Strange Games reader, and self styled King of the Scrumpers, Christopher Trigg sent in the Autumnal game of Scrumpy Bucket some time ago and it is only now that I am getting around to write about it. Scrumping is the noble childhood activity of stealing apples from someone elses orchard and the Game of Scrumpy Bucket could be seen as some sort of celebratory game of this activity. Christopher Trigg writes,"Scrumpy Bucket is played in teams of twos in an orchard at Scrumpy time. One man, the 'bucket-boy' holds a large plastic bucket in each hand then starts spinning around on the spot. His partner stands a couple of yards off, gathers as much fallen fruit from the ground as possible then tries to throw the fruit into the buckets. Obviously, with bucket-boy spinning around, this is no easy matter and much fun is gained by the fruit missing the buckets and striking his team mate instead. The job of the bucket boy is made even harder as the game goes on - he gets dizzier and dizzier and is more than likely to stumble and fall on the apple strewn ground. Get more than one team playing at the same time and set a time limit for the spinning...then simply count the apples in the buckets at the end to determine the winning team."
A humorous description of Scrumping can be found at Scaryduck
Strange Games is indebted to reader Jerry Coffey for drawing our attention to the classy American game of Blongo Ball. To play, you will need a Blongo Ball set consisting of two sets of bolas (two rubber balls connected by a short length of cord) and a goal, which is a little like a plastic clothes-dryer with three crossbars. The aim of the game is to throw your bolas and get them to wrap around the horizontal goal bars, each of which is differently coloured and gives different points. The best throwing technique is to spin one ball around the other then launch the whole bolas in an underhand style. Rules can vary but a good allocation might be 1 point for the easy top rung, 2 for the middle and 3 for the tricky bottom. You can gain extra points for more unusual shots such as getting the bolas to bounce off the ground before they wrap themselves around the bar. You could even give differing points to whether your shot produces a 'wrap around' or a 'hanger' (the bolas hangs on delicately by one ball only) Play as a two player game, take it in turns to throw and if you knock one of your opponent's bolas off then they lose those points. The first player to get to 21 wins. In his correspondence Jerry suggests, rather cruelly I think, that the game is also known as Hillbilly Golf. Learn more at theblongo ball websitewhere you can even have a go at a computer version of the game Jerry is also starting a bloglist of fun family games here
Strange Games is often deluged by at least a couple of e-mails a week detailing odd and obscure games that readers play. Many of these games we feature in the blog and a few are touched by the hand of genius...Hat Ball is one such game. Hat Ball was sent in by reader Daryl Hrdlicka.
To play the game you need to be outside on a patio (or some other solid flat area) that adjoins a wall. Both players wear hats and stand close together side by side facing the wall. One player holds a power-ball (super-ball) which he then throws down hard against the patio at such an angle that the ball will bounce onto the wall and then bounce higher up into the air before it starts to descend. As soon as the ball is launched both players remove their hats and scramble to catch the ball in their own hat. The player that achieves this gains a point as well as control of the ball and play continues. The game works well for two players but could probably be extended to more people for a really chaotic version. Daryl writes:"You couldn't take your hat off until the ball was in the air, and then you just tried to catch it in your hat (using elbows and body checks to get the advantage). I liked to use hats with rims all the way around because if you snapped your wrist right, the hat would fly out like a Frisbee and you could catch the ball in the air" A game that involves power-balls, Frisbee skills, rough and tumble...and wearing hats. What's not to like?
Regular readers will know that at Strange Games we love Slapsies. The ultimate, brutal, playground game that has the magical combination of steady nerves, skill and pain. Simply hold your hands together, prayer like, your fingertips touching those of your opponent then try and strike the back of their hand with the palm of your own before they withdraw. Everytime you hit you get another go. The game is perfect and has remained unchanged for decades...but now, there is a new variation. We present Balance Ball Slapsies. Just as violent but in BBS you must kneel and balance on one of those large rubber exercise balls opposite the other player. The first player to fall from their ball or give up because of sore hands loses the game. This brings fantastic new dimensions to the game, you need to temper the speed of your attempted slap with the need to retain balance and stay on your ball, and if your opponent's hands escape you can find yourself in an undignified heap on the floor. Marvellous!
