The Teens Are Playing Hacky Sack

Summary

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The Nightly – "The Teens Are Playing Hacky Sack"

Date: May 17, 2026
Hosts: Wils Pelton (A) & Josh Gondelman (B)
Podcast by: Hatch Podcasts

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Overview

In this cozy bedtime episode, comedians Wils and Josh catch up and riff on one of the week’s most surprising cultural updates: teenagers have revived the game of hacky sack. Their playful conversation meanders from personal childhood sport avoidances and competitive streaks, to pop culture depictions of hacky sack and the shared nostalgia (or lack thereof) for group playground games. The episode is filled with warm banter, gentle teasing, and late-night musings suited for winding down.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Hacky Sack Is Back

• [00:42] Josh’s “big time news” is that “the teens, they’re playing hacky sack again.”
• Wils observes hacky sack has "vintage" and "crunchy" hippie vibes, reminiscent of older or retro trends.
• Both hosts reflect on their own (lack of) hacky sack prowess and discuss childhood limitations in sports skills—Wils theorizes wearing glasses earlier might have helped ("If I started wearing glasses, like, as a kid, I would have been probably one of the best hacky sacrifices I would have been." [02:11])
• Wils connects hacky sack’s resurgence to other group playground activities like spike ball and describes how those games are “tenet[s] of straight culture and community” ([02:37]).

2. The Culture of Playground Games

• Josh recalls his youth: “I was bad at [hacky sack]. I don’t think I ever owned a sack of my own. I was also never a soccer kid…” ([01:04]).
• Wils, never much for hand-eye activities, was always the sideline cheerleader, not participant.
• Conversation diverges into the culture of games like spike ball, wall ball, and ultimate frisbee, painting a picture of classic outdoor hangouts.

3. Generational Perceptions & Trend Skepticism

• Both hosts express skepticism over so-called trends in the media around children (“You sound like a narc.” [04:29])
• Josh confirms hacky sack’s return with firsthand anecdotes from his niece and nephew, who assert it’s a “big deal at school right now.” ([04:44])
• Wils notes: “It just feels vintage... like pushing a hoop down the street with a stick.” ([05:24]) and associates hacky sack with slack lining and ultimate frisbee.

4. Explaining Hacky Sack for the Uninitiated

• The hosts clarify what a hacky sack is, both in size and how it’s played — “a cloth kind of knit, crocheted, almost pouch full of beans... you can’t use your hands, but you kick it or knee it or head it up in the air” ([06:55], [07:08]).
• Witty banter about citrus as a sizing reference: “It’s like the size of a clementine... just for people who don’t know how big a racquetball is.” ([06:55])

5. Pop Culture Connections

• Josh brings up the classic 90s teen movie She’s All That, recalling it featured hacky sack:
  • “The big cultural hacky sack moment, outside of like, people waiting for Phish to start playing or the Grateful Dead, is the movie She’s All That.” ([07:35])
  • They discuss the film’s “makeover” trope: “Underneath those huge honking glasses was a gorgeous, gorgeous girl.” ([09:14])
• This leads to a playful riff on glasses as a disguise and the broader trope in coming-of-age cinema.

6. Childhood Games & Avoidance

• Josh explains “knockout” and “wall ball,” two classic playground games ([10:08]).
• Wils admits constantly sought to “just get out as soon as possible and watch” ([11:03]).
• “I was doing analog podcasting. I was like chatting with people, maybe like braiding some blades of grass or something...” ([11:39])

7. Personalities & Competition

• The conversation turns to competitiveness — Wils is only competitive with card games, especially one called “Oh Hell” ([13:34]).
• Josh admits he’s “embarrassed” by how competitive he gets when he’s good at something ([14:09]).
• Discussion of NPR’s Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me! as an example of a “friendly competition” ([14:39]).

8. Naming Things & Wrapping Up

• In classic winding-down mode, the hosts riff on the satisfaction of remembering the names for things, joking:
  • “I think we did an amazing–I think we’ve done an amazing job naming things.” ([16:41])
  • “That’s what we’re here to do tonight. Exactly.” ([16:45])

9. Shoutout & Community

• Shoutout to listener Jeffrey Rodin for his feedback and consistent Spotify commentary ([17:01]).
• “If you want to…mix it up with the other day one nightly fans, get into those Spotify comments. Chop it up with Jeffrey.” ([17:34])
• Final well-wishes: “Goodnight to all you hacky sackers out there keeping the crunchy dream alive.” ([17:52])

