It's not every day that Strange Games hears from a World Champion - but recently we have been e-mailed by Mark Rye(28) who is not only a world champion at Dry Sponge Throwing he is also the world record holder at the event!The World Dry Foam Flinging Championships are held annually as part of the Bromsgrove Folk Festival (an event of folk music, folk dancing and 
folk throwing of bathroom sponges). Mark is on a quest to compete in as many World Championships as his bank balance, sanity and girlfriend allow. I will let him describe the ancient West Midlands tradition of sponge throwing in his own pictures and words:"I have attached a picture of me after the 2006 championships. The bit of foam sticking out of the cup is the foam thrown in the competition. As you can see the foam is not very big so technique is very important. Also going into the competition in the right frame of mind is crucial. Luckily me and my mates had been to the Snail Racing World Championship the day before, thus we where already in a world championships mind set.
As for throwing, the secret is not to throw angry. The harder you throw the foam the less distance it will go. I favoured a gentle over arm lob. As for the competition you get three throws of the sponge. Entry is the princely sum of 20p and you can enter as many times as you want. The first year I won was 2006, when I also set the world record. This stands at 30ft 21/2 beating the previous record of 27ft. At the 2006 event there were two former champions, one of which did the Hakka before throwing. In 2007 I managed to win without a throw taking place. Over the weekend of the competition it was raining so heavily I was half tempted to start building an ark. When I turned up to throw, Bob,the organiser, informed me that it was too wet to throw dry foam. But as I had turned up I had done enough to win the championship. This year I am looking for the hat-trick of titles"
Strange Games wrote recently about the Krispy Kreme Challenge - a 
healthy/unhealthy running and doughnut eating event in North Carolina. The Facebook group Pub Bounce 2008 are organising the UK response...a pub crawl on space hoppers. All you need to take part is your own hopper, money for beer and the address of the nearest accident and emergency department. The event, hopefully the first of many, will occur in Newport Pagnell on June 7th and will follow the usual pub crawl rules- a pint in each bar then a bounce en masse to the next. Start times and bounce routes are yet to be announced but you can keep yourself informed by joining the Facebook group here
Anyone for Pot Pogostick 2009 in Amsterdam: a toke of a joint in each coffee shop then pogo stick to the next?
Pin Pin is a childish, pointlessly violent game of pain that has recently come to light most famously on Russell Brand's Radio 2 show. On the show 
Russell's friend/co-presenter, Matt Morgan, has recounted the tale of when he was 10, walking home from scouts and his friend Darren French came up behind him, shouted the immortal phrase, "pin pin" and jabbed him hard in the upper arm with a naked pin. And so the game has been rejuvenated and taken off across the nation's playgrounds with cries of 'pin pin' being heard... swiftly followed by ones of 'Ow, you bastard, I'll get you for that'. There are no rules except the shout of 'Pin Pin' must be made when an attack takes place.
I can recall a similar 'sport' being played in my childhood, albeit without the 'pin pin' chant, but with a standard Blue Peter badge (one of the few pinned badges you were allowed to wear to school) being used. Assailants would come upon you unannounced, jab you hard with the pointy end and run off to avoid capture. No doubt they never achieved their Silver Blue Peter Badge.
Join the Facebook Pin Pin Group here
Writing about Pin Pin reminds me of another painful childhood punishment type game from the 70's which could easily take off again:-Timothy Torture
Timothy Torture is a bit like a green, rural equivalent of the urban Pin Pin. So called because it uses as its weapon of choice a stalk of Timothy Grass. The common meadow grass (Phleum pratense) grows almost everywhere in Europe and Timothy is its common name. To assail, simply pull out a mature stalk and slide your thumb and 
forefinger from the base of the seed head to the tip - pulling all the seeds off as you go. The section of stalk exposed doesn't seem much to look at but if you pass by someone with long hair (the game is almost useless against skinheads) thrust the stalk tip into their pride and joy, twizzle, then pull hard. The naked Timothy stalk is like velcro for hair with strands instantly attaching themselves to it and if done correctly this procedure is very painful indeed with the assailant uprooting lots of hair or at the very least causing much pain and anguish. Obviously Timothy Torture is seasonal in nature, due to the flowering time of Phleum pratense but if you can get hold of this abundant perennial grass much fun (and pain) can be had.
Bucket Ball has a similar feel to Hanet Ball in the sense that the player actually stands within the goal but it is much weirder, more fun and... uses buckets. 
