Hi Everyone, in ode to the 4th of July and it being the weekend of fireworks, barbeques, fun with family and friends and celebrating Murica I devised a list of the best 12 summer games to play with friends or family, you ready I am!!!
#12. Raquetball
Raquetball is indoors and can be played at any time but it still is a fun game to get a couple of friends together on a day when you want to shed some calories and play a high intensity cardio game. This game is great for Vegas in the summer if you know what I mean!
#11. Chicken
Don’t laugh I actually play this game against a good friend of mine and his two daughters just last summer (and we won of course!). A game I don’t recommend playing drunk but the issue is usually this game is only played when drunk, another good Vegas summer game because if you value safety this should only be played in water.
#10. Basketball
It’s always nice to get a good pickup game of basketball going, especially during the summer in cities not named Las Vegas or Phoenix. I will admit though, we did have Thursday night at 8 pm basketball at my old stomping grounds in Mesa Arizona and yes we did play during the summer months. Again don’t recommended playing this game drunk but sometimes your buddy may try to post you up smelling like Popov Vodka, just saying.
#9. Pool
I used to in college have a Pool table in our family room (It was my roommates and we were 23 don’t judge). A good summer time activity either at a bar or at a friends house who fancy’s the game of billiards. This is recommended to have wings and beer involved here because well pool is meant to be played after having some wings and beer.
#8. Soccer
Anyone who has ever been to a developing nation you know you don’t have to have a soccer field to play soccer. You can play in the street, in a field, or even indoors (think basketball court). Only thing you need is a ball and something to create the goal. I played soccer in the street as a kid with my friends while still living in Southern California and it’s a blast. Adults can play as well, wherever you like to play. Just get some friends and a ball and it’s game on.
#7. Pool Basketball
We are starting to get in many games that are commonly played during summer barbeques. You can play many of these games with your kids or with your friends. Pool basketball is one of my favorites. A good friend of mine and his daughter went with me and my wife on a Rocky Mountain road trip a couple of years ago and we ended up playing a mean game of water horse. You can try some fun trick shots at this game. My wife kicked out butts, who knew she was such a sneaky assassain.
#6. Badminton
A great barbeque game and yes I used to have a badminton set (yes my garage looks like it’s own personal Dick’s Sporting Goods store). It’s a tricky difficult game though because that damn feather thing (called a shuttlecock I can’t make these things up) is a pain in the butt to hit. Regardless, it’s a fun game to play. I recommend you telling a story to your friends about a time you were racquetting up a shuttlecock after a few beers and see the type of bewildered responses you are certain to get.
#5. Kickball
I was notified by a couple of friends back in Colorado about a kickball league where you hold a beer in one hand throughout the game. This sounds absolutely awesome and a fun summer time game for sure. Regardless kickball is fun at recess at elementary school (which I frequently played at Rio Vista Elementary in Studio city California) or with some friends holding a beer in your hands.
#4. Wiffle Ball
I must brag that I have the most fantastic Wiffle ball bat in the history of Wiffle ball bats. It has survived the many places my wife and I have lived over the past ten years and it send those plastic balls into orbit. A couple of buddies and I used to play McDonalds Wiffle ball outside of his house (you can throw those balls with some serious velo and break, we are all Jacob Degom with the McDonalds balls). This is a game you can play in front of your house or at the park, a true fun summer game.
#3. Flag Football
Some would say Tackle football but I’ve seen way too many broken collarbones in my day to put that on this list. Flag Football though is absolute blast that you can play 3 on 3 or 7 on 7. All you need is flags, a football and a field. You can go all high tech with the full set and get cones and an out of bounds but if you have had a few Milwaukee’s best and was like to your buddy, “hey Mike, let’s go to the parka and play some foozball”. Just get the flags and the ball and be safe out there.
#2. Horseshoes
Is that a ringer? No it’s not completely around the post. Horseshoe arguments after a six pack is so fun. At my old house when I was in college we had a horseshoe pit in the backyard. We would play some nights until 3 am when our neighbor behind us would come complain about the noise. We thought he was a jerk but in actuality we were jerks for playing horseshoes in our backyard at 3 am. In a backyard, a park, beach, or a lake, horseshoes is a barbeque with your friends classic.
#1. Outdoor Volleyball
I will get pushback here on no baseball or softball but those games are played in leagues and usually not something you organize with your friends on a random July Saturday afternoon so I excluded them from this list. Outdoor Volleyball is the ultimate summer party classic. In Colorado where I recently moved from I knew many people who would get a few friends together and go to Washington Park or another of the many parks in Denver and play volleyball. We played beach volleyball at the company summer parties every year held by my former employer. It is always fun and entertaining and easy to organize. Plus when at a party at the park when someone says hey let’s play volleyball, who says no? Thanks for reading this week’s Top 12, have a Happy and safe fourth everyone. Boy it’s exciting to have our fireworks back!!