Hackey Sack Player's Photo Op

Footbag skill demonstrated by a group of neighborhood hackey sack players.  A footbag is a small round bag as well as the name of the various games played with it.  Hackey Sack is the distinctive trademark name for one specific brand of footbag developed in 1972 by Mike Marshall and John Stalberger.  Now the name has become so genericized that it has come to mean the product itself.  It's like when you ask for a Kleenex and everyone knows you mean any type of tissue.  Now when you say "Hackey Sack" it has come to mean any type of footbag or a footbag game.  This particular footbag is crocheted and is usually filled with plastic beads.  It is  sturdier than than the ultrasuede type and is therefore the preferred type for circle  kicking with a group of friends.  If you & your friends want to play at night there is even a glow in the dark footbag!

This freestyle player executes a difficult move and shows that the  inventive possibilities for tricks are endless.  Current freestyle champion is Milan Benda of the Czech Republic.

The goal is keeping the ball in the air.

Here's a hackey sack circle consisting of 4 players.  Circle kicking is the most common game played with a footbag & involves 2 or more players standing in a circle who attempt to keep it moving from player to player without touching the ground.  Certain friendly guidelines apply: 1) Picking up the footbag when you send it astray rather than requesting others to do it   2) Looking out to pass the bag to others who have not gotten it recently and 3) Not hogging the bag.  In some circles there is an additional unwritten rule of not making apology for dropping the footbag.  This seems to keep any new players from feeling as if it's their fault for any slowness in the game and relieves the more experienced players from having to reassure them about it.