Starting August 20th, the World MTB Orienteering Championships is what happens when mountain biking is combined with Hunger Games-esque disorientation. Held in Veszprém, Hungary (the Hungarian "city of queens"), the competition will combine intense biking with navigation challenges (think maps and compasses). A disclaimer on the event website cautions, "Stones and thorns are abundant. Puncture protection is strongly recommended." Teams from China, Chinese Taipei, Romania, New Zealand, Turkey, and the U.S. plan to compete. However, because the event is unlikely to end up on ESPN, interested parties should check the orienteering website for coverage options.

If you're looking for something a bit more dangerous, Gaelic football might be the perfect remedy for your Olympics hangover. The game is based on caid, which is centuries old, and massively popular in Ireland. (London and New York have clubs as well.) It's a bit like soccer, a bit like rugby. To score teams kick the ball past a goalkeeper into a net, or kick or punch it over a crossbar. The All-Ireland Final is just around the corner in late-September, and 40,000 - 60,000 spectators typically turn out to watch cup games of the more popular squads. In the semi-final round Cork will play Donegal while defending champion Dublin faces off against Mayo.

Hurling, another Irish sport, compounds the likelihood of brutality by introducing small wooden bats to the equation. No protective padding is worn, except for plastic helmets which were made mandatory only recently. (Praising the game's "warrior sport" mentality, US troops set up hurling matches in Iraq.) It's only moderately controlled chaos. Galway is through to the All-Ireland Final (a cup they have not won since 1988), where they will face either the defending champions Kilkenny or Tipperary in the showdown of "the fastest field sport on earth." (Kilkenny and Tipperary are bitter rivals.) The final is set for September 9th.

If you go in for more international events, the Rugby Championship (formerly the Tri-Nations) gets set to kick off on August 18. This competition between Southern hemisphere nations introduces Argentina to the stage of world class rugby. (They join Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa in the competition.) Perennial powerhouse New Zealand (The All Blacks) will look to carry on their tradition of recent dominance while Argentina will hope to prove up to the level of competition. On the up side, the New Zealanders will presumably be performing the haka before their matches, which always makes for good/terrifying watching.