To credit Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, “Boredom is the root of all evil.” This is particularly true, especially when you have children and teenagers who are ticking time bombs when left to their own devices without anything to do. Boredom brings about a form of static and sedentariness that niggles at anyone who likes and needs to spend their pent-up energy.
Especially with the pandemic going on, outdoor activities are out of the picture until it’s safe enough to have the public outside. But if we can’t go outside, then we might as well bring it indoors. Recreational activities that we usually engage in are now available from the comforts of home with the right equipment and mindset.
Target sports are a great option for family recreational activities that would keep each member up on their feet and having a good time. The best thing about target sports is that you don’t have to be good at it, although a bit of skill warrants some bragging rights.
Here are some target sports to start at home to build the family bond and warm the muscles.
Bowling
You might ask, “Is this even doable at home?”. The answer is yes, it is! You don’t need many lanes to have a good bowl time. With the right people, even just one would do.
There are three things you need to start bowling: 10 pins, 1 bowling ball, and 1 lane. All of which are simple enough to acquire and can be DIY-ed if you’re in the mood to exert some more effort. Conveniently, mini bowling alleys are also available on the market if you want to bring and play this family favorite at home.
Croquet
If you have read or watched Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, then you’ll know this game for sure. If you haven’t, this is one of the scenes where we first hear the Red Queen holler, “Off with his head!”.
Originating from France, croquet is a target sport that involves hitting plastic balls (not hedgehogs) through hoops embedded on the grass using mallets (not flamingoes). Why is it enjoyable? It’s like golf but without the holes and balls that travel at 180 miles per hour, and it also uses less space.
The mechanics and physics that it takes to ace this game (that looks rather simple at first glance) are quite fascinating, too, once you get the hang of it.
Darts
Dartboards are either a decorative or functional staple to many pubs and restaurants. Having these at home gives an air of being outside again. Also, it’s fairly simple to play since all you need is a dartboard and a handful of small, pointed missiles (or with sticky suction cups at the ends for the kids).
Commercially available dart sets are easy to find, and all you need is a good wall to mount them on. The original scoring system can be a bit tricky to figure out, but since you’re playing it for leisure’s sake, sticking to it is no requirement.
Archery
Who doesn’t love to aim and hit a target, right? Archery’s the perfect metaphor for reaching our dreams and literally having a good time. Icons like the fictional characters of Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games and Hawkeye from Marvel Comics are some of the most memorable archers out there. Don’t forget Cupid, too, in all his cute, cherubic glow from renaissance paintings.
The mechanics of archery are easy. You hold your bow, align the arrow’s nock with the bowstring, pull, aim, and let go. Not that hard to grasp, but the technique takes even the best archers years to develop. Good thing we aren’t playing this sport for serious competition then.
Playing this at home would only require you to get a bow and set of arrows. The target can be whatever you want, may it be a board or a row of bottles and cans. The important thing is to stay on the safe side and avoid playing this indoors because the yard is the best fit for it.
You can go ahead and follow classic scoring to keep track of who’s winning for these target sports. But you can also bend and tweak the rules for it and have everyone pay up on some good-mannered bets (or chores). Nonetheless, these games are fun, easy, and engaging for everyone in the household.
Many hilarious stories come from playing these target sports, even pre-pandemic, especially whenever the projectiles hit the wrong places. These are all fairly good sources for some of the best anecdotes you will never get tired of retelling