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• “The teens, they’re playing hacky sack again.” – Josh ([00:42])
• “Spike ball is a tenet of straight culture and community.” – Wils ([02:37])
• “It feels like pushing a hoop down the street with a stick.” – Josh ([05:24])
• “I was doing analog podcasting. I was like chatting with people, maybe like braiding some blades of grass or something.” – Wils ([11:39])
• “If I started wearing glasses, like, as a kid, I would have been probably one of the best hacky sacrifices I would have been.” – Josh ([02:11])
• “That’s what we’re here to do tonight. Exactly. I remembered the names of things. We caught up on a teen trend.” – Josh ([16:45])
• “Good night to all you hacky sackers out there keeping the crunchy dream alive.” – Josh ([17:52])

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Useful Timestamps

| Segment | Timestamp | |------------------------------------------------|------------| | Hacky Sack’s return & personal history | 00:42–02:59| | Playground games and vintage vibes | 03:00–06:55| | Explaining hacky sack (description/rules) | 06:56–07:43| | Pop culture, She’s All That | 07:43–09:14| | Childhood game explanations & avoidance | 10:03–11:39| | Talk of competition and card games | 12:06–13:54| | NPR’s Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me! | 14:39–15:55| | Nostalgia, naming things, winding down | 16:29–16:52| | Listener community & shoutout | 17:01–17:52|

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Tone & Atmosphere

Warm, witty, and gently self-deprecating, the hosts bring a sense of humorous nostalgia and inclusive camaraderie. Their easy banter and playful asides make for a lighthearted—and genuinely cozy—bedtime listen.

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For more community and cozy late-night vibes, check the Spotify episode comments and connect with other Nightly fans. Good night, hacky sackers!

Transcript

[A]

Audio for sleep by hatch. Hey there. I'm Wills.

[B]

And I'm Josh. Welcome to the nightly from Hatch, where your late night thoughts go to rest. Wills, it is very nice to see you. And I come with big time news this week.

[A]

Oh, I can't wait to hear the

[B]

teens, they're playing hacky sack again.

[A]

Okay, wait, you know what? I was with someone recently where there was a hacky sack out.

[B]

Really?

[A]

Yeah. Okay. It was in a space where I felt like I was extremely old, so that kind of tracks fascinating. But wait, did you play hacky sack, like, growing up?

[B]

I did, but I was bad at it. So, like, I don't think I ever owned a sack of my own. And I was also never a soccer kid, so, like, the foot sports were never, ever skills. Yeah, I just didn't have it because I had friends who were soccer players and they would, you know, they would juggle the soccer ball. They could totally, you know, bounced up on their knee and on their foot and off their chest and do the same with a hacky sack. And I was kind of lost, but it was completely. I would say it was an extremely formative cultural experience. It was playing and being around hacky. What about you?

[A]

No hacky sack for me. I also was not. I mean, I'm not very hand eye inclined, I would say, however, sometimes I wonder, like, I just started wearing glasses more recently in adulthood, and I'm like, maybe that is part of it.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

But I. I'm not gonna put a ton on that. It might give me some kind of marginal improvement. But I. I don't. I don't think that's the. I don't think that's the missing ingredient. Let's just say that I'll.

[B]

So when we're doing soft math like that, I always round up in my favorite.

[A]

Yeah, that's 100%.

[B]

If I started wearing glasses, like, as a kid, I would have been probably one of the best hacky sacrifices I would have been.

[A]

I would have won the league. But no, there was not really, like, hacky sack culture, like, growing up. I'm trying to think, like, the most, like, relevant thing I can think of is, like, sometimes on the quad, like in my high school when it was really nice out, like, people would play spike ball.

[B]

Spike ball.

[A]

Spike ball is a tenet of straight culture and community. I would say it's like. Okay, I feel like you've almost certainly seen it. It looks like a small, like, trampoline kind of like net thing.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

And then you have a ball and you like, throw it into the middle, and you're, like, bouncing it off, and there's, like, people standing around the little low net.

[B]

What are the goals?

[A]

You know? You know? I don't know. You know, I don't know.

[B]

Was there, like, a ball game that when you were a kid that you were more participatory? Like, what was the one that you were like, no. Oh, thank goodness we're doing this one day.

[A]

I've never been that. Like, I've always been. Like, I've always been like, y', all, I'm gonna watch, like, from a young age. Like, I'm gonna watch and I'm gonna cheer you guys on, but I'm not gonna play necessarily.

[B]

This isn't your.

