A few years back we shared a short clip of an Amish fellow skiing behind a buggy in Ohio. Skiing and other winter sports can be particularly popular with young Amish males. Today, photos of more winter fun, taken somewhere in Indiana. These youth snowboarders are carving up the “slopes” courtesy of a single-horsepower engine (there actually is something of a slope, or ridge, which…
A reader shares a photo of an Amish-owned business in the Shipshewana area of northern Indiana. Is paintball popular among young people in this community? I’ve heard of paintball guns being used by Amish youth before, notably in a tragic incident involving Amish teen pranksters in Ohio. This isn’t the only sports facility owned by an Amish person. The 850 Center is another notable one in…
Cornhole is a game popular among Amish in some communities. I played it once in Ohio at an Amish birthday cookout. I’d say it’s got elements of horseshoes and shuffleboard to it. If you’re not familiar with cornhole, it’s pretty simple. You’ve got two slightly elevated boards with a medium-sized hole towards one end of each board. You place them some distance apart and take…
I often take along my running shoes when I travel to Amish communities. When you’re in the car for long hours and saddled up next to the table for many more, hitting the pavement for a jog becomes a basic necessity. The scenic roads of Lancaster County are popular among recreational athletes. In parts of the County there is almost a steady stream of runners…
I just got off the phone with an Amish friend, “Alvin”, from Holmes County. I like to call Alvin, a furniture maker, from time to time, to check up on things in Amish Ohio. The big news? March Madness, or I suppose the Plain equivalent, is apparently heading to Holmes County. I’ve written a number of times about Amish and sports. Sports and games are…
Reader Michelle V recently asked: do Amish play football? Well, here’s a bit of evidence that they do, courtesy of Rick Harrison, who took the above photo at the 2009 mud sale at Georgetown in Lancaster County. While football is not as popular as softball or volleyball, the ole pigskin does get tossed around, especially by Amish boys. Interest in the sport varies. Some don’t…
Rick weighs in with an action shot of an intense game of cornerball, aka ‘eck balle’, from an auction this past weekend at Georgetown in Lancaster County. This apparently wasn’t the only sport being played; Rick mentions a few games of football and volleyball going on as well. He comments: ‘I am imagining the football huddle going “Fisher, go deep” and 3 guys answering “Which…
photo: Rob Ward Richard Stevick, author of Growing up Amish: The Teenage Years, describes eck balle, or cornerball, as ‘the plain peoples’ equivalent of NCAA March Madness.’ From Growing up Amish: ‘Until the 1950s, cornerball flourished among most of the Pennsylvania Dutch communities, both plain and fancy. Although the “fancy” or “church Dutch” eventually abandoned the game, it still thrives among the plainest Amish groups…
Here on the Euro side of the pond, the quadrennial European Football Championships are scrapping along nicely, with the continent in a frenzy for the sport that we Yanks most readily connect with Pele, Maradona and now the flamboyant Mr. David Beckham. Back home, looks like the NBA has been having a nice series. I’m sure some Amish have had a glance in the paper…
Amish also enjoy competitive team sports. This photo, taken by Holly in Mount Hope, Ohio, illustrates one of the most popular. Amish typically play sports as children and as members of the youth. On marriage and having kids, participation in sports tends to drop off markedly. It’s also worth remembering that different groups of Amish may have differing opinions on the matter of sports. Generally…