Knuckle Cracking (Troy Burkhart)

General Information about Item:

Informant Data:

J.B. was born in Bethesda, Maryland in the year 2002. He is currently on the water polo team at Dartmouth College and on Phi Delta Alpha’s flag football team. He is majoring in PPE (Government modified with economics and philosophy). He and his family are all