The Campaign for Real Conkers
Media Release. Contact Keith Flett 07803 167266
28th September
2024 Conker Season: conkers are NOT in short supply, nor do they only last a week
The Campaign for Real Conkers, which opposes bans on conker playing and unnecessary rules and regulations in games, has said that the stormy weather over the past few days has been ideal, if very wet, conditions to collect conkers
Early indications are that 2024 will see a good crop of conkers.
The Campaigners say that conkers has always been associated with an element of folklore and myth making and the 2024 season is no exception.
Two of the most common 2024 myths are:
1 Conkers are in short supply. They aren’t. Even a cursory check of areas around conker trees will reveal, sadly, an abundance of fallen but uncollected conkers
2 Conkers only last a week and then go ‘out of date’. In fact conkers do not have a ‘use by’ date and will often be better after a few weeks from collection.
The campaigners say that for 2024 they are maintaining their usual ‘anything goes’ approach to conker games, to encourage people to play without arbitrary rules.
Campaign Organiser Keith Flett said, comments from the self-styled World Conker Championships that conkers will somehow go out of date or be unusable after a week are of course entirely wrong. In fact conkers age well particularly if you bake them or soak them in vinegar
Guide on how to play real conkers safely in 2024
1] Select your conker. Do this yourself. DO NOT use a conker provided by someone else who may give you a poor specimen.
2] There is no specific kind of conker that makes a good game winner. Large conkers may more easily splinter for example. Some prefer conkers with flat and sharp edges
3] You may use the conker ‘as is’ known as ‘organic’. Alternatively you may seek to harden it by baking it, soaking it in vinegar etc. There is no guarantee that an artificially enhanced conker will perform any better than an organic one.
4] Drill a small hole through the conker. A nail will often achieve this. Again you must do this yourself
5] Thread the conker through the hole you have drilled. A strong chord, perhaps a shoelace is best
6] You are now ready to play.
7] Make sure that the chord is long enough to allow you to stand at least 1 metre plus away from your opponent. This would generally be the case as space is required for the conker swing.
8] Players take alternate turns to try and hit and destroy their opponent’s conker
9] Those with poor aim may hit the knuckles of their opponent more often than the conker so you may wish to wear gloves.
10] The winner is the player who determines their opponents conker unusable in further rounds, usually by causing it to splinter into two or more pieces
Play safely and enjoy!
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