Creating a kickball game is a way to bring a greater sense of teamwork and higher morale to the office, family, and/or friends! For a fun, social, yet competitive sport, kickball is a good choice, because it’s a sport that people with a wide range of athletic skills can enjoy.
- Gauge Interest
The first thing you should do is poll everyone for their interest before you start planning the pick-up game. Talk to everyone, so you understand the overall interest in forming a kickball pick-up game. Is everyone on board? Then you’re good to move on to the next step! - Find a Field
The second thing you should do is find a field for your kickball game. Any flat field (grass or dirt) can be used for a pick-up game. Most folks prefer a softball diamond, but others enjoy the corner of a soccer/football field. Still others prefer completely recreating that urban recess feel and want to play on black top (although we’d like to remind you it hurts quite a bit to fall on hard ground!)
See if you need to pay to play kickball at a local field, or if you just need to reserve the space. You could charge participants a set fee to cover any costs the game might incur. But typically, you should be able to “squat” a field for your pick-up game. Get an idea of what the peak usage hours of your desired field are; if the space is not crowded when you’re hoping to play, squatting may be all you need to do.
- Decide on the Rules
Is a rule book really needed for a kickball game? No, it’s not! We at Kickball365 firmly believe that anyone can play kickball any way they choose! However, if you plan to keep your kickball game organized, then we think it’d be easier if you had some structure before you get started.
Be sure to host a meeting prior to your game to review the rules you’ve chosen to use. (You can use an e-mail chain, but people will keep trading comments back and forth, and it’ll make it hard for you to sort through all of them and bring the discussion to a close.) A demo is usually a good idea to run through prior to the first pitch. Also, be sure to review the strike zone (if you’re using one) and the base paths for foul balls. If you’re requiring the ball to travel a certain distance to be in play, make sure that’s clear. If you’re preventing fielders from being too close to the kicker before the kick, make sure that’s clear too. These are typically the most asked questions during kickball games (“How many strikes do I get?”, “What is a foul ball?”, “How hard do I have to kick it?”).
That being said, you can pick a rule book from the Rulebooks of Kickball page we’ve created. Or you can use our Rule Book.
- Find Equipment
Now it’s time to investigate costs and equipment. You should find out if anybody in the area has kickball equipment to donate. If not, you must purchase new equipment. At minimum, you’re going to need:
1-2 balls (bring extras, so both teams can warm up, and in case 1 ball pops)
4 bases (rubber or padded, although rubber is cheaper)
2-4 cones or similar material (to mark your foul lines)
And while you’re at it, you can always get more excited with team uniforms! Matching color shirts, shorts, or socks — even an inexpensive T-shirt with an inspired logo – they can all add a lot of fun to the game atmosphere.Did you know?
Oh hey – we just happen to sell our own kickball, if you’d like to use ours in your pick-up game. Jus’ sayin. Check out our famous Orange Kickball here - Play the Game!
You’ve got a field, a time slot, players, rules, and equipment. Now go out and play! Most folks like to get multiple games in – and, heck, kickball is that much fun – why not? Anywhere from 5-7 innings per game should be plenty for most. That should give you anywhere from 1 to 1 ½ hours of game time and at least 2 to 3 chances to kick per person, per game. If you’re playing 2 games, don’t be afraid to switch up the rosters of each team after game 1! - Share the Memories!
It’s time to share with your friends and family! Be sure someone at the game has a camera handy, so you can collect the photos after your game. Posting your pictures to your family web site, Flickr, Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter is a great way to showcase how well your game went.