@@Nimbus1701 Ah, yes, that was a time, my gen of 73, dumb as f. We played with a medicine ball weighing approx. 2 - 2,5 kg, after that we needed real medical help.
I truly belive that the reason we didn't have as much school violence back in the day is because we could play dodgeball and throw snowballs and get our aggressions out during play. We could play cops and robbers and "get the bad guy," we could do leg wrestling and prove our superior strength over the others all in the name of healthy, satisfying "good fun" without fear of being called a "bully!" Yes, those were the best days ever!
I say it's because if it got too bad, we'd settle it outside of school. Kids aren't even allowed to do that anymore. Is it any wonder we got where we are?
We played straight dodgeball and a game called "War". The gym teacher used the gymnastics equipment, with wrestling mats draping over them, and created a literal field of war. As we bobbed and weaved our way around obstacles and flying dodgeballs, he stood high on the bleachers and made sure those who were hit were out. It was the greatest game of my life as a Gen Xer. (born in 66)
An epic tale of the "Gladiatoral Classroom" known as Gym Class - not yet morphed into "PE" - and a memory that has yet to fully recede into the dusty cobwebs of Gen-X historical yore. Well done, good sir!
I was one of the particularly large girth, but i used this to my advantage as my steps were not slow, and my my reflexes were almost as powerful as my sheer passion to not hear the dreaded thud of rubber upon the largest of target in the entire arena. But like all the other combat sports i have taken part of my tenacity and skill were camouflaged by the preconceived assumptions and stereotypes. I was absolutely ruthless when i had the chance to partake in this grand event. I have dethroned many a knight, king, titans of this battle at the same time as the last man standing.
I loved that game in high school. It was your one chance to completely annihilate your classmates, especially those ones to the face or baby maker. And it was all school sanctioned. How awesome was that?! Ah yes, being an 80's kid was hell, but I loved every minute of it.
We are truly the last generation with amazing tails to tell, good times. There's nothing scarier than getting old with no stories to tell, stay strong in weak times.
Absolutely nothing beats GEN-X. Born in 67 and able to grow up in the 80's. I thank you sir for your insight and intellect. I feel like im reliving my early years through you.
As a child, I was blessed with a wicked right arm.. i was always the first chosen as the combatants choosed their sides.. my preferred weapon was the smaller red-ridged playground ball, as it afforded much higher velocity.. my opponents feared the whistling sound of these cannon shots.. I distinctly remember firing a fast round at an opposing player who meekly attempted to block the shot by placing his own ball in front of his face - my volley struck with such force that his own ball was driven from his hands and into his own face, nearly knocking him unconscious.. my side cheered with approval
It's funny how I now think of dodgeball with fond nostalgia... I seem to remember at the time it was a source of panic and stress. Every PE day was a potential day of doom... walking into the gym in squeaky shoes and seeing the big rubber ball rack on the side of the gym with a sense of panic. I was the kid that could catch and dodge but couldn't throw worth crap so I always ended up still standing but basically cannon fodder. Usually ended with taking a ball to the face... lol... good times.
I remember those days. We added yet another level of complexity to our Dodge Ball games, for if your teammates were to eliminate the one that put you to the sideline, you were then revived and could return to the game. Oh the good I’l old days. They are to be cherished.
I loved that dodge ball was equal opportunity annilation. It didn't matter if you were a girl, boy, eight years old or eighteen. You were all worthy targets of the mighty red rubber ball.
Your Song Selection of Braveheart and how well you edited to your video is as Beautiful as your Narration of the Battle of the Dodgeball War's. We Gen. XR's are the Last True Veterans of Dodgeball War's.
I loved Dodgeball days. It was great when your team had all the balls at the same time, and you could strategize who you were gonna go for. We'd pick one person to target, one person would throw high to get them to duck, while the other two throw at the waist. When they ducked for the first ball, they would get two in the face. In 8th grade I hit the meanest kid in our school in the face and bounced his head off the wall, the other kids laughed at him. I thought he was gonna kill me, but he didn't lol. Good times.
You, good sir are like the legendary Viking skalds of yore. Regaling us with tales of a bygone age. Memories are rekindled and my heart races at the telling.
The tears, sweat, and even blood shed during these most epic of battles will forever be recounted as some of the most desperate and heroic moments of our young lives. The hollow ping of these painful plastic projectiles will forever echo in our souls. To past battles! To those that were lost, to those that were won, but most of all to our courage to rush forth and arm ourselves from that fateful ball line and do battle with our peers.
I served my time in the Great Dodgeball War of 94. Many of my brothers and sisters never made it home in those dark days. And while we wept for those fallen, we never stopped serving.
As I’m sitting here watching and reminiscing on my grade school years and loving this great storytelling the world spoke back at me and damn if the song from my 8th grade cheerleading dance didn’t just start playing on the radio 🫠🫠🤗🥹🥹
If you can distinctly remember the sound of a dodgeball striking your adversary, and can distinguish between a head shot and a gut shot, you're definitely a Gen X'r.
Warriors have forever felt the sting of sharp steel cutting flesh, the pounding of war hammers crushing their plate armor. We heard the high pitched Ting of that textured rubber ball, the burn of its slap against exposed flesh, and the fire that follows mere seconds later. War is not for everyone. Sometimes I awaken at night hearing the tormented screams of my slower teammates.
