A Cornhole Party!

I moved to Tennessee just over 2 months ago and as most of you know I was impressed with the natural beauty of the area, by the friendliness of the people here, and the general attitude of civility and in what I describe as a general shyness. Yes, I know that some of you are probably choking on your coffee right now. When I say shyness I don't mean the "Aw gosh" kind of shyness I mean a kind of pervasive shyness to talk about certain things. Some things just aren't spoken of in polite company.

So you can imagine my shock when my sister, well known in these parts, came over and told me her friends family was having a little party and she had been invited. She also let them know that she had planned on helping me get stuffed arranged in my house because I had just moved to the area and she was told that I was invited too. I asked my sister just what kind of party this was, thinking maybe anniversary, birthday, something of that nature and she told me it was going to be a cornhole party!

OK, we need to stop right here so you have time to wipe up the second mouthful of coffee you just choked on. I've told you that the people in Tennessee tend to be very polite. I lived most of my life in New York and I know what my definition of cornhole is. If I was being invited to a cornhole party it was going to shatter my illusion of just what Tennesseans were. I mean, a stranger being invited to a cornhole party? My sister looking excited to having been invited?

If any of you know me you know I'm a hermit. I live in the woods, watch my birds and deer, run a business from my computer and generally don't go out in public. However as I've heard some people here in Tennessee say, "Family does for family" and my sister looked excited and if I were not going to go she probably would have stayed and continue to help me unpack from my move. I told her I'd go. To be honest I wasn't sure what to wear.

We went to her friends house early that evening and it's a great place. Near a small stream, woods nearby, and on a quiet road. I was introduced around to my sister's friend, her husband, some neighbors and the family dog. I was concerned for the dog.

We sat around enjoying some delicious grilled hamburgers, hotdogs and some homemade salads. We talked about the oil spill, some politics and the economy in general. Then someone got up and said, "Anyone want to cornhole?" A couple of people there voiced agreement and even some of the kids said they wanted to play too. Would you put that coffee down? You're going to ruin your keyboard. When the parents said they could but that they would have to wait until the adults played a time or two first I knew that cornhole had to be different from what I had been thinking it was.

They brought out the cornhole boards. They were hand made and very well made at that. Now for all of you, probably from the north, cornhole is a game that, best I can describe it, is a combination of horseshoes, shuffleboard and golf. Just like in horseshoes you can play individually or with a partner against another similar team. Two boards tilted at about 30 degrees are set about 30 feet apart. The board itself is about 4 feet long and about 2 feet wide. Roughly 6" from the highest part of the board is a hole about 6" in diameter. The board itself is varnished and sanded very smooth. Beanbags are thrown, underhanded just like horseshoes, and each team member takes turns also just like horseshoes. The object of the game is to throw a 1 pound beanbag (probably filled with corn, hence the name) onto the opposite board and try to get it into the hole. If it doesn't go into the hole the secondary object is to get the beanbag to stay on the board.

The winner is that person or team reaching 21 points first. A player gets 3 points for putting a bag in the hole and 1 point for every bag that stays on the board. The opposing player is trying to do the same thing but points cancel instead of adding up. For example if each team puts a beanbag in the hole no points are scored by either team. If each player keeps a bag on the board no points are scored. If one player puts 3 bags on the board and the opposing player puts 2 bags on the board the first player scores only 1 point.

We had a blast! Needless to say, since I was a beginner I was not very good and taken seriously advantage of. I told you to put that coffee down! A couple of the guys there had obviously been doing this for quite a while and were quite good. We played for an hour or so and it started getting dark and we said our goodbyes and went home. A few weeks later my sister presented me with a birthday present of two cornhole boards made by the family we had partied with. They are beautiful! I have to find some beanbags now and practice. Then the next time I'm invited to a cornhole party I'll be prepared!

BTW, there is no dress code for a cornhole party. Casual is just fine.

About this Author

Gene Wolf is a partner in a Tennessee based company that makes birdhouses to attract specific birds to your yard. You can see examples of the birdhouses at Wolf Mountain Birdhouses [http://www.wolfmountainbirdhouses.com]. Every birdhouse is made by hand and in the United States. Wolf Mountain Birdhouses has just added a document for sale that thoroughly explains everything they do to attract swarms of Hummingbirds to their manufacturing facility. If you've never seen a Hummingbird swarm you really need to watch the video at Wolf Mountain Birdhouses [http://www.wolfmountainbirdhouses.com/birdhouse-videos.html].

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