[A]

Yeah, it's just not part of my spirit. And I try, like, even as I get older, I try to get more, like, inclined towards things like that or even just more willing to try because, you know, we have all these stories and ideas about ourselves, and sometimes they're not even true. But I will say, like, I think that one might be true. And in fact, last night, I was with my friends and a couple. Last year, it's about to be my friend's birthday last year, they had a birthday party where we all played Wiffle ball outside. And they literally pointed at me, and they were like. And I know you hated that. All that to say, I don't have a ton of experience with Hacky Sack, but I'm excited to know that, like, the kids are playing it again because it sounds sweet to me. And how did you learn this?

[B]

So I'd read about it somewhere. Like, I saw some headlines and, you know, like, I always kind of take it with a grain of salt when there's, like, reporting about children. Kids. When, like, sure. Excuse me. The trends of children.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Literally, like, oh, the kids are doing this now. And I'm like, okay. Grown up. Like, this seems like you sound like a narc.

[A]

Like, completely. And it's like, are the kids doing that, or did you see, like, one video?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Like, what does this really mean? Right?

[B]

But then I was visiting my in laws, and my. My niece was like, oh, yeah, all the kids have been playing Hacky Sack. And then her brother, who's a year younger, was like, for sure. It's like, it's like a big deal at school right now.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

And it really brought a lot of feelings out of me because, for one thing, I guess I hadn't considered it, but I didn't realize the kids ever stopped playing Hacky Sack. I Thought it was like tag. You know what I mean?

[A]

Yeah. From my experience, I think that the kids did stop playing Hacky Sack because I don't feel like that was ever part of even, like, the term. To me, I'm like, oh, that's a little bit like old school.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Right. It's like. It feels. I can imagine for today's children, it feels like pushing a hoop down the

[A]

street with a stick. Well, it's something about it to me, just feels like vintage. Like, the Hacky sack game space is more like kind of like crunchy.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

In a way that's like a little bit more like vintage as well.

[B]

It's like a real hippie.

[A]

Yeah, exactly. It's kind of like hippie vibes to me. Yep.

[B]

For sure. You would do it maybe while wearing a pair of Tevas or Burks.

[A]

I feel like I can see, like, Hacky Sack and, like, slack lining happening in the space. And that kind of like, those are culturally related to me.

[B]

I agree. And maybe even. Look, you got a big field. Those folks are playing some ultimate Frisbee. No doubt about it.

[A]

Trust they're playing ultimate Frisbee. Trust they're playing ultimate Frisbee, no doubt.

[B]

I wonder if. So this now makes me wonder if there are listeners who, when I say the words or you say the words, Hacky sack are like. I can't even picture what that is.

[A]

Oh, my God. Maybe.

[B]

But to me, like, the idea, because I guess I hadn't thought about Hacky Sack in, I guess, to be conservative, two decades. Completely, like 15 years at the very least. And then when I heard, like, oh, the kids are playing hacky sack again. I was like, I just thought that was something kids always did completely. So to explain. Yeah. A hacky sack is like a cloth kind of knit, crocheted, almost pouch full of, like, beans. And it's about the size of a racquetball, maybe a little smaller.

[A]

It's like the size of like a clementine. Just for people who don't know what. How big a racquetball is.

[B]

Yep. That's a good point.

[A]

I obviously would know how big a racquetball is, but of course, just in case.

[B]

But for people who are more citrus inclined.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

The way you play it is either solo or in a group. You can't use your hands, but you kick it or knee it or head it up in the air as many times as you can. And sometimes you do it back and forth kind of competitively. Sometimes it's solo. You're just seeing how many. How long you can keep it up for. And I think the big cultural hacky sack moment, outside of, like, people waiting for fish to start playing or the Grateful Dead is the movie. She's all that. I always think about that as like, the hacky sack text.

[A]

There's a hacky sack in that?

[B]

Yeah. I think Freddie Prinze Jr's character is very good at hacky sack is my memory. I mean, I haven't seen she's all that in a long time.

[A]

I don't know if I've actually ever seen she's all that.

[B]

I almost recommended it to my niece, but I was like, I don't actually know if it holds up at all.

[A]

Don't know if it's good. I don't know if it's appropriate.

[B]

Yeah, well, it's also so funny. Cause I'm like, it's like a PG13 teen Rom com from like 1998, I want to guess. So there's probably some stuff in it that you're like, ooh. But it's probably mostly fine. But I don't know. I don't know her level of interest in that. If she would be like, oh, this is a fun thing that I can show my friends. Or if she's like, get your old people movies away from me.

[A]

And it's that thing where you're like, the thing of, like, trying to, like, connect with like, some. A child or like a young adult, where you're like, yeah, you're like, hacky Sack. Hacky sack. There's a movie that has hacky sack.

