Some people pay for conkers But I get mine for free I go round my grandmas house She's got a horse chestnut tree
This wins the day for me
World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
341–350 of 601 posts
Re: World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
#342Can confirm that we had very elaborate rules for our conker championships in school in Ireland in the late 90s and early 00s.
The lore ran deep too - conkers were varnished in different ways, hardened in front of fireplaces, secret conker trees were coveted, rules were sometimes broken, airplanes were usually not allowed, disputes were not always mitigated, the occasional teacher grumbled. Fun was had.
Re: World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
#343Earlier quoted context omitted.
I used to play conkers at school in England, however my children didn't. The reason? Schools have banned the game of conkers due to health and safety reasons. I asked my 17 year old this morning and he had never even heard of the game of conkers. So I think the age of conkers is passing, alas.
It's much more likely to have died out because of smartphones. The boredom of the pre-smartphone era led to all kinds of ingenuity. Kids were bored so they found ways to not be bored. Nowadays everybody is addicted their phone, simple pleasures such as violently smashing two nuts together no longer have the same pull.
It's much more likely to have died out because of smartphones
I know kids have a lot more money these days but I refuse to believe they are swinging two smartphones together instead of conkers.
Re: World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
#344Earlier quoted context omitted.
> And nowadays people don't really grow up at all. They continue playing right into adulthood and old age, with luxury toys. It would be nice if we stopped stigmatising play. Growing up doesn't mean we stop playing. Acting grown-up might mean stop playing, but it's just that — an act, and a likely childish one. Real adults don't give up on what brings them joy.
Back when I was a teenager, I used to also have similar thoughts as the person you replied to about not playing with toys because it was childish behavior. Luckily, I grew out of that and I do not feel self conscious when playing as an adult or being goofy.
>To carry on into middle life or even into early manhood this concern about being adult is a mark of really arrested development. When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.
- C. S. Lewis
Re: World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
#345Earlier quoted context omitted.
I used to play conkers at school in England, however my children didn't. The reason? Schools have banned the game of conkers due to health and safety reasons. I asked my 17 year old this morning and he had never even heard of the game of conkers. So I think the age of conkers is passing, alas.
What are the health and safety risks from this game? Do the chestnuts fragment violently when they break up?
Imagine swinging two stones (many techniques to harden conkers including the game itself evolving the brutes by elimination) together at high speed with fingers and faces in very near proximity.
Re: World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
#346Earlier quoted context omitted.
I saw on the wikipedia page the following totally stupid reason for the ban in some schools: In 2004, several schools banned conkers due to fear of causing anaphylactic shock in pupils with nut allergies. Health advisers said that there were no known dangers from conkers for nut-allergy sufferers, although some may experience a mild rash through handling them.[20]
Interesting, as conkers are seeds (not a nut) - so shouldn't be an issue for someone with a nut allergy - though no doubt some people are allergic to them.
It's not quite that simple. The line isn't quite as hard between seed and 'nut'. Namely people may commonly refer to things as a nut when it is a seed.
e.g. a Peanut is a seed, as are almonds, cashews, walnuts.
Re: World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
#347Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think the assumption is more that someone who's offended that the Guardian didn't explain a mainstay British playground game to their readers... Is probably from the USA.
Mainstay? First I'm hearing of it. I thought it was an onion article at first. It's really hard to tell when British people are serious sometimes. "Conker King"...like, WTH?
[deleted]
Re: World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
#348Is this game well-known enough in Britain and Ireland that readers will know what on earth is being alleged just from reading this article? Or are you expected to have to google it? Apparently it’s a game where you take turns swinging a chestnut on a string and trying to hit the opponent’s chestnut and break it. Yes, I can see how a steel fake chestnut would be an advantage here, though I’m amazed it wouldn’t be inst…
It is a very, very British thing. A generation or two ago, almost everyone played it at school and it was Very Serious Business. I guess you needed something to occupy yourself before Pokemon Go was invented.
"A generation or two ago" roughly corresponds to the Tamagotchi era too.
Re: World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
#349Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think the assumption is more that someone who's offended that the Guardian didn't explain a mainstay British playground game to their readers... Is probably from the USA.
Mainstay? First I'm hearing of it. I thought it was an onion article at first. It's really hard to tell when British people are serious sometimes. "Conker King"...like, WTH?
> Mainstay?
For sure it is. Every boy (and probably some girls, but never seen myself) plays conkers and likely puts their life in great peril climbing horse chestnut trees to gather the best conkers before anyone else gets them.
When I think back now to some of the massive (old) trees I used to climb and the action of shaking the branches to try to get the chestnuts to drop (whilst the branch is breaking underneath you, 100ft up), I’m surprised I’m here to talk about it!
This is a serious business.
Re: World conker champion found with steel chestnut, cleared of cheating
#350Earlier quoted context omitted.
Mainstay? First I'm hearing of it. I thought it was an onion article at first. It's really hard to tell when British people are serious sometimes. "Conker King"...like, WTH?
I honestly can't believe you're British and have never heard of conkers. It is a part of our culture, like pubs, pooh sticks, morriss dancing or cheese rolling. It would be a totally valid citizenship question. Maybe you're a city child?
I’m not even British but I’ve read enough novels to know of those things.