When I was a kid, Swingball (along with Grifter bikes, Mr Frosty and Weebles) was something the cool (AKA spoilt) kids had.
I will let you guess the rest. (This is code for: I didn't have any of that crap, and have yet to grow up enough to entirely stop whining about it)
Suffice to say, I didn't actually get my hands on a Swingball set until a couple of weeks ago. We tried it out at a summer fair, loved it and were on the verge of buying it when the gods of tennis balls on a string smiled down at us from Swingball Towers and offered to send us a set to review.
So we approached this with two questions
Can you play Swingball in a fairly small garden?
Would it be a bit of a two day wonder?
Well, it turns out the answers are yes and no. In a good order.
We were sent Swingball Pro, which is the slightly bigger, souped up version of the original. Classic Swingball is probably your best option with younger children.
It turns out that you don't need all that much space as the rope the ball's attached to is adjustible so you can shorten it if you need to, which will in turn reduce the area needed to play.
Set up took us under 10 minutes - you stabilise it by filling the base with water or stones. And if you tip those out then it all packs away again as the base doubles up as a storage case. My friend warned me that this may be necessary, as her boys got so addicted to Swingball that they had to take it with them on holiday.
And three weeks in, the Swingball magic hasn't worn off and my children are still playing it every day, even in the rain, as you can see here.
And have I been out for a sneaky play when they're at school?
Well, what do you think? I've got a lot of time to make up for.
Now, where can I get a Grifter?
The details
We reviewed Swingball Pro which is widely available in toy shops and department stores, priced around £40 and currently at £35 on Amazon
Oh I had a grifter and a swingball. We also had a my first swingball which the boys have decimated. Must look into getting a classic for them, that is if the weather ever improves!
Posted by: The Mad House | June 26, 2012 at 03:32 PM
A Grifter AND a Swingball - riches!
I think the Pro which you can see above is good for kids aged about 8 and over. If your kids are younger then you probably would be better off with the classic. The fact that this one is faster means it can really hurt if it whacks you in the face.
Posted by: Joanne Mallon | June 26, 2012 at 08:35 PM
We had Swingball. But we weren't allowed to watch Grange Hill (bad grammar).
Swings and roundabouts.
Posted by: @Ehmum | June 27, 2012 at 05:50 PM
We had Swingball when we were children, but the best fun I had with it was recently when my sister and I played it again (now in our 40s), we couldn't stop laughing and almost collapsed in the garden, we were so bad. It's not often as an adult that you laugh so much your sides ache (the wine probably helped also).
Posted by: Lisa | June 27, 2012 at 06:52 PM
So basically the message I'm getting here is that every bugger but me had Swingball. Curses. I knew I was deprived.
@Ehmum - I WAS allowed to watch Grange Hill. I can tell you all about Zammo, Tucker and the rest
@Lisa - er, yes, wine has a habit of helping in so many ways...
Posted by: Joanne Mallon | July 06, 2012 at 11:45 AM
Thanks for this. all of little E's clothing stained! I have been trying different things. hopefully some of this will help!
Friend link:http://www.nasneakers.com
Posted by: Alice | July 19, 2012 at 04:46 AM