, 1892-03-01
GAMES HELD INDOORS.
Hints on How to Manage Them
by A. B. George.
THE MOST POPULAR GAMES.

Tugs-of-wRr Three Legged Races, Wheel
barrow Races, Obstacle Races and Roll
err Skating Contests Are Among the
Best-How to Secure
Indoor games are becoming very popular
throughout the country, and when prop
erly managed they should draw better than
those held out of doors, there being sew
eral things in their favor. First, owing to
the necessarily small size OF indoor tracks,
the spectators can follow the various events
better than they can on outdoor tracks,
and the fact that indoor games are gen.
orally held in the evening gives those who
cannot spare time for daylight sports an
opportunity to See their friends compete.
At most indoor games, too, there is a band
of music in attendance and dancing is
often one of the features OF the evening,
which, needless to say, is a great attraction
for many.
A good plan to insure a large attendance
is to sell the tickets at a reduced price If
purchased before the day Of the games. By
this means, II it should prove n wet night,
a large number of people would be present
who, unless they had al;eady procured
tickets, could not be induced to brave the
elements.
Care should be taken to give events suit
able to the track. At some indoor games /
have seen races decided in which it was
impossible to tell who was leading. This
was owing to the small track, large num-
Der of contestants and the long starts some
of them received. When giving race of a
mile or longer distance a short limit should
be fixed to keep the entries down. Though
this is turning money away it will pay bet
ter in the end, rs the spectators will be
more Interested and therefore patronize
the games better. i think sprint races,
which nave to be run around the track,
are very unsatisfactory indoors, as owing
to the sharp turns the back markers have
but little chance to get through. A quar-
ter of a mile is quite long enough distance
to give, and this should be divided into
heats with six to ten men each. 1t is a
mistake to crowd fifteen or eighteen men
into a heat on n track with twelve OF
fourteen laps to the mile, rs fouls are sure
to occur and men are apt to get knocked
down and perhaps injured. Short dashes
of from fifty to seventy-five yards are al
ways popular and create a deal of excite.
ment if properly handicapped.
There are many events seldom given mt
outdoor games, which 1 think would prove
interesting and amusing indoors and which
can be decided in a small space. The tug.
of-war. both for teams and individuals, can
only be watched by a few when held in n
big athletic field, but can be plainly seen
by all in an armory or similar building II
some bright colored ribbon is fastened in
the center of the rope.
Three legged races, w~heelbarrow races.
egg and spoon races, bucket races and
similar contests always prove interesting
and create amusement. Undoubtedly the
obstacle race takes best. There are many
obstacles which may be used. a few of the
most popular being the suspended barrel,
which contestants have to creep through.
Care must be taken that there are nj nails
in it or serious accidents may result. A
large canvas sail or cloth fastened close TO
the hoor will prove a formidable obstacle
to crawl under. A maze constructed Of
fine cord is another obstacle often used.
The efforts of the contestants to extract
themselves always create much amuse-
ment.
The high jump and pole vault are also
popular events, though the latter is sell
dom given. Hurdle races are very pretty
and always cause excitement. No doubt
the ordinary spectator enjoys the bicycle
races more than anything, but there Is a
great deal of danger in this sport when
held on small board tracks. j think the
possibility of accidents is rather less with
ordinsries than safety bicycles. A roller
skating contest Is a nice event to give in
bcOlFs "hth III II kiNth Nhlbh III
handicapping should be lone by yards in
stead of seconds, as is the custom, and the
limit should never be more than one lap,
then the audience can keep some track Of
the race. IL the games are promoted by
some regiment n suitable event is n race
confined to members Tor open to the Ma
tional Guard) in heavy marching order.
knapsack, rifle, bayonet, etc.
When arranging the programme en-
$500 - loo - - - 49,. na
far apart as possible, SO as to give men
competing in both plenty of rest. There
should be a separate lot of members for
each event and the contestants should be
numbered on the programme numerically,
scratch man No. |, and so on up to the limit
man, who has the highest number. Where
heats are necessary they should be arranged
beforehand. hen the contestants will
know just when they will have to compete
and the spectators can tell who is running.
instead of calling all the men out at the
mark together and there calling over the
names to ascertain the starters, as is the
prevailing custom, a much better plan is
for the clerk of the course to go to the
dressing room and ask the competitors to
answer to their names there. Then as soon
as he has found out the starters he should
give his list to the announcer, whose duty
it should be to call out the numbers of the
nonstarters, so that the audience may
know just who is competing.
Under the present system it is often i'm
possible to tell who the contestants are.
When the heats are arranged beforehand,
the good men can be kept apart in the pre-
liminaries, whereas when taking five men
in regular order it sometimes happens that
in one heat there will be three or four of
the best men running, while the next will
be confined to limit men
When laying out the track it is best, If
possible, to make it oval, two straights
and two nicely rounded turns, which is
better than the square track with four
turns. A broad whitewashed line is quite
suitable for marking the inner edge Of the
track on the straights, but for the turns a
movable border should be used to compel
competitors to travel the full distance.
A b. GEORGE.