Donkey Basketball

Who would have thought I would be having deep thoughts about Donkey Basketball on this winter afternoon?

It all started when Tom McHugh, a professional photographer whose images were published in the Spotlight and Times Union in the 1970s, sent me a batch of photos he had created. Included were a group from a donkey basketball game at Bethlehem High School.   

At first I smiled, remembering such games from back when I was in high school in the late 1970s in Rhode Island.  They were fun, we laughed at the players and the absurdity  of stubborn donkeys  playing basketball. Then, my modern, 21st century sensibilities started up and all I could think was "Oh, those poor donkeys! What were we thinking?"

This is a tough one folks.  Google around and you will see animal cruelty activists having their say as well as modern donkey basketball operations assuring that their highly trained donkeys are fed and watered properly, indeed, even pampered.  And that the donkeys truly enjoy their job of entertaining people.  

I was struck by some basic donkey facts like a well cared for one can carry up to 50% of their body weight (an average, healthy donkey is about 365 pounds, so half that is about 182). And one site noted that donkeys are much stronger than humans.  You can't drag them anywhere they don't want to go, despite what looks like a lot of pulling in these pictures.

My take?  I enjoyed the nostalgia of these photos and wondered about the crazy things we used to do. But you know, I'm glad we don't have donkey basketball games around here anymore.  

And in case you are curious, donkey basketball became a thing in the 1930s.  Below is a clip from the Ravena News Herald from December 18, 1936. The first paragraph reads:

The donkey basketball game drew a crowd of fans to the high school on Tuesday and they had a great many hearty laughs.  The  antics of some of the local business men trying to handle the donkeys and play ball too, was a laugh feast.  The score was 8 to 14 in favor of the "Never Washers," captained by Max Horelly on "Kate Smith." Albano, astride "Jean Harlow" was captain of the Dirty Faces."