01 -Hogtie the Rustler
Story index at the bottom
By Burke
First, let me introduce the 14-member core group:
1. Burke, 12 years old: Me
2. Billy, 12, my identical twin brother
3. Ray, 10, our younger brother
4. Cathy, 11, our younger sister
5. David, 13, our cousin
6. Nancy, 12, Cathy's best friend
7. Chuck, 14, our next door neighbor
8. and 9. Jeff and Mark, 10, Chuck's little brothers, also identical twins.
10. Terry, 13, the son of our scoutmaster
11. Steve, 13, Terry's best friend
12. Greg, 15, Steve's brother
13. Bill, 14, Greg's best friend
14. Chris, 10, Bill's little brother
Now, a little about us: First, the two girls wore dresses only to school, church, and special events. They hated dresses, and couldn't wait to get home from school, and trade their dresses for jeans or corduroys. They were both 100% pure tomboy, and were not in the least bit ashamed of it, even though they constantly caught crap from the other girls at school, and in the neighborhood.
The boys were, well ..... boys, always running around, getting into things, and looking for a new adventure. And the more exciting and challenging, the better.
The time frame, was 1954-1962, centering on 1957-58. Times were different then.
Anyway, that's a short introduction. Next up, Billy's and my introduction to the world of tie-up games.
One more thing: I am terribly long winded, and have a lot of preliminary information. Personally, I feel it enhances the story, and builds anticipation for the reader, but I understand there are some that want to "cut through the crap, and get on with it." Sorry, not in my stories.
I am also a professional writer by trade, and sometimes my remembrances get carried off on the wings of imagination, and I see things the way I wanted them to be, rather than the way they actually were. For this, I apologize.
Introduction
Our younger brother, Ray, had been a Cub Scout for two years, but we did not join Boy Scouts until after our 12th birthdays. He was in a den for 10 year olds that would soon graduate to Boy Scouts.
It was scout night, and the older Cubs had been invited to the meeting. The meeting had 20-30 minutes set aside for a game, usually "steal the bacon," a game where a flag is placed between two lines of boys, and each team has its members numbered from 1 to whatever. A number is called, and two boys race to the center, and try to snatch the flag, and get it back to their side, without being tagged.
That night, Terry, our scoutmaster's son, came in, and told Kevin, our Senior Patrol Leader, that he found a new game in one of his dad's scout program magazines. It was called "Hog Tie the Rustler." Each patrol (5-8 boys) would select one boy to be the "rustler," and send him to another patrol. Then, each patrol would then tie up their "rustler" with two pieces of rope, one six feet long, and the other, 12. The first one free won a point for his patrol.
Kevin agreed that we could play the game, but added that since the Cubs were our guests, they would be the ones to do the tying up.
The Cubs were split among the five patrols, and the rope was passed out. Chuck, our next door neighbor, was selected (or volunteered) to be the "rustler," and was sent to the patrol that was hosting his younger twin brothers. They made him lay face down on the floor, and used the shorter rope to tie his hands, and the longer one to bind his ankles. After tying his ankles, there was enough of a tail to tie his wrists and ankles together, in a hogtie. (Well, the game WAS "Hog Tie the Rustler)
Then Mark did something totally unexpected. He pulled Chuck's red and yellow neckerchief from around his neck, and tied it over Chuck's mouth. It was not lost on the other four patrols, who soon had their "rustlers" similarly tied and gagged.
The "rustlers" easily dislodged their gags, but Chuck and a couple of the others, got off a couple of "Mmmpfff's" before doing so. Meanwhile, Kevin revised the scoring system, so that the boy who got loose first earned 10 points; second, 8, third, six, fourth, four, and last, 2. That was so everybody would have some points.
Billy took a turn as a "rustler," then Donnie, another boy in our patrol. But by then, the time was up, and we moved on to the next phase of the meeting.
After getting home, I lamented the fact that I had not been chosen as a "rustler." "That's OK. You can be my 'rustler.'" said Ray. We found some rope in the garage, and brought it back to our room, where I was tied up pretty good by Ray. As I was laying on the floor, the door opened. It was Cathy! "What are you doing?" she asked. Billy explained that it was a game we had learned at Boy Scouts. The next words out of her mouth totally stunned us. "I want to play, too!"
From the hall, we heard "Twenty minutes before bedtime, kids. Get ready." It was Mom.
Tomorrow night, Cathy." said Billy. "OK!" she said, and closed the door.
It took about three minutes for me to get free, and we heeded Mom's instructions, and stripped off our scout uniforms, and put on our pajamas. "I think I'm going to like being in scouts." I thought to myself.
I looked over at Billy. "You awake?" I asked. "Yeah!" came the reply. For the next hour, we talked about the game, and how it felt to be tied up. The concensus was that it was great to win, and it sucked to lose - that it was great if you got free first or second, but sucked if you were the last one out, or had to be untied. And, it was great if the "rustler" you tied stayed tied, but it sucked if the "rustler" got out first or second, or even third.
Billy and I drifted off to sleep, but I remember thinking that I wanted to play again.
The next night, as we had promised, we taught the game to Cathy, and were surprised that she was just as enthusiastic about it as we were. (Well, she was a tomboy, and loved playing boys' games. I guess growing up with three brothers, a girl can get that way, especially when she has to compete with them for just about everything.)
Anyway, that was our introduction to tie-up games. As time went on, we got better at tying our friends and each other. We also made many new friends, thanks in part, to Cathy, and her best friend, Nancy. But those are stories for another time.
It was March. In nine weeks, school would be out. We couldn't wait!
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Burke's stories
- 01 - Hogtie the Rustler (m+/m+)
- 02 - Sister Act (f/m, m/m, m/f)
- 03 - The Camera Caper (mm/f)
- 04 - Penalties and Disguises (*/*)
- 05 - Bandages, Bedsheets and Other Oddities (mmm/f, ff/mmm)
- 06 - Nancy's "Screen Play" (ff/m+, m/ff, ff/m)
- 07 - The Eyes Don't Lie (m+f+/mmm)
- 08 - Grounded! (f/mm)
Index of all stories in the "Archive for Everyone" section