[B]

Totally.

[A]

It's like.

[B]

And that's for the young.

[A]

And they're like. So that's actually, like, completely irrelevant to me.

[B]

Yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[A]

Who's to say?

[B]

And she's all. That was kind of like the Pygmalion My Fair lady story. Right? Where it's like, I bet I can make this girl hot by prom.

[A]

Completely a classic makeover movie, which we all.

[B]

Classic makeover movie. Obviously, it's the one. I would say it's the number one movie touchstone for, like, young woman takes off her glasses, comma, is hot.

[A]

Now, underneath those huge honking glasses was a gorgeous, gorgeous girl.

[B]

Yeah, well, the glasses did. They were kind of head to toe.

[A]

Yeah, the glasses, it was.

[B]

Yeah, it was really obscured the whole situation.

[A]

Yeah, it obscured everything about her.

[B]

Yeah. People thought she was just a bunch of two floating eyeballs.

[A]

Yes, completely. Yeah. She. It was kind of like a ghost type sheet situation.

[B]

People were unnerved they're like, oh, she's not unnerving.

[A]

She thought it was actually the opposite of glasses in that she was entirely obscured except for her eyes.

[B]

That's right. That's right. It was right. You could see the eyes, but the rest of it was kind of a drape.

[A]

It was a drape. Okay, so Hacky Sack, you played it.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And then were there any other games like that that you played? But you were like, I wasn't very good at it.

[B]

I played. So the hand games I was a little better at. Like, so we would play knockout, which is like a basketball related game where it's two balls and you make a line at the free thr line, the foul line of the court, and you basically, you take one shot from the free throw line and then the person behind you starts shooting and you have to hit your shot before they do, and then you pass the ball to the next person. So if the person behind you hits a shot before you do, then you're out.

[A]

You're out of it.

[B]

Got it. That was pretty fun. And then we played another game. You would throw the ball off the wall and then someone would. Would catch it.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And if it bounced off of you, like, if you couldn't catch it cleanly, you would then run to touch the wall and then they would. Someone else would pick up the wall and throw it at the wall. And if the ball hit the wall before you tagged the wall.

[A]

Got it. Got it.

[B]

Then you were again were out. Or you would get a letter or something. Yeah, but that was really fun.

[A]

That sounds like something I have maybe played.

[B]

I always loved playing that game. This is. I feel like telling you about this. I feel like I am 600 years old.

[A]

No, I think we did play wall ball. Okay. But really, like, a huge part of this that you have to know is that, like, you explaining the game of, like, throwing the basketball. And like, the thing I would have done is, like, been like, so relieved to just get out as soon as possible and watch. Like, it just was like. I was like, it's just not for me.

[B]

When these games were happening, what were you at, like a recess or in a gym class? What were you, like, like, looking to be. To get into?

[A]

Literally probably, like, sitting on the ground and like, just like chatting. Like, I just. Okay, yeah, I was doing. I was training for what I do now. I was doing analog podcasting. I was like chatting with people, maybe like braiding some blades of grass or something, but I was just never like. And like, also, like, the sports that I Did. Were only running, so I just never did any type of, like, contact sport or, like, any type of, like, thing that involved, like, hand eye coordination at all.

[B]

Were you, like, a competitive runner?

[A]

I was. I'm not. Like, I. Well, I don't know. I don't think I'm a very competitive person. Like, sometimes I get competitive. Usually if I get competitive, I'm playing a card game. But, okay, I was. I was a runner. I did, like, track and field and cross country.

[B]

Cool.

[A]

It was definitely better at track and field than I was at cross country because it's just. It's just too much with cross country sometimes. But it's just. And they just want you to. They want you to give it your all for three miles in a race. And I'm like, I don't want to. I don't want to feel sick after running three miles just to give your. Your all for three miles. It makes you feel really bad afterwards. Like, it just does. But I was better at track and whatever, but I'm just not a big sports person. Like, in general. Sure, I've come around to working out later in my life, and I really enjoy it now, but.

[B]

And you've been doing that. You've been, like, really going.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, I've been, like, working out. Like, I, like, have been, like, lifting or whatever for, like, two years or something or like, whatever. And before that, I was. I got really into running as an adult, and then I had to stop because I injured, which is a part of why that was causing issues with me. But, yeah, I think the container of competition really sucks the enjoyment for me out of, like, physical exercise.

[B]

Do you. Are you. So you're.

[A]

You.

