Splits (from the web)

[JLH]

GAMES - A favorite knife game played on the schoolyards when I was growing up in East Texas was a game called "splits". Since every kid carried at least one knife (usually one that was kept razor sharp by constant honing and another for actual use and game playing), this game was particularly popular in the spring time. The way it was played was open to some latitude, but mostly, two boys stood about three feet apart, facing each other. The feet were together. The first player threw his knife at a target no-more than twelve inches from the others foot (either right or left). If the knife failed to stick up in the ground or was more than twelve inches away, the thrower forfeited his turn. Otherwise, the target foot was moved so that the sole of the shoe touched the knife where it stood in the ground. Now it was the opponent's turn. As each struck the intended target, one had to stretch wider and wider until one or the other could not stretch to the knife embedded in the ground, or would topple over. Either way, the winner remained standing. While we played this game during intermission, lunch period and after school, I never knew of anyone to have been struck in the foot.

[JLH]

BTW, we were talking about this in chat last night........