A competitor loses control of his pancake while racing during the Shrove Tuesday, or Mardi Gras, tradition at the National Cathedral on Tuesday in Washington, DC. Pancake racers use frying pans to flip a cake three times while running about 30 meters against fellow competitors. Shrove Tuesday is the day preceding Ash Wednesday, the first day of the Christian season of Lent.

Father Matthew Hanisian, assistant rector at St. Alban's Parish, flips a pancake while racing.

A young competitor loses his pancake while running his heat on Tuesday during the annual Washington National Cathedral Pancake Race in Washington, DC.