from the sports commentator David Coleman (now retired) who was a master at this. Here are some of David’s very own Colemanballs:
"For those of you watching who do not have television sets, live commentary is on Radio 2."
"He's 31 this year - last year he was 30."
"Don't tell those coming in the final result of that fantastic match, but let's just have another look at Italy's winning goal."
The UK magazine Private Eye still prints new Colemanballs every week, and the public are encouraged to send in new examples they have heard. The Colemanballs feature became so popular that Private Eye has published a series of books about them. I own a couple of these masterpieces.
Here are a few more of my favourites said by other people, many of them from the world of football:
"Rosenborg have won 66 games, and they've scored in all of them." (Brian Moore)
"I never make predictions and I never will." (Paul Gascoigne)
"Stronsay is an island surrounded by sea." (anon)
"Michael Owen - he's got the legs of a salmon." (Sky TV commentator)
"That's great, tell him he's Pele and get him back on." (John Lambie, Partick Thistle football club manager, when told a concussed striker did not know who he was).
"If I was still at Ipswich, I wouldn't be where I am today." (Dalian Atkinson)
“He used to be indecisive but now he’s not so certain” (Peter Aliss, golf commentator)
“One of the reasons Arnie (Arnold Palmer, golf player) is playing so well is that, before each tee-shot, his wife takes out his balls and kisses them - Oh my God, what have I just said?” (US TV commentator)
An often quoted “Colemanballs classic” happened during a cricket match in England. In the sport of cricket you have a bowler who throws the ball and tries to knock down the “stumps” (3 sticks of wood) which are protected by a batsman with a bat. On one occasion, England were playing the West Indies. The batsman for England was Peter Willey. And the man who was bowling for the West Indies was Michael Holding. It turned out to be a classic combination thanks to the radio commentator who decided to introduce the two players for people who had just tuned in to listen to the match. With a totally serious voice he introduced the two players as follows:
“The bowler’s Holding. The batman’s Willey.”
If you know any new Colemanballs in English (eller på Norsk!), you are welcome to add them to your “Found it” log.
The cache is hidden in a small wooded area near the University of Stavanger and not far from the Stavanger’s Stone Age farm at Ullandhaug. It contains a log book, pencil and FTF certificate to the first finder. Beware of mugglers walking through the woods!
I have taken several readings with my Garmin, so I hope the given coordinates are correct. It is difficult to get a good GZ in the trees, so let your GPS settle down a bit first. I have also increased the difficulty notch because of the GZ problem.