Hacky sack facts for kids
A footbag is a small, round bag, often filled with plastic pellets or sand. People kick it into the air for fun or in games. You might know it by the brand name "Hacky Sack", which became so popular that many people use it to mean any footbag.
The most common way to play is with two or more players standing in a circle. They try to keep the footbag from touching the ground for as long as possible.
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History of Footbag
Kicking games like footbag have been around for a very long time! In Asia, there are old games like jianzi or chapteh where people kick a shuttlecock. Other similar games from Southeast Asia include chinlone and sepak takraw. In Korea, there's a game called jegichagi. Even in football-playing countries, people do similar things like freestyle football or keepie uppie.
The footbag we know today was created in 1972. Two friends, Mike Marshall and John Stalberger, from Oregon, USA, invented it. They called their product "Hacky Sack." Sadly, Mike Marshall passed away in 1975. But John Stalberger kept the business going. Footbag became very popular in the early 1980s. In 1983, Stalberger sold the rights to the "Hacky Sack" brand to a company called Wham-O.
Footbag Equipment
For playing in a circle, people often use a crocheted footbag. These are usually filled with small plastic beads. Sometimes, footbags are called "dirt bags" or "sand hacks" if they are filled with sand.
For fancy tricks, called freestyle footbag, a special bag with 32 panels is common. These bags can be filled with different things like plastic pellets, sand, or tiny metal shots. Professional footbags are often made from special fabrics like ultrasuede. These bags are light and help players do more complex tricks. They usually weigh between 40 and 65 grams.
There are also different footbags for playing over a net. These bags are harder than the ones used for tricks. You can even find fun footbags that glow in the dark or are made of chain mail! Some special ones can even be set on fire, but these are banned in some places.
Shoes for Footbag
Many advanced players wear tennis shoes. A popular choice is the Adidas Rod Laver shoe.
Players often change their shoes to make tricks easier. They might use special lacing patterns that open up the sides of the shoe near the toes. This creates a flatter, wider area called a "toe box." This makes it easier to balance the footbag on your foot. Some players even remove layers of fabric from their shoes. This helps them feel the footbag better.
Footbag Games
Circle Kicking
Circle kicking is the most common footbag game. It's often what people mean when they say "hacky sack." Players stand in a circle and try to keep the footbag from hitting the ground.
The game starts when someone tosses the footbag to another player. That player lets it drop to their feet and kicks it. Play continues until the footbag falls. Then, someone picks it up, and the game restarts. The main goal is to keep the footbag in the air for as long as possible. If everyone in the circle touches the footbag before it hits the ground, it's called a 'hack'. If everyone touches it twice, it's a 'double-hack'.
There are some unwritten rules for circle kicking to keep it fun:
- Always respect other players.
- If you drop the footbag, you should pick it up.
- Don't serve the footbag to yourself.
- Don't hog the footbag; make sure everyone gets a chance to kick it.
- Most circles welcome new players, no matter their skill level.
- Some groups say not to apologize if you drop the footbag. This helps new players feel more comfortable.
Freestyle Footbag
Freestyle footbag is all about doing cool tricks with the footbag. Players perform a series of moves, with one trick leading into the next. Tricks involve spins, using your leg to circle the footbag in the air, jumps, and ducks (letting the footbag pass over your head). Players often balance the footbag on their foot (called a "stall") or kick it in creative ways. There are endless possibilities for new tricks!
Some players even create routines to music, like a dance or gymnastics performance. There's a world championship for footbag every year. Jan Weber from the Czech Republic is a famous world champion in freestyle footbag.
Footbag Net
Footbag net is a game where players hit a footbag back and forth over a net. The net is about five feet high. It's a bit like tennis, badminton, and volleyball all rolled into one! The court is similar to a badminton court. You score points like in old volleyball rules (you have to be serving to score). Serves are diagonal, like in tennis.
Games are usually played to 11 or 15 points, but you must win by at least two points. The rallies look a lot like volleyball, with players hitting, setting, and spiking the footbag. However, in footbag net, you can't touch the footbag with any part of your body above your shins.
Hacky Attack
Hacky Attack is a team game played by two teams of two players each. It's usually played on a sand field, which is a rectangle about 10 by 15 meters. One player, called the pitcher, tries to hit the opposing pitcher with the footbag. The other player, the catcher, picks up the footbag and passes it to their pitcher.
When a pitcher gets hit, they switch places with their teammate. The first team to reach 15 points wins. You score a point each time you hit the opposing pitcher.
Other Footbag Games
- Footbag Golf: In this game, players kick the footbag towards a target, like a small bin or pot. A course usually has 9 or 18 "holes." Players start by tossing the footbag and kicking it as close to the target as possible. The goal is to get the footbag into the target in the fewest kicks.
- Horse: This game is great for practicing freestyle tricks. One player does a freestyle move, then the next player tries to do the exact same move. If they do it correctly, they choose a new move. If they fail, they get a letter (H, then O, then R, S, E). The first player to spell "Horse" is out of the game.
- Killer: Players kick the footbag around. After a certain number of kicks, a player can kick the footbag at another player to try and hit them. If you get hit, you're out, unless you can kick the footbag back into the circle before it hits the ground.
- Shark: Two or more players hit the footbag a set number of times. Then, one player catches it and yells "shark!" When they do, everyone else must freeze. The "shark" then throws the footbag at any player. If you get hit, you're out or get a point against you. The last player standing wins.
General Rules
Because there are so many ways to play footbag, there aren't strict rules for every game. However, there are common guidelines. For example, in circle kicking, if you drop the footbag, you should be the one to pick it up. To complete a "hack" (one circle), the footbag must pass through all players without touching the ground. In footbag net, players usually get two kicks per side in singles games and three kicks per side in doubles games.
See also
- Basse
- Bean bag
- Chinlone
- Cuju
- International Footbag Players' Association
- Jianzi
- Keepie uppie
- Kemari
- Sipa
- Sepak takraw
