Pea shooters fight it out for world championships

The crowd at Saturday's World Peashooting Championship looked on in wonder as George Hollis, 58, the sport's reigning superstar, languidly lowered his laser-guided shooter. This was no kiddie toy. This was a weapon of mass peastruction.

In an age of advanced ballistics, it's tempting to scoff at the humble peashooter – essentially a lung-powered piece of pipe – but technology prospers in improbable places, and there was enough of it at Witcham, Cambridgeshire, to impress the Pentagon.



George's home-designed device featured a gyroscopic balancing mechanism, a hyper-accurate laser sight, and what he described as "other bits" borrowed from his son's Nintendo. The result is a fearsome piece of kit that has helped him to three world championships.

The introduction of laser sights – first introduced around a decade ago by an American avionics expert from the nearby Lakenheath US air force base – threw the sport into turmoil, with traditionalists demanding they be banned, and progressives arguing that the competition needed to move with the times.



"Actually I think too much is made of the technology," said George, an electrical engineer who lives in Witcham. "Other things matter more – concentration, preparation, attitude, the right choice of pea. It's an all-round skill, and a lot of people think the old methods are still the best."

The title was won by Jim Collins of Haddenham, Cambridgeshire, using a traditional-style peashooter.

There's a photo gallery here.