For the love of Gaga Ball

Ga! Ga! Go!

May 8, 2024

Not only is the name iconic, but this game is one of the only sports games that I would willingly play. With other sports, I see the game as merely kicking or hitting a ball to some designated area. Now, Gaga Ball is the literal epitome of a game that is about “merely kicking or hitting a ball to some designated area,” but for some reason, that’s not relevant.

The game goes as follows. Everyone enters an arena-style pit, and a dodge ball is thrown in the middle while the players remain at the edge of the pit. After the ball bounces three times, the ball is in free play. Anyone can hit the ball with their hands. The catch is that one must avoid the ball touching below one’s knees. If such a tragedy occurs, the player is out of the game.

There are other rules, such as no player may make two consecutive hits to the ball (the wall counting as a person, except the wall is allowed to hit the ball as many times as it desires), nor can the ball be hit out of the pit. Though if the ball is hit out of the pit, if someone from the outside catches it, they are allowed to re-enter the game.

The adrenaline that comes from the game is simply unmatched. Part of the game comes from studying people and their strategy–whether they play offensive or defensive, and proceeding to avoid all the people who play offense. Also, because the court is so small, you’re always moving, studying, readjusting, moving, studying, readjusting… what I love about the game is how fast-paced it is and how it tests your skill to adapt.

We played this game at SNJ, which is a camp that takes people into the wilderness–though the most recent time I went, it was mostly going on rope courses because we were only there for a weekend. Lowkey I was having a kinda hard time around that weekend, but SNJ was like a catharsis. I got to experience the joy of being outdoors again with people from our school that I don’t talk to as often. They reminded me about what I should be grateful for! Like wow, family is such a big deal. While there are definitely flaws within my family, my family is good, and remarkably good, especially compared to some… other situations I’ve heard.

Anyhow, I just wanted to nerd out a little on Gaga Ball, because this idea was somewhat old. It brought me back to some really good times.

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