High Noon is a game that is a little like a combination of a playground clapping game and rock paper scissors, but is much better than both. It is harder to explain than it is to learn and play...but here goes. For two players, each faces the other over a table. Like a clapping game each player makes their moves simultaneously. The game begins with both players hand slapping the table (no:1 in accompanying picture). In their second move each player then decides whether to slap their left shoulder (pic 2) which is a safe move or to bring their hand up to their right shoulder (pic 3) which loads the gun, or to fire the gun (pic 4) at their opponent. After this second move each player then slaps the table again (pic 1) in unison and moves to their third move. The Hand Slap move must be made alternatively with one of the other three. A player successfully shoots the opponent (and wins the game) if they make the 'Fire' move at exactly the same time their opponent makes a 'Reload' move. Also, players can not fire the gun unless it has previously been loaded and they must reload before the each attempt at firing is made. Once players have learnt the rules then it is best played as fast as possible. Keeping the rhythm whilst watching what your opponent is up to and deciding whether to attempt a shot or a reload become mind-bending at speed. And once you have mastered the basic game why not go for mental meltdown and play the the two arm version. The video below should (hopefully) make clearer my description of this superb game.
Staying with the theme of strange wrestling we present Newspaper Wrestling. An unusual game for two people and an ideal use for a newspaper that's been read. Simply place a sheet from a newspaper flat on the floor. Both players stand on the page - they will be standing very close to one another even if they use a broadsheet. Now, on a start command, each tries to push (or pull) the other off the paper. Any technique is valid in this claustrophobic combat. The first player that places a foot outside the paper, or causes it to tear, is the loser. Once you have mastered the art of broadsheet newspaper wrestling why not move up a category to tabloid wrestling.
Table Wrestling is a sport with a history that goes back to Roman times where slaves were forced to to mount their master's table and try to circumnavigate it whilst wagers were made...or it could be just an inspired made-up game by a group of bored sixth-formers in Worcester. Whichever it is, Table Wrestling is undoubtedly one of the greatest and strangest Wrestling events.
To play, simply get a table (a school size one works well, but one with more character can sometimes give greater opportunity for hand holds) lie on top of it (face down is best) then try and go 360 degrees around it without touching the ground with any part of your body. The most common technique is to stretch a hand all the way underneath to grab the opposing edge before the rest of your body follows and you fall to the floor. Then simply pull yourself underneath and then, hopefully, back onto the top. It's a little like keelhauling - only with a table and no risk of drowning. Once you have mastered the basic move you can advance to travelling around the table length ways or if you are especially advanced in a figure of eight movement. For the hardcore table wrestler you could even attempt the 'altitude' version where you balance 1 table on the top of two others before going around it. If you are particularly speedy why not try and beat the world record which stands at 10 rotations in 1 minute!
For the player that struggles to get their body all the way around then the two player game (illustrated in the accompanying photo) might be the one to try. Each player hangs over one side of a table and attempts to dislodge their opponent by any means possible...the winner is the first to get three falls or a submission.
The previous post about Extreme Swingball prompted an e-mail from Strange Games reader Rob Edwards. In it he details a similarly painful game he calls Extreme Bucket Ball. The game works best with smallish teams of two or three players each. Teams take it in turns to have one of their members be the Bucket Boy - this player stands in the centre of a 3m chalk-drawn circle on the floor and uses both hands to hold a plastic bucket on top of their head. The game starts with Bucket Boy's team mates trying to toss as many tennis balls as possible into the bucket - Bucket Boy can aid this by moving around but he must remain inside the circle at all times. Similarly, team-mates must throw the balls from outside the circle. The opposing team however must try to disturb Bucket Boy, getting him to miss balls or even better spill his bucket. They do this by firing any tennis balls they can get at Bucket Boy's body (again, they have to remain outside the circle) You can make a no-headshots rule if you like. Whenever a ball becomes free there is a mad scramble for control of it from both sides. Play for a set time, count the bruises and the balls in Bucket Boy's bucket then swap sides and play again. Good clean fun. Addendum: As lsk rightly points out in the comment section..this game would be improved and made much fairer if a no crouching rule is enforced on Bucketboy
(Strange Games has also covered Bucket Ball and Hanetball previously - click on the links to discover more)
about it. Scrumping is the noble childhood activity of stealing apples from someone elses orchard and the Game of Scrumpy Bucket could be seen as some sort of celebratory game of this activity.
