I know right now all the hype is about baseball and football, but those aren’t the only sports that dominate this country. Think about the rugged sport of Cornhole, for example.
Last summer my friend was regaling me with a story of how she spent most of her day dealing with a cornhole tournament at her office. First of all, I didn’t know what cornhole was. She explained the boards and the sandbags and the whole deal. It’s pretty complicated so I found this diagram helpful:
As I recall, her firm typically played on the roof of their building, but that week they needed an indoor venue. High priced partners spent the day deliberating about just the right spot. A hallway? Conference room? Library? There were phone calls and emails and discussions, and of course my friend had to be in the middle of all of it. As her good friend, I comforted her by laughing in her face. That is one thing about my firm, we are just not a cornhole playin’ kind of crowd. Sure I felt bad for her, but the important thing was that it wasn’t happening to me.
But karma was waiting to pounce. The next morning I was chatting with my managing partner and told her how crazy my friend’s firm was and how glad I was we weren’t that kind of place. I should have kept my damn mouth shut because the next thing I know I’m online trying to find a cornhole set for the office. Crap.
If you ever search the internet for cornhole, you may be surprised at what you find. I kid you not; there are “professional” cornhole players. They are in peak physical condition and refer to cornhole as a sport.
I discovered the American Cornhole Association www.playcornhole.org
“The ACA was established by a small group of dedicated cornholers from the west side of Cincinnati, Ohio. We have grown over the years and, to the best of our knowledge, we now represent the largest organized corn toss association in the United States with over 30,000 members.
Our mission is (1) to introduce our friends and neighbors to the game of Cornhole, (2) to establish more standardized guidelines for equipment and tournament play, (3) to educate and share information about Cornhole, (4) to rank our members based on the results of ACA tournament play around the country, and (5) to promote and grow the game of Cornhole.”
30,000 members? It’s amazing. Not to be outdone, there is the American Cornhole Organization, the official governing body of the “sport” www.americancornhole.org
“As the governing body of the sport of cornhole, ACO is dedicated to providing programs and services to set cornhole standards, ensure its integrity, preserve its future and enhance the cornhole experience. ACO strives to achieve this mission by offering exclusive benefits to its members.”
How I admire the hearty souls who pioneered this noble game. I finally chose what I felt was a very fine cornhole set, and ordered it for rush delivery. It came just in time for our monthly happy hour, where I was just sure everyone would be eager to play. Look, I tried to sell the thing. Using a tone I usually reserve for toddlers I asked “Who wants to play a game? It is such a fun game! Everyone loves this game!” A few people played a halfhearted game, but that was about it.
We let it gather dust for a year but I decided to give it another try at the end of this summer. No takers at all. We are just not a cornhole playing kind of crowd. And don’t worry-wanting to avoid injury I never went near the boards or sandbags.
If you’re interested in a great deal on a barely used cornhole set, give me a call.