Hacky Sacks

People have probably seen them somewhere in a park, on a campus or even on the streets. Groups stand in a circle and kick around a small bag to each other while performing tricks and other moves to make the game more interesting. The sport is often called hacky sack and uses, amazingly enough, hacky sacks to play it with. The footbag, as the hacky sack and the sport is less often called, is pastime of many people old and young. It is an easy, fun and portable sport.

The hacky sacks today come in vast variety of colors and styles. The term ‘hacky sack’ is a trademarked name that was given to a footbag made by the inventors of the item. The inventors were John Stalberger and Mike Marshall. While the name was and still is trademarked the term has becomes a generalized term to refer to the footbag or to the sport it is associated with. Lots of companies sell different types of hacky sacks or footbags today like Flying Clipper.

Many hacky sacks share the same general characteristics even though the individual look and style might differ. A hacky sack is essentially a small bag filled with either sand or small pellets. The pellets can be made from a variety of materials to plastic for novice or general hacky sacks to a complex mixture of ball bearings and tungsten for professional hacky sacks. They can be made from almost any durable material though professional hacky sacks are made from especially durable material called ultrasuede light or facile. The average hacky sack can cost as little as five dollars while the more professional ones can go as high as forty dollars.

The sports that are practiced with hacky sacks are also wide and different. At the moment there are three distinct sports that can be played with a hacky sack. Circle kicking is probably the most well known incarnation where a group of people keeps the hacky sack moving between them without touching the ground. Footbag net is like a combination of volleyball and tennis with a hacky sack that is kicked over a net on a court the size of a badminton court. Freestyle footbag is the sport where an individual attempts to perform various trick with a hacky sack like some sort of dance. Freestyle footbag takes a lot of skill and has become an international sport that is quite competitive.

Hacky sacks are small, relatively inexpensive and easy to carry around anywhere. Anyone can learn to play the game and all it takes is a little skill and practice. Companies like Flying Clipper sell a wide range of hacky sacks or footbags that are perfect for the beginner, the intermediate or the professional. They come in a range of colors and designs made to suit anyone’s particular needs. So when there is nothing to do, why not grab a few friends, pull the hacky sack from a pocket and start a freestyle circle game amongst yourselves?