The Game Hacky Sack has proven to be a popular game amongst expeditioners
on the Aurora Australis' fourth voyage of the season. For those not familiar
with this game, here is a quick run-down: Hacky Sack, or Footbag as it is
also known, is an American version of an ancient sport played in Asia and
in North America. The modern game was developed by John Stalberger and Mike
Marshall who, in 1972, experimented with a Native American Game which involved
kicking a small soft object. They called this game 'hacking the sack'. Hacky
sack has since developed into many different forms including Footbag Net
(a singles or doubles court game using a five foot high net) and the ever
popular Freestyle Hack (where players stand in a circle, do tricks with
the hack and pass it to one another). A quick glance at some outstanding
hacky world record feats:
Open 5-minute Timed Consecutive Andy Linder, 7th June 1996, Midwest Regional
Footbag Championships, Illinois, USA
Total kicks in 5-minutes: 1019
Open Singles Consecutive Ted Martin, 14th June 1997, Midwest Regional Footbag
Championships, Illinois, USA
Total Kicks: 63 326 in 8hrs 50min 42 sec
Open Doubles Consecutive Tricia George/Gary Lautt, 21st/22nd March 1998,
Chico, California, USA
Total Kicks: 132 011 in 20hrs 34min
Largest Hacky Circle St. Patrick High School of Chicago, 3rd May 1996
Total Players: 933
The hacky version most commonly played on the Aurora Australis this year is a form of Freestyle, whose aim is to keep the sack off the steel deck for as long as possible. It is played under the following simple Hacky Commandments:
Thou shalt not serve the
hacky to oneself,
Thou shalt not touch the
hacky with any part of ones arm below the shoulder,
The one wearing steel capped
boots has right of way in the hacky circle,
The one who kicks the hacky
over the side fetches it,
Thou shalt not pull any
outrageous maneouvres on an icy and/or rolling deck.
The highest honour an Aurora hacky player can receive is to be involved in what is known as a 'hack'. A hack occurs when the hacky touches all participants in the hacky circle before 'kissing the deck', and players have been known to dive across the hacky circle with scant regard to personal safety in order to get that illusive touch.
Hacky has been played in all parts of the Aurora Australis but is most commonly practiced on the Hacky Deck (and the chopper pilots thought the H stood for Helicopter) and the trawl deck. Hacky circles can form any time of the day however a post tea hack starting at 6:30pm has proven popular.
Whilst none of the world records listed above are likely to get a nudge this season, there have been some stylish and admirable hacky moves developed on the Auroras' decks. A small sample of these are listed below in no particular order.
The Browny. Named in honour of Mark Brown, the most casual hacky player to ever grace the Auroras decks. This move involves allowing the hack to all but touch the deck before levering it upwards to the next player, here performed with a casual elegance by Sealer Numero Uno. |
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Cobra. A trademark move which was developed in a moment of sheer hacky brilliance by Mark Fletcher. Due to its difficulty, it has since only been replicated once by Dr Colin Southwell on the sea-ice off near Sansom Island. It is performed here by the originator himself. |
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The Ole. A Heinzy maneouvre with no practical use what-so-ever, but gee it looks impressive. Heinzy here shows us how it's done. |
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The Popey. A general term which encompasses actions involving knees and the Hacky. Named in honour of true expert in the art of knee hacky, Matt Pope. Dave demonstrates it for us. |
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The Pissing Dog, here performed in a rare tandem display by Heinzy and the mysterious inventor of this stylish move. |
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The Sarah. The picture speaks for itself. |
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Whilst no hacky player can ever consider themselves a loser, there have been two unfortunate events involving the hacky sacks themselves which deserve special mention in this report. Please bow your heads in acknowledgment of the supreme sacrifice paid by Andy's Hacky (lost between Macquarie Island and Hobart) and Melissa's Hacky (lost off Macquarie Island). May they rest in peace.
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