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La Plagne Apres Ski Report: 21st February 2013

Plastic Cup Politics

featured in Nightlife reviews Author Anita Gait, La Plagne Reporter Updated

It’s time to settle the age old, eternal debate. To end once and for all the question that has plagued not only us but our parents, our grandparents, and all our ancestors for centuries before us. The fundamental issue that goes to the heart, to the very core of who we are as people! The question? Beer Pong or Flip Cup?

You simply aren’t going to get far in La Plagne without getting to grips with these staple drinking games. They are less about games and more about lifestyle. We live and breathe this stuff, evolving and expanding the games to suit our every whim and any new comer who happens to come along needs to have a thorough grounding in the sports in order to be accepted in our resort.

Now, I feel - and I have no basis for this in fact - that people are innately pongers or flippers and try as they might to fake it, they can never give their heart and drinking soul over to the other, and for reasons best kept to myself I want to know which way you swing....

Lets back up a second for the beginners out there: Beer Pong – often known as Beiruit, lord knows why, involves opposing players - generally singles or two per team - standing at opposite ends of a long table with a pyramid of plastic cups filled with beer arranged before them. Each player has a Ping-Pong ball and the object is to sink your ball into your opponents cup. If you do so, they must drink its contents i.e. beer. The player (or team) who loses all their cups first loses the game. That is the basics of it but there are many, many (many) rules and variations of the rules with trick shots, opportunities for redemption, vengeance and strategy.... in order to avoid a war at the final cup you need to have your house rules clearly stated before the game begins. The game at it’s best is a graceful battle of wits and skill and derogatory name calling, much like chess, and can go on for a long time as the less cups there are, the harder the target becomes.

Now Flip Cup seems to be less widely known but is a faster, more exhilarating, more inclusive game than it's more Hollywood big brother. Again the long table, two teams of generally more than four players (but up to any number) line up along its length facing each other with their plastic cups filled with beer on the table before them. At the cry of “3 – 2 – 1 – Flipcup!” Play begins. The first player of each team must down their drink, balance the cup on the edge of the table and flip it with one hand until it lands squarely upside down on the table. The second player cannot go until the first has succeeded and so on down the line.

The team whose final player flips their cup first is the victor. Again there are subtleties afoot that you need to be aware of, but the rulebook is pretty simple; flip that cup, flip it now! There is grace, there is skill, there is speed, and there is a team spirit that will make you wish for better teammates, the style is a bit more rugby rather than beer pong chess.

So there’s the basics.

If you haven’t played them yet I dare you try and get through the bars of La Plagne without getting roped into a match of some sort, and if you’re an instigator I can tell you thanks to a recent rowdy bar crawl, that several bars in resort are quite alright with you requesting plastic cups and getting your drink on frat boy style, although they may require you to mop up after. Most notably Le Mine, Bobsleigh and of course Scotty’s who host an end of season ‘King Pong’ tournament, (I am petitioning for a FlipFest to occur also, more info to follow)

So whether it’s the slow and artful, balletic grace of Beer Pong or the crowd mentality of intense and franctic Flip Cup, get out there and get your drinking game on!

And report back, are you a flipper or a ponger?

I’m sure you can guess my answer.

3-2-1….!