I finally got around to Googling "Rat Pucking" in an effort to figure out what the heck this Renfair regional term meant. For the rest of the country, it's a game
QuoteThe basic Rat Puckin' shot starts with your rat lying upon the ground. You then address you rat by putting the tip of your stick under your rat and using your foot to settle your rat upon the end of your stick. The rat is then pucked, or flung, toward the target with one motion of the stick.
Here's a website with more info
http://www.thewildhunt.com/thegreen/ratpuck.shtml
there was a vendor at middlefaire that sold the stuffed rats for pucking. anyone know who it was?
The official shepherd of the game apparently sells them now.
http://scarlettrat.com/stuff.html
-Let's remember to support the originators if others start playing the game.
PS I've asked him if it would be OK for us to sponsor an official league at MNRF.
Could the RENdezvous maybe include an annual tournament?
There were on-going ratpucking rounds at the White Hart Faire (Southwest Missouri) this past Spring. The person in charge of it said that he had seen it played many years ago at the KC faire and decided to give it a go at White Hart and that he didn't think it was being played at KC for some time now.
On one of the rounds, we even used the Scrapwood Trebuchet as an opening "shot" for the rats on that hole. People thought it was weird ... but interesting and something to do.
Someone at MNRF told me a group called the Rat Brigade played something similar in the late 70's/early 80's at MNRF. He thought that some of the original members of the Rat Brigade went on to form Sac Theatre. I wonder if they have any connection to the people at KC that the website claims invented it, or whether it was a case of independent developments.
I am not a big sports fan, attended my first pro Baseball game this year with my boy who loves it. So sports don't do a thing for me...now Rat-Pucking? I'd love to play on such a league. I'm sure it will take off to prime-time, I'm sure Abnor Doubleday never imagined what his game would turn in to!
Actually played "Rat Pucking" in the late 70's with real rats. They were living in a pile of garbage behind the store I worked at, manager said "clean 'em out". All we had was 10 prong rakes, a hoe, and a drainage pond near by. One of my co-workers jumped on an old matress while the others hit 'em with rakes as they ran out. I got to fling 'em into the frozen pond with the hoe. It was not pretty but it was oddly fun. Had I known this would have turned into a game I would have pattened it then!
At the STL faire about two years ago we had a rat pucking team, it was a lot of fun, but we havent been able to restart since due to time constraints
The site doesn't give a date as to when they started Rat Pucking. I know there has been Rat Pucking at the faires in PA as far back as 1994 and I'd suspect longer as well. Interesting how there are only a few faires listed as ones that play the game.
Okay, that's just odd. I had a random thought today about Rat pucking . Odd what runs through my mind...I know.
Anyway, my brother says he used to ratpuck with Emerys Fleet and our King and some others way back in the early eighties when BARF began. Emrys has been our Master of the game for years. I don't know what sort of rights he has to the game, but I had the idea he did have some proprietary rights. I could be way off base on this.
Is "Emrys" Jim Greene?
If I get a reply from Emrys I'll ask if he had any connection to what was being played in MNRF. In any case, he seems to be who was bright enough to trademark the name "Rat Puck".
Yep that's Jim.
Here's a few pics I took of people Rat Pucking at Middlefaire a couple weeks ago:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/al-nimer/2917775006/in/set-72157607780742831/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/al-nimer/2917777428/in/set-72157607780742831/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/al-nimer/2916934139/in/set-72157607780742831/
This was the first time I'd seen it played, and it looked like a lot of fun. However, I don't see how it would work very well at larger, more crowded faires. Seems like you'd constantly run the risk of hitting your "rat" into someone or something breakable (which did happen at this faire, even though it wasn't crowded at all.) There are pics later in the set that show what happened to the guy who broke the bellydancers mirror with his rat :o
typically, there are rules about teh rat hitting people, to the point that it's a penalty if a non-ratpucker even touches the rat. and of course, as you play, you should be very loud and obnoxious about it. "Clear the Faireway! Flying rats coming through!" thats half the fun with playing, clearing the people out of the way.
Yeah there's a glossary of terms and rules and even a couple songs at
http://www.thewildhunt.com/thegreen/ratpuck.shtml
For those who still don't get it, it's kind of like golf, but with rats. The person with the fewest strokes to reach the goal wins.
Rat Pucking is played at MDRF. It would be fun to have a tournament at RENdezvous 2009 where each faire who wished to participate could field a team.
Rat Pucking seems to have mostly died out at Scarborough. Was it a passing fad?
That's another game we need to adopt for DMRF. ;D
We 'bowl' through the crowd with Bocci Balls every now and then. The Pirates vs Royals/Nobles. Loud heralds are a must. Patrons in the way become wickets, or obstacles for extra points, hard to tell who cheats more.
edit for correct word....
DC: Sadly, I think Rat Pucking has pretty well died out at Scarborough. At one time there was a group of, oh, about 8-10 rogues who were at faire virtually every weekend, and they pucked twice daily (morning puck in Crown Meadow, afternoon puck in Pecan Grove). There was even a cabinet built onto one of the small stages in which they stored their pucking sticks. There was a tournament every year, with a Master Pucker being crowned at the end of the season, and being awarded an official Master Pucking Stick, which he then used the following season to defend (albeit poorly, as it isn't the best balanced stick) his title. Unfortunately, a couple have moved away, one is part of the Celtic Troupe and otherwise occupied much of the day, and only I think one of the originals is still at faire every weekend.
For a few seasons, there was a Royal Puck on Closing weekend in which the King, Queen Anne, and some of the other nobles participated. I honestly cannot recall Queen Margaret's participation, but I wasn't always there when it was happening (it was during Morning Puck, and that began smack in the middle of a Rogues performance on the Ivanhoe Stage...)