[B]

You're competitive. Like, when you. When someone wants to play cards, you're like, I'm gonna destroy you.

[A]

That's the goal, kind of. I will say there's one specific card game that my family plays. It's called oh, Hell. And I can get really competitive during that because I just. It's. If the game. If it's the right game, I can get really competitive. But it kind of, like, depends. Like, I don't know.

[B]

Okay, so is that a cards thing or is it a family thing that brings up the competition?

[A]

I think it's a cards thing because I don't have to be playing it with my family. It's just like, that game in particular, something about it really breeds the competition in me. But are you a competitive person, Josh?

[B]

I, like, am in a way that I'm really embarrassed by.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Like, I I think when there are things I'm bad at, I let go of the idea of winning very easily. But when it's something that, like, I'm. I think I'm good at or something that other people think I'm good at.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Or I think other people think I'm good at, I get, like, really on edge.

[A]

Yeah, I see. I. I think that's part of it for me, too. It's like, when it's comes the stuff that I'm like, that's just not me. I'm like, there's no point. Like, I don't care. But then some. If it's something that I'm familiar with, I can get more competitive about it.

[B]

Obviously, I'm like, pretty frequently on Wait, wait, don't tell me. On npr, which is like a news quiz.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And I, like, I don't get, like, mad at the other panelists. You know, it's not competition in that, like, I want them to do badly, but I do. I am like, I do want to seem smart and know things, and I do get a little antsy about it.

[A]

Yeah. I was just actually watching clips of. Wait, wait, don't tell me. Because I had fallen down a rabbit hole of watching Rachel Coster clips, which I was, like, fan curling over my face.

[B]

Yeah, Rachel's so funny.

[A]

She rules. And I know Rachel. She's been doing Wait, wait more recently. And then I was like, yeah, it's just this interesting thing because growing up, obviously, I was, like, aware of. Wait, wait, don't tell me. Because my dad, in particular would listen to it, and I can't even like that. And this is what I was feeling when I was watching the clips is I was like, wow, like, being on this is my worst nightma.

[B]

It is really fun. The staff is so wonderful, and they really make you feel very comfortable, and they do a great job. And the panelists are all very warm and collaborative and friendly, so it's a very good experience. But I do still get, like, okay, I'm gonna answer the heck out of these trivia questions.

[A]

Seems so scary to me. I'm like, that is so. That terrifies me.

[B]

No, it's good.

[A]

You know what I get? Wait, wait, don't tell me. I think confused with that. I actually can't remember the name of it. I'm gonna see if you can get us there. There was a show that was, like, three guys improvised Whose Line is It Anyway? And do you understand why? Don't sound the exact. I do understand.

[B]

It has the same kind of it's the same name. The title has the same exact energy.

[A]

I think in my mind, I was like, because it would, like, be on the radio. But then, like, looking back, I was like, but there's something about it that's just like improv. But no, I'm just thinking of anyway.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[A]

Wow. Okay.

[B]

That.

[A]

I'm so glad we got to the bottom of that.

[B]

I'm glad we resolved that.

[A]

Me too.

[B]

Thank God we know what so many things are called, I think.

[A]

Yeah, I did. I now know the name of a bunch of things. Yeah.

[B]

I think that's really big of us.

[A]

I know. I think we did an amazing. I think we've done an amazing job naming things.

[B]

Yeah. And I. That's what we're here to do tonight. Exactly. I remembered the names of things. We caught up on a teen trend.

[A]

Yes. Yes. Okay. Well, on that note, I feel like we've listed and named every possible thing that we could and it might be time to turn in.

[B]

We did an amazing job. But before we go for the night, I want to shout out a listener, a listener named Jeffrey Rodin, which anybody is welcome to do if you listen, please. Thenightlyach co. That's co. And we would love to hear from you. And Jeffrey Rodin said some really lovely things about the show and also that he consistently leaves comments on the episodes on Spotify, which I forget is allowed.

[A]

I feel like the Spotify comments are where the real heads convene.

[B]

So if you want to. If you're like a real nightly ride or die and you want to mix it up with the other day one nightly fans get into those Spotify comments. Chop it up with Jeffrey.

[A]

Yes, please. Jeffrey is looking for Community and. And I think we're gonna send some his way.

[B]

That's beautiful. So good night to Jeffrey. Good night to all you hacky sackers out there keeping the crunchy dream alive.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And good night to you, Wills.

[A]

Good night, Jo.

[B]

Sa.

[A]

Foreign.

[B]

To learn more about our phone free light and audio experience, head to Hatch co. You can also follow us at HatchPodcasts.