- Greasy watermelon
Greasy Watermelon, or simply Watermelon, is a
swimming pool game similar tosoccer . It works well because the high water content of awatermelon causes it to exhibitneutral buoyancy .Objective
To score the most points by placing the watermelon on the pool deck.
Playing area
The optimum playing area for Watermelon is a lake or pond with low visibility in the water. The diving wells of many neighborhood pools measure roughly convert|25|ft|m wide x convert|25|ft|m long x convert|12|ft|m deep, and this is considered perfect for Watermelon.
Setup
For this game, you will obviously need a large watermelon (seedless or not), some baby oil (Crisco works best), and probably a minimum of 8 players. It works best if a non-participant (such as a swim coach), can be enlisted to handle the watermelon and referee the game. The watermelon should be liberally coated with baby oil. The players should divide into two teams.
Dropping the watermelon
At the start of the game, and after every score, the watermelon should be "dropped" or tossed into the middle of the playing area. Prior to the drop, the players must line up on opposite sides of the playing area. Once the melon is dropped, the players may enter the water at their leisure. The melon is re-dropped after every score, and at any other time the referee deems appropriate. When the melon is removed from play, it should be re-oiled prior to being dropped.
Gameplay
The teams must move the watermelon to the side opposite their starting side and place it on the pool deck in order to score. They may do this however they wish, but the following rules must be followed:
* the watermelon may not be thrown out of the water. This includes scoring attempts. To score, the melon must be lifted out of the water and placed on the deck.
* once a player enters the water, he may not exit the water until the game is disrupted by a score or any other condition which requires the melon to be dropped.
* while the game may become physical, at no time may a player intentionally abuse another player.Ending the game
Watermelon is typically played for an arbitrary amount of time. The time or maximum score may be set beforehand. When the game is over, the melon is moved to a table and sliced for all the players to enjoy.
Notes
Because the melon is oiled, it is nearly impossible to grasp. The successful team will learn to push it quickly, in many cases deep under water, to advance it towards the goal.
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