Bakiak

Also known as bakya · team clog race

A team of friends stands in a row on one long wooden board with a pair of footholds for each of them, and walks it forward together. The board only moves when everybody lifts the same foot at the same moment, so the fastest team is the one that keeps its step.

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Bakiak: photograph by Faa.story — Photo: Faa.story, CC BY-SA 4.0, source on Wikimedia Commons

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How to play

Tap the left side and then the right side in turn, on every beat of the team's count.
Moving the same foot twice in a row throws the team off step.
Keep your step steady all the way to the line: nobody wins by rushing.

Rules at a glance

Two races; your score is the average of both.
Each step is graded by how close it falls to the beat.
A step off the beat tires the team and slows the board.
The race goes to the team that crosses the line first.

About the tradition

Bakiak, from the old word for wooden footwear, is a favourite of the independence-day sports of Indonesia, and is known in Malaysia and the Philippines too. It is played by schools, villages and workplaces as a lesson in working in step.

Origins

Usually placed in the era of Age of Contact and Craft (about 1500 to 1800), although its exact origins are uncertain, within the cultural world of Southeast Asia and the Islands.

Credits

Game design: World Heritage Games (original)
Photo: Faa.story, CC BY-SA 4.0, source on Wikimedia Commons
Text: CC BY-SA 4.0, World Heritage Games.

Sources

commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bakiak_(Teklek)_History_of_Java_Museum

Get the app

Bakiak is one of 18 sports and skill games in the Sports & Skill of the World app for iPhone, iPad and Android. Submitted to the App Store and Google Play; in review. Store links appear here the day it goes live. One app, many traditions, no account needed.

See all 18 sports and skill games in the app

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