Hobbies And Interests
Giant Chess
Giant chess is just what it sounds like. Manufactured by the Giant Chess company, the custom teak chess sets for lawns feature pieces ranging in size from 8 to 72 inches tall. Squares on accompanying wooden playing boards range in size from 4 x 4 inches to 24 x 24 inches. According to Giant Chess, children enjoy playing the 24-inch-tall version; chess pieces 48 inches and above are a bit bulky to be used for more than ornamentation. The company also makes wooden checker sets suitable for outdoor play.
Kubb
Kubb is a Nordic word that means block. The game of kubb originated in Scandinavia and has been alternately described as Viking chess and a cross between bocce and horseshoes. It's actually a bit of all three. The game is played outdoors with 21 wooden pieces: One king, 10 kubb, six casting pins and four corner pins. Some players use a hammer (Thor's mjolner) to set corner pins. Play begins after five kubbs are lined up parallel to the five kubbs on the opposite team's side with the king in the middle. Teams take turns trying to knock over each other's kubbs by tossing casting pins. The first team to knock over the opposing team's line of kubbs, and then the king, wins.
Tower Block
If you've ever played Hasbro's Jenga, the giant tower block game will feel familiar. Sold by several British retailers, tower block games are jumbo renderings of the Jenga phenom in which participants try to remove blocks from a stacked tower and replace them at higher levels of the tower without knocking the whole thing over. Blocks are roughly 8 inches long and 2 inches wide. The game ends when the tower comes crashing down. The tower block game and its variants require plenty of room. Spectators and players awaiting a turn should put ample distance between themselves and the tower block.