> it was an old American toy
Yep, it is. It reached the Philippines as well, brought by the American forces, or maybe balikbayans. ^_^
> And it was driven by an Indonesian TikTok trend
Ahh! So that's where the new craze re-ignited.
I hope a Filipino Tiktoker re-discovers our own, like #trumpo, #dampa, and #texts. =))
Rubber band and hands. ^_^
You bring your hands together and position it so there is a very small outlet of air to the front when you hit your hands to the ground. The air channel you produce should make the rubber band jump forward.
The basic rule is whoever gets to the target “finish line” first.
What the rewards or punishments are depends on the players.
However, back in the 80s, a monetary value was added to the rubber bands.
The thin, rainbow coloured rubber bands are the cheapest.
Then it goes up from there.
1. Yellow
2. Green
3. Blue
4. Red
5. Orange
6. Violet
7. Gold - the highest valued rubber band. It is also the most expensive to buy. And it is thick and heavy.
You can trade, for example ( I no longer remember the actual exchange rate) 10 Greens to get a 1 Blue rubber band.
However, you will rarely find anyone trading the rainbow coloured rubber bands for anything.
Oh, the trade exchange rate has nothing to do with how much the rubber bands actually cost in Philippine Peso. Haha. I have no idea how it worked, it just is.
And that's how new rules and rewards were added.
For example, in our games (and usually where I was the challenger):
* Whoever can get 4 Reds to the “finish line” will get 1 Gold band from each player who joined.
* Whoever can get an Orange band to fly this high (more below), will get 2 Gold bands, or equivalent, from each player.
Re: fly this high. Another kid will put their legs on top of each other, and in harder challenges, we also add our arms.
And yep, it is doable.
* Another rule, who can make a {colour_here} band jump the farthest.
Here's a sample video, basic rules: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ooXGYY49IY
Another one, basic rules as well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgPInpB4L34
I think kids today are not aware they can change the mechanics of the game. LOL.
@youronlyone @ahriboy@mk.absturztau.be
Will have to admit to never having the chance to play it.
Happy to note the kids speaking #Filipino -- but not Tagalog!
You can try, but I don't know if you won't feel pain smashing your hands. When I tried it in late high school (after maybe 6 years of not playing it), it hurts!
A few years ago, just for fun, I tried to play agian… and it really hurts! And I can't even make the rubber band to move.
Sometimes… maybe my childhood was lie. =))
I'd rather play trumpo. Some kids I saw playing it years ago were just spinning it. I want to show them how to actually play it (but their parents are watching).