Friday 27 April 2012

Hacky Sacks review


Celebrating its 40th anniversary this summer, the world famous Hacky Sack is returning to the UK. When I received an email about them, my reaction was : "Oh yeah, I remember those ! What happened to them ? Haven't seen them for years!". Well, here's a bit of history. 

Hacky Sack was invented by athletes Mike Marshall and John Stalbergers in 1972 as a training tool to exercise John's leg after a knee injury. Not only did John’s leg quickly recover, but kicking the footbag around turned out to be a brilliantly fun game to play too. Mike and John perfected the design and Hacky Sack was born. Hacky Sack joined the Wham-O line-up of iconic brands in 1983. Since then, Hacky Sack and the footbag game has become a world-renowned sport, played by millions across the globe. Unavailable for many years, the only genuine Hacky Sack from Wham-O is now returning to the UK.

 We were sent a couple of Hacky Sack and asked : Who in the family can master the moves and become the Hacky Sack master?! 


Well, Juliette was the first to start playing with them. Ummm not quite sure that's what they're supposed to be used for ! Time to learn the moves !

The Inside Kick:
Drop Hacky Sack in front of you. Use your inside foot to kick the Hacky Sack up straight up again. Now try kicking the Hacky Sack straight up alternating with each foot. How long can you keep going?

The Outside Kick:
Drop Hacky Sack to your side and kick it straight up with the outside of your foot. This move is more difficult and you need to angle your ankle to get it right.

The Stall:
Catch the falling Hacky Sack on the inside of your foot by matching its speed with a downward motion. The trick is to land the Hacky Sack without bouncing it or kicking it off again. Once you have mastered it, try dropping Hacky Sack by your side and catching it with the outward of your foot.

Toe Kick and Stall:
Drop the Hacky Sack further in front of you and try kicking and stalling it on your toes.

Hacky Sack Games:
Get your mates together and stand in a circle. Use your Hacky Sack skills to pass the footbag from player to player. The trick is to keep the bag from the ground as long as possible.

Get Fit:
Playing Hacky Sack for an hour burns around 240 calories, about the same calories as a fast food burger.

Two hundred and forty calories ?! Quick, give them here !!



Ah, that's more like it. Juliette soon got into the swing of things, throwing the Hacky Sack up in the air and trying to catch it again, which was great for developing her coordination and reflexes. For small children trying to learn to catch (like Pierre) who keep missing, it's actually better than a ball because it doesn't bounce or roll away when it lands on the floor. We had a good game of catch and piggy-in-the-middle and even had a go at juggling !


Juliette then progressed on to trying to play keepie-uppies with the Hacky Sack which was great fun but also great exercise, as well as giving her coordination and reflexes some more practice. The undisputed Madhouse Hacky Sack Star though is Madhouse Daddy Mike who couldn't resist having a play during his lunch hour, but sadly I didn't have the camera to hand (as it had just been dropped down the stairs and broken - grrr) so you'll have to take my word for it !

Hacky Sack may be a recognised football-training tool but it's also a good toy for young children to play with, just for general throwing and kicking practice. It's also small enough to put in your pocket for taking to the park and is ideal for packing in a suitcase to play with on holiday.

star rating : 4/5

RRP : £3.99

for more information : http://www.wham-o.com/product/Hacky_Sack.html

Disclosure : I received two Hacky Sacks in order to write the review.

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2 comments:

  1. A lot of good points going for the Hacky Sack. Thanks for the review.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great review :)

    ReplyDelete

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