For two competing players. At the start of the game each player stands facing the other a few yards apart. Both have placed their feet into plastic buckets, one on each foot. For children playing the game a standard bucket is usually perfect – for adult players you may need to search a garden centre for larger specimens. Players hold in their hands an equal number of small balls. The aim of the game is to throw and get as many balls as possible into either of your opponents buckets whilst avoiding too many in your own. Players are allowed to move about so the game soon develops into tense stand offs, daring bucket-footed attacks and desperately clumsy leg movements to avoid incoming balls landing in a bucket. Any player falling over loses and once all balls have been thrown all you need to do is add up the bucket-balls to determine the winner.
Bucket Ball a game for the 22nd Century.
HanetBall is the game you would get if you crossed a game of basket ball with a trip to your local Mothercare store. The game is currently played in Florida but as its creater calls it “THE game of the 21st century” expect it to make an appearance near you soon. 
The game is played with two teams of seven players using a Hanet Ball (basically a basketball) on a rectangular court (similar to the one used in basketball) and the ball must be bounced when running with it (a little like basketball) but, and it's a big but, instead of being fixed to the walls the baskets are suped-up toddler playpens. Large (12 feet diameter) circular playpens with netted sides are placed at both ends of the court and inside them stands the team's goal keeper who tries to repel any ball that the opponents attempt to throw into the net. Games comprise of four quarters and last 70 minutes or until the goalkeeper cries to be let out.
official Hanetball site
Strange Games is indebted to Sian Mc for sending in details of this bizarre game that she plays with her friends. 
A really odd standoff game, what Nose Licking lacks in hygeine it makes up for in genuine weirdness and the hilarity of actually playing it.
For two players, each faces the other and hold the other's shoulders. This hold must be maintained throughout the game. Now, simply, each player attempts to lick the nose of their opponent whilst, obviously, all the time trying to avoid having their own nose licked. Initially when played games tend to have a phase where both players strictly maintain their distance but gradually they come to realise that if they are going to grasp victory then they're going to have to get closer and try and lick that nose.(If you play any games that are better / more disgusting / funnier than Nose Licking please send them in to Montegue Blister: montegue_blister@hotmail.co.uk)
Is it a sport, art or maybe dance? No, it's Hockern!
Germany's contribution to the world of odd games and sports is truly bizarre. Hockern (German for 'stools') is 
a little like competitive break dancing...only, break dancing using a milking stool. Competitors stand in front of the Hockern judges and show off their best stool movements (sorry). These will include spinning the stool on the floor, balancing upon it (on knee, stomach or even head), and tossing it into the air and speed sitting on it wherever it lands. One of the favourite moves is a high speed throw over the the shoulders, back through between the legs and squat down onto it.
Another cool trick is to have a friend slide the stool along the floor towards you for you to sit down hard upon it as it reaches you. And it's not just a solo sport. There are synchronised group events too that have to be seen to be believed. The superstars of this new sport are known as Hockstars and regular competitions are held in the nightclubs of Germany including the prestigious Hocktoberfest.
Now is the time to grab your stool and live the dream because Hockern will surely be a demonstration sport, probably sponsored by Ikea, in the next Olympic Games.
official Hockern site (in German)video of Hockern #1video of Hockern #2
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Addendum: Hockern-meisters Ben Denn and Orc von Rumaenien (crazy names, crazy guys) from hockern.com have been in touch with Strange Games to say that the stools used in Hockern are not actually German milking stools. This is just an urban legend started by a German newspaper - rather the stools used are retro 70's style ones. They also point out that the next Hockern Championships will be held on October 25th in Kiel...clear your diaries for that date.
The king of finger games, Finger Jousting, is having a competition to find "the most epic photograph of finger jousting in the most 
unique places and situations" Run by the World Finger Jousting Federation, headed by Julian 'Lord of the Joust' Gluck the competition is open to jousters from around the world, just send them a photograph of yourself in an 'insane' joust or in an extreme environment and you could win the coveted prize of a Finger Jousting T Shirt... as well as the utmost respect of your peers. Competition closes on April 31st.
If you are a complete finger fencing novice and new to the world of the 'bobbo lance' and ' majigger' then you can find all you need to start playing at the Finger Jousting website.
finger jousting competitionworld finger jousting federation
folk throwing of bathroom sponges). Mark is on a quest to compete in as many World Championships as his bank balance, sanity and girlfriend allow. I will let him describe the ancient West Midlands tradition of sponge throwing in his own pictures and words:
