Feeling Friction
(Tug-A-War)

With your bare hands:
When you play tug a war with bare hands your hands will start to hurt after the first one or two games. That is because you have your hands clenched over the rope and you are making friction between the rope and your hands when your hands slip up and down the rope. It is also important that you have good balance and a good stance so that when you start you won’t get pulled forward, but instead, you will be pulling the opposition. The length of the rope also has a big part to play in the game as well. If the rope is a long length, then you have to use more energy at a slower pace, but if the rope is a shorter distance, you have to use less energy with a faster pace.

With gloves on:
When we had gloves on it was harder for me because I couldn’t feel the rope with my own hands. The gloves came off half way through so I had to try and put the glove back on as well as pull the rope. It was also a little harder because the gloves that we were using did not have the gripping surface; instead it had a smooth surface. When I had the gloves on my stance was side on so I was doing the grape vine crossed with a side step.

With gloves and detergent:
When we had gloves on and detergent it was harder because it was more slippery and I couldn’t feel the rope with my own hands. The gloves also came off half way through so I had to try and put the glove back on as well as pull the rope, just like without the detergent but still with the gloves on.

Bare hands with detergent:
When we had bare hands with detergent on them was nearly as hard as the gloves and detergent one, except it was a little bit easier because I could feel the rope with my own hands.

The key to success for when you play tug-a-war is to concentrate, have a good stance great balance and a good grip.