Getting Ready for Pool Season: 5 Great Pool Games
People of all ages love a great pool game. Get ready for pool season by learning the rules of these classic games for swimmers of all skills, and remember to play it safe. Younger, or less experienced swimmers should wear flotation devices. Swimmers should also avoid running around the pool, and adults should always supervise children who are playing in or around water.
- Marco Polo: Pool games don’t get more classic than Marco Polo. In this game, one swimmer is selected to close his or her eyes, and he or she must try to locate other swimmers by following their voices. The designated swimmer calls out “Marco!” to which all of the other players respond, “Polo!” The first person caught becomes the new “Marco,” and the game begins again. Marco Polo also sometimes includes a rule for “Fish Out of Water,” when a player gets out of the pool to avoid being caught.
- Noodle Jousting: This silly game takes a cue from the medieval event played on horseback, but for the pool, it transfers players to inflatable rafts. Using pool noodles, players attempt to knock others off of their rafts while remaining afloat on their own raft. This game is great for the elementary school set, but parents should be careful that play doesn’t become too rough.
- Piranha Ball: In Piranha Ball the name of the game is not to get bitten! Players form a circle around a floating ball. While holding hands, players must attempt to blow the ball towards other players or push another player into contact with the ball. When a player makes contact with the ball (gets bitten), they are eliminated, and the circle re-forms and begins again.
- Chicken: Chicken is another classic pool game, but this one is better suited to older players. Players form two pairs, and one swimmer sits on the shoulders of another. The two top players attempt to knock each other off of the shoulders of the bottom players. Chicken can get dangerous quickly and relative strength should always be considered in this game.
- Human Whirlpool: Making a whirlpool is a fun activity that is particularly suited to round or oval swimming pools. To make a whirlpool, all swimmers begin moving in the same direction around the edges of the pool. The faster the swimmers move, the stronger the whirlpool at the center will become. As it becomes stronger, the whirlpool will begin to push swimmers along and sometimes drag them towards the center, which can be frightening or dangerous for less skilled swimmers. Whirlpools can be stopped by moving in the opposite direction.