Far from it! These days just about anything goes on the sports front. You can crash cars, jump and spin high in the air on bicycles, motorbikes, sail-boards and skis. You can rappel down cliff faces, glide off the top of mountain ranges, dive to incredible depths under the sea or strap a parachute on your back and throw yourself from an aeroplane. All in the line with keeping those muscles toned, the body trim and the mind alert. The choice is seemingly endless and yet there is obviously room for improvement.

I’m not sure if this sport originated in the minds of its creator when watching a hamster run endless loops in its running wheel, or whether it came from barrel rolling attempts over waterfalls or down mountainsides during a drunken stupor, but however it arose, it’s one that is certainly proving popular. (Who was it that said “It’s a mad - mad world…?” - Editor)

To explain better; imagine yourself suspended inside a 3.4 metre clear plastic sphere by nylon ropes, then rolled to the top of a steep hill and pushed off. No brakes, no steering, just you and gravity. By all accounts, it’s like being a stray sock in a spin dryer, and it’s obligatory to scream a lot. The balls bounce okay and so usually, do those inside.

This is the newest extreme sport, invented by Andrew Akers in New Zealand about four years ago as something exciting for tourists to do, and has been exported to countries like Australia where it’s catching on fast. It’s a tumbling, bouncing, whirling, tossed, crazed down-hill dash like no other, and one suited to all those brave enough to attempt the madcap plummet where control is out of the question.

The ball is actually two balls (one inside another) suspended by nylon strands. Between the two there is a couple of feet of air. This cushion is what keeps you safe when you're hurtling down the side of a hill at speeds of up to 50km per hour.

This is not all…there are two versions of the sport, a dry version (or standard harnessed zorb) generally for one person only and a wet one where you remain unattached to the inner ball and tumble out of control like a pebble in an avalanche. Personally I preferred the wet one, but it was a hot day when I attempted my down-hill-hurtle and I was in dire need of cooling down, which may account for my preference. The other factor with ‘wet zorbing’ is that you can go singly or join your family and friends inside a modified Zorb with the option of up to 25 litres of refreshing (or warm) water (depending on conditions) and slosh your loopy way downhill, adding to the excitement.

Other newfangled sports include “Extreme Ironing”, not for those in a holiday mood but more suited to those who think housework is fun but would prefer to do it underwater, or on a mountain peak in the snow, but as we cater to holiday makers, I’m not going to go into details here and will leave this activity for you, the reader to research. In the meantime I suggest you don a bathing costume (swimwear) and get yourself over to your nearest zorbing centre and become a fully fledged Zorbonaut. It’s barrelling excitement like no other, where being dizzy takes on a totally new, crazed meaning that really is nothing but JOLLY GOOD FUN!