Bagpipes, kilts and plenty of muscle. Those are the things on display when the McKim brothers get

together.

Holding true to their Scottish heritage, Northwest Missouri State thrower Ben McKim and

Bearcat alum Daniel McKim have found a competitive outlet in the Highland Games.

“They have the kilts going on, the bagpipe music going on — it’s definitely a blast,” said Ben McKim, who again will compete regionally as an amateur once his college season is completed. Of course, that will not be until at least the end of May, since he qualified last weekend for the NCAA National Championships on May 21 to 23 in the shot put.

The collegiate throwing events — the shot put, discus and hammer throw — are fine, but the younger McKim figures these ancient games have their advantages.

“When you’re throwing in college, you may have a bad day in the shot, and all you have to make up for it is the hammer and discus,” Ben McKim said. “But in the Games, you have nine events.”

The most famous event in the Highland Games is the caber toss, in which the competitor hoists a long, tapered pole or log after its stood upright, then hurls it forward, end over end, with the intent of landing it as close as possible to the 12 o’clock position.

Other events include the open stone put (similar to shot put, but with a large stone), the Braemar stone put (similar to a stationary shot put), heavy and light hammer throws, light and heavy weight throws, weight over the bar and the sheaf toss, in which a 20-pound bundle of straw is tossed vertically with a pitchfork over a raised bar.

Ben, a Bearcat junior who just beat his older brother’s personal best in the collegiate shot put, got interested in the Highland Games through his brother, who qualified for six national championship meets during his tenure at Northwest from 2000 to 2004.

“When I was in college, I was watching ESPN and saw some reruns of Highland Games,” Daniel McKim said. “I decided when I was done throwing I would give it a try.”

Daniel McKim researched the Highland Games online and found a competition in Kansas City.

“I just showed up in a Northwest T-shirt and shorts, and I’ve been hooked ever since,” Daniel said.

The elder McKim spent four years in the amateur ranks, then became a professional at the end of the 2007 season.

“I competed with him in one Games, right before he went professional,” the younger McKim said.

They still attend some events together, when both amateur and professional classes are held at the same weekend competition. But Daniel McKim’s travels are much broader. He’s been to Scotland, and he’ll soon be headed to Portland, Ore., Seattle and Oakland, Calif., on top of his Midwest events.

His brother’s schedule is limited, both because of his college obligations and amateur status. Ben McKim hopes to compete in Omaha’s Midlands Celtic Festival on July 11 and has several other competitions throughout Kansas and Missouri in mind.

Ben McKim’s college coach, Scott Lorek, is supportive of his summertime competitions.

“You’re always kind of looking for things that supplement like that,” Lorek said, adding that just practicing the three collegiate events all year long can foster boredom. “I’d rather see him do the Highland Games, just for the variety, excitement level and change of pace. It just makes him a better athlete.”

The younger McKim said he has dreams of eventually following his brother into the professional ranks, once his college career is completed.

But he need not expect to make a lot of money as a professional athlete, according to Daniel McKim, who moved to the Kansas City area after graduation from Northwest and now works for the state of Missouri for the state’s housing finance agency.

“I look at it as a hobby that hopefully pays for itself,” said Daniel, who uses what notoriety he has gained as a means of witnessing to his Christian faith. “One time I may make $200 and the next time I may lose $200, just because of the travel expenses. By the end of the year I just try to break even.”