Swing-Ball

Swing-Ball, a game played with a soccer ball, and, well, swings, thusly: "...the Red Team in the field (players 1 and 2) and the Blue Team on the swings (players 3 and 4). The game is divided into two halves, with each team spending one half on the field and one half on the swings. The two players on the swings have the option of choosing which direction to face and whether to swing in tandem or in opposing directions...The goal of the Red team is to pass the ball between the two poles of swingsets without the Blue team making contact with the ball. Each time this occurs, the Red team earns one point. Each Red player is allowed just two touches of the ball before their teammate must touch, or the ball is given to the Blue team. The Blue team, meanwhile, will attempt to block and gain control of player 1's attempted pass. They have an unlimited number of touches and may tap the ball to each other to set up a preferable kick."

I'd most definitely call this a Junkyard Sport. The designers incorporated what for soccer players would be deemed "junk" - a swingset, in this case - and used it as the pivotal, so to speak, focus of the game. This is the kind of thinking that transcends boundaries, that integrates the real world into the world of play, that engages new skills, and creates opportunities for the expression of excellence, and the frequently actually fun opportunity to fall off a swing.


via Strange Games


from Bernie DeKoven, funsmith