The Shoppe at Middlefaire which sells both rats AND pucking sticks is called Once Upon a Tree. I do not recall all the details, but Rae and Andrew (who own the shoppe with their wives) are indeed authorized by Emrys to sell the rats (I think some of what they sell are actually ones they've gotten from him, and others they've made, but I could be mistaken). Also, one or the other of them is authorized by Emrys to "christen" the rats once they've been purchased.
A note, the rats are filled with rice, so you REALLY don't want to get your rat wet, lest it split open, and for some reason the leather rats are a little more prone to splitting and really shouldn't be pucked.
I purchased two rats from Emrys at Sterling a few years ago, one for myself and one for a friend. both are virgins having never been pucked, but Braille (mine, who has no eyes) is perfectly content to ride around in my cleavage a few times a year.
As of 2010 there was a weekly rat puck on Sundays at the Kentucky faire
Okay... this has to be one of the strangest pucking things I've seen in a while. Looks as if it could be some fun, though... I like the Bocci thing too, Rowen!
I have a rat and a stick and played once. I should have practiced way more as the puckers at BARF take their game seriously. If I ever play again, I'll make sure I know what I'm doing!
What a coincidence to see this thread at the top today. Rat Pucking will be at PaRF this year. In fact, the cast was just learning how to play this afternoon from the Master Pucker himself!
O.K. I will weigh in here. Rat pucking is the sole ownership of Jim Greene, unless he has relinquished that right, He will have to chime in on that. Rat Pucking started on a cold rainy weekend in the Maryland faire when it was held in Columbia. I first saw it at Sterling in 1983. As to some of the terms: 'Clear the Faireway! Flying rats coming through' I have not heard that one before, the bawdy translation is 'clear the puckingway' Have a care, Rats at high velocity, you could be killed. Also he just made a puck in one. You may touch your rat only on the initial Puck - off. After that the methodology decribed, with the foot is the rule. As of my last knowledge you may have a Rat-Pucking tournement only if Jim Greene is in attendence. You play at Rat-pucking but you may not hold a tournement. Of course the grand prize is the crimson rodent which can never be bought or adopted, only won in a tournement. Jim, at last knowledge would only adopt out his rats, never sold them. Of course there was an adotion fee, but it was minor. Also there are rules for the end of the Pucking stick. It may be notched flat on the end, but no more that the width of your thumb and it may no more that 2 fingers in length. I will keep my eye on this thread and proffer any info as I remember it. Lastly just so you don't think I'm Pucking up the wrong rat-hole I hold a master puckers degree, having won the crimson rodent at a tourney in the keys faire many years before it closed. I have aptly named both of my rats. The rat that I pucked with to win the tourney is called Rhett rat, and the crimson rodent I have named..................................................
Wait for it
Scarlett O'ratta
Quote from: Merlin the Elder on July 19, 2012, 05:51:01 AM
Okay... this has to be one of the strangest pucking things I've seen in a while. Looks as if it could be some fun, though... I like the Bocci thing too, Rowen!
Indeed. I'll need to see how to make a stick and a rat of my own, since we don't have any puckers or pucking venders around here.... ::)
Rowen:
Not a problem. Go online and look up rat-pucking and/or Jim Greene. Get his address, I believe it is in Upstate New York. This will be a good time to reach him as he is most likely doing Sterling and goes home during the week. He will no doubt sell/adopt you a rat and mail it to you. He did for me when I lost my first rat 'Mortimer' in Atlanta some years ago. As to a stick again no problem. Go out in the woods and find youself a length of blow down, a stout branch is good, a piece that would make a good walkng staff. Strip the bark from it, sand it smooth, varnish or shellac, notch the end as I have described above and viola you have a dual purpose piece, a walking staff and a pucking stick. Where are you located BTW....
The BLAKDUKE
http://scarlettrat.com/stuff.html (http://scarlettrat.com/stuff.html)
http://www.thewildhunt.com/thegreen/ratpuck.shtml (http://www.thewildhunt.com/thegreen/ratpuck.shtml)
...bunch of pucking foolishness...
you've never lived until ye've pucked a rat.
Should I wear protection, Blakduke?
Quote from: Merlin the Elder on August 02, 2012, 07:22:43 AM
Should I wear protection, Blakduke?
No, but you should consider wrapping your rat.
How does one puck a wrapped rat?
Only from rice burns or the occasional thrown pucking stick.
I adopted one of his rats....HRM Queen Elizabeth at the late NCRF named him Shiraz. He travels to different faires with me .
The Kentucky Renaissance Festival does rat pucking both days on the weekends when they are open.
Quote from: BLAKDUKE on August 01, 2012, 07:07:43 PM
Rowen:
Not a problem. Go online and look up rat-pucking and/or Jim Greene. Get his address, I believe it is in Upstate New York. This will be a good time to reach him as he is most likely doing Sterling and goes home during the week. He will no doubt sell/adopt you a rat and mail it to you. He did for me when I lost my first rat 'Mortimer' in Atlanta some years ago. As to a stick again no problem. Go out in the woods and find youself a length of blow down, a stout branch is good, a piece that would make a good walkng staff. Strip the bark from it, sand it smooth, varnish or shellac, notch the end as I have described above and viola you have a dual purpose piece, a walking staff and a pucking stick. Where are you located BTW....
The BLAKDUKE
In Omaha. I would like to see it at Des Moines faire too.
Would he by chance also provide rules for the game, as well as 'official' rats?
All that you ask for can be obtained from the master of all rat puckers. Omaha is a bit far from me but if you have a hard time making a stick mayhap if I can find the time I could make you one and ship it to you.