For Christmas this year (2007) I made a set of cornhole boards for my sister-in-law Laura and her husband Bobby (a huge ‘Bama fan). The plans I used were Jackson Van Buren’s Open Sided Cornhole Instructions - Advanced (pdf), which utilize a thicker playing surface to avoid the dreaded bounce effect. I decorated the boards using Team Colors paint by Glidden (available at tHD). Pam ordered a set of matching black and red bags from Cornhole Game.
If you have never heard of cornhole, then check out the two major governing bodies of the sport: American Cornhole Organization (ACO) and American Cornhole Association (ACA). I also recommend Cornhole Players dot Net, which has a forum, galleries, plans for boards and bags, and links to suppliers.
The game has a reputation among the college and tailgating crowd, but it is honestly fun for the whole family. I cannot wait to build a set of boards for us to play cornhole — Penn State themed, of course.
9 Comments
I first saw these types of games at the tailgating for the App State vs. Delaware game. I thought of it as a “soft” version of horseshoes. Those are some nice cornhole boards you have there. Too bad they are such yucky colors! LOL.
I supposed I should have ended with WAREAGLE!
Haha…I thought you might comment on that rivalry.
I’d call cornhole a cross between horseshoes (b/c you’re throwing an object at a target) and shuffleboard (b/c of 1) the board and 2) the way the scoring works). Much, much safer than horeshoes (and more portable), but those bags are full of dried corn and could hurt…you’re hurling them 30 feet! Also, some of the Appy State or Delaware fans may have had mini or travel boards, which are typically a little smaller than the standard 2′ x 4′ x 4″ size. Some even come with scoring stands that double as beer holders (bet you saw some of those at the game!).
Hey my wife was wondering what those… wait a minute… she already commented on this. Crap! We really need to coordinate our blog commenting better.
that is pure genius. I wondered what you were making for Lala and Bobby (remember the glue on your fingers). I can’t think of a more perfect gift for them.
This is a new one… This IS NOT what I was told cornholing was!!!
@willa: did you see the cornhole board designs in our Flickr feed? I’m going to do a set for Karen. Unfortunately, I came up with the Rock City/Ruby Falls barn theme after we ordered the bags — orange and navy.
Dude! You could start a cornhole business! I’m surprised you haven’t done a Ron Paul one! Ooh, you should have done a set that had a Patriots and a Giants!
And Joseph says, “Why would you make an ALABAMA one? I don’t like Alabama. Why wouldn’t you make a Tennessee one?”
Check out http://www.alabamacornhole.com We are a group of players that love to play. We are having a tournament in Birmingham this weekend if interested. A great time for everyone.