Snow survival game “Sondo” to be held in Hirosaki again this year, with ink-filled water guns dueling
The Hirosaki Chamber of Commerce and Industry Youth Division will hold a "New Winter Sports SONDO" game tournament on February 17th and 18th.
"Sondo" is a survival game where you fight in the snow using water guns and water balloons filled with colored ink. The name comes from the initials of ``Shootsnow Operation New Daruma Otoshi,'' and in the Tsugaru dialect, it means ``messy.''
In a five-person team competition, the team that drops the Daruma doll in the opponent's territory wins. Contestants wear protective clothing called SONDO suits, and if the paper sheets pasted on their chests and backs are colored, they will basically be kicked out. The field is 10 meters wide and 36 meters long, and has walls made of wooden boxes.
This is the second time the event has been held following last year. This year, in addition to preparing new, more powerful weapons, the previous ``SONDO suit'' has been redesigned and made more waterproof, as the color was stained.
On the 17th, there will be a ``Junior Division'' for students from 4th grade of elementary school to 3rd year of junior high school, and individual participation is also possible. In that case, the teams will be random. On the 18th, there will be a ``Family Division'' in which children from 4th grade to 3rd grade of junior high school and their guardians up to 60 years old can also participate. Up to 12 teams can participate in the junior division and 8 teams can participate in the family division.
Kanji Maeda of the Hirosaki Chamber of Commerce and Industry's Youth Division said, ``This winter sport was started with the aim of revitalizing the region.Last year, we had a snowstorm, but it was an event that everyone who participated could enjoy. "I want to make this an event that can be held nationally," he says enthusiastically.
The event time is from 9:30 to 15:00. Participation fee is 500 yen per person in the junior division and 3,000 yen per team in the family division. Applications for participation will be accepted via Google Form. Applications are open until January 13th.
