Overland Route

This is a new lawn game inspired by the lore trial about the Butterfield Overland Route. Players race to transport goods across the finish line by rolling them along overland with a wooden spoon. The spooncoach driver who transports the most goods wins.

Players: 2 - 4, ages 6+

Material: wooden spoons (as many as there are players), bags of frozen veggies (4 x as many as there are players)

Setup: As a group, agree upon the starting and finishing location. Mark the finish line with handbags, shoes, or coats - there should be as many "holding areas" for transported goods as there are players. Everyone should agree on which holding area belongs to which spooncoach line. A foot behind the starting location, place the goods (i.e. bags of frozen veggies) in a pile. The players line up in front of the frozen veggies. On your mark - get set - go!

Playing: Spooncoach drivers must use their wooden spoons to roll out a bag of goods from the stockpile. Then, they must continue to use their spoon to roll the goods across the land and the finish line into their holding area. Spooncoach drivers can NOT carry the goods on the spoons. Doing so is poor sportsmanship and grounds for losing your job as a spooncoach driver! Once all of the good have been successfully transported to holding areas, the game is over. The spooncoach driver with the most goods in his or her holding area wins.

Documentation: Take photos or video during the setup. Be sure to display your family crest somewhere visible during the game and record it during documentation (tip: it might be fun to display family crests on the spoons or the holding areas). If you have someone with you not playing, they can document the race. If you do not have an extra person with you, just be sure to document the before and after. Post your documentation somewhere like youtube or flickr with the tag "lgfl" where Taylor and I can access it (or send it to me via email if you do not participate in those sites).

Evaluation: Answer the following questions: (1) was the game fun? why/why not? (2) was the game fair? why/why not? (3) what did players and spectators think about the game? (4) what sensations did you experience when you were playing the game? Rewrite the rules and game description to make it (1) more clear and (2) more suited for the afterlife.

Receiving your loyalty points and the challenge piece: To redeem your loyalty points, send your documentation (as links or attachments) and your evaluation to me (anna dot ravelo at g mail dot com). The depth and quality of your documentation and evaluation do not impact the loyalty award. Loyalty does not judge. But do bear in mind that your documentation and evaluation will be seen by the public at large in the afterlife.

To play this game, you must dedicate SMARTS points, on a sliding scale based on your family's standing in the extended family (1st place: 50, 2nd place: 40, 3rd place: 25, 4th place: 10). When you complete playing, documenting, and evaluating the game, your family will earn 65 LOYALTY points.

1st place family: 80

1st place family: 50