CROSSING THE LINE ORIGIN

To cross the line or ‘go too far’ actually has nothing to do with the legendary rut scratched in the dust with a boot heal during a confrontation. It is in fact based on an ancient nautical ritual that is still practiced today. When a sailor, crew member or passenger crossed the equator for the first time it was traditional to hold a ceremony to which King Neptune and various other mythological characters participated. Today the pagan trimmings have all but been dispatched and have been replaced by a booze fuelled celebration that inevitably ends with a very bad hangover indeed.