I swear everything fun I loved as a child has been nerfed to all hell or outright banned. I miss dodgeball, the three story high monkey bars, mary-go-rounds and those huge spinning/pivoting seesaws that lifted you up 12ft off the ground and pray your siblings don't jump off while you're up. 😅
This gotta be the best Story Time video of GenX experieince with Dodgeball Ever! Im in tears laughing because you had to become the Apex Predator of the game out there lol
Dodgeball only had one rule, Always aim for the head, an then... PINGGGGGG! A sound that will forever live in our dreams of victory and our nightmares of defeat. A sound once heard can never be forgotten. You're hearing it now, aren't you?
I'm proud to say that I could've probably gone pro if dodgeball were a mainstream sport. I was a lot like Timothy in some ways, but without the size advantage. I was very fast and could jump out of the gym back in high school, and had a decent arm that was extremely accurate. I have a similar story of impossible odds as me and an underclass skater kid by the name of Micah were severely outnumbered in a dodgeball match (2 against 8 or 9 if I remember correctly), though we called dodgeball 'Civil War' at that time, or at least our P.E. teacher did. I can't remember too many other times in my life where I was more determined, but me and Micah came out victorious and stunning those on the other team who figured they had us dead to rights, and literally wiped the smirks off all their faces. This was also during 7th period P.E. class where all the athletes of different sports teams were lumped into one class, so we weren't up against slouches by any means. Thank you for letting me brag and reminisce about better times (this was back in 1998).
In HS dodgeball, I was The Little One and the new girl. While being homeschooled, I did softball, track and field, gymnastics, ballet, and mma before HS. In HS, I did regular PE freshman and sophomore year, dance team junior year and mascot senior year. During PE, I was the new girl and the little one. Everyone matured faster than I did. They were bigger, taller, and stronger. I was little but faster, smarter and more athletic. I did a lot of flipping, tucking, rolling, jumping, ducking, twirling, and leaping around to avoid balls and they couldn't escape my fast pitch. I was both the easy target and the hard target at the same time. They were always pissed that they couldn't get me. Im still 5ft 2in tall after 3 kids i just made it to 135lbs. I still beat my husband (6ft 5in and 330lbs) and kids in dodgeball. 😂😂😂
I remember during recess, with the lack of structure of a gym class, we played Poison Ball. (For modern verbage, Dodgeball Battle Royale.) I always preferred that, for some reason.
For all you Matthews out there. I never could throw like the killers we had, neanderthals that had failed 8th grade twice on purpose just to play ball. This wasn't general population, but middle school football program. The smaller boys were absolutely terrified of getting hit by those fireballs every Friday. I decided to eat the pain and in stead of dodging, commit to catching. With a little practice, I went from last pick to first, hurt like hell but I quickly became the trump card. Didn't matter how hard, fast or mean you could throw it, I'd take you out 9 out of 10 times. Whatever team I was on was essentially guaranteed win. Absolute delight seeing the frustration and disbelief on their faces realizing their physical superiority becoming utterly useless. The reign of terror was squelched.
Ah, Dodgeball! In the early 80's in 7th grade, our class played the 8th graders. My strategy was mostly to avoid the heat of battle. I hung out with some misfit friends in a corner. Suddenly, the carnage was mostly done. My misfit friends were out. It was me and an 8th grader who had utilized the same strategy. I grabbed a ball as they ran, and my shot won the game for the 7th grade. I totally never dared to dream it would end that way.
its like hearing Saving Private Ryan w/o having to sit in the movie theater for nearly 3 hrs lol. legit all I could think of during this is, "so this is what listening to WW2 soldiers was like"
Looking back it’s amazing how we could turn every sport we played into full contact gladiator games. Your best friend became your worst enemy when matched opposing each other and when the game ended all dirty cheap shots were admired for the deviousness for which they were used.
As a Gen-X PE Teacher and Army Veteran, my gym is a reflection of our fondest memories, dodge ball, rope climbing, obstacle courses, scooters & roller racers at their fastest speeds, and Hide & Seek in the dark. I remind my student’s there’s no crying in the gym, and to walk it off.
We used to love the days of dodgeball in the first half of grade school. After they banned it, we begged and pleaded the PE teacher to allow us to play it one more time when we were in 8th grade. The teacher got enjoyment when the fat kid got whacked in the face. And as the numbers grew fewer & fewer, those remaining slowly tired but danced and dodged like gymnasts avoiding being pummeled by multiple balls hurled towards them til only 1 remained standing. I miss those days. We grew character from getting the crap whacked out of us and doing the same to others. 😊
I was 3rd from last to remain. They whacked me in the calf muscle during a jump as about 5 balls simultaneously aimed for me. Tony & Tom were the two left standing. By that point, they tried sabotaging each other to be the last man standing.
As last of the dodgeball warriors I 🫡 you thank you for the story brought back the time where three balls were missed and yet one was caught and returned
God I miss those times!!! When kids were kids and we played outside!!! On the weekend we were out by 8am and mom was lucky if we where home for supper!! Most times we go home when the street lights came on because that was the rule!!
What i remember the most about dodgeball was the PE coaches giving tips to the people attempting to hit the students that they hated, "timmy is looking away quick hit him now!!"
My favorite variant was called Prison Ball. Instead of a mid-line, our court was divided like an ice hockey rink with two lines. Each side could go up to the second line, leaving the middle third a barbarous wasteland where you could be attacked from the front, the sides, and even from behind. When you were struck out, instead of waiting on the side until your team caught a ball, you had to go behind the opposing team, in their prison, which only extended a few feet from the back walls. The only way you could get back in the game is if you somehow got a ball while in prison and then struck out an opposing player, or if your teammates struck an opponent and you caught the ricochet on the fly. This was a superb battle primer, as it required full 360° awareness. Strategic planning was also intense, and you had to devise ways of slipping weapons to your imprisoned teammates so they could rise up and free themselves, while also denying the same to your own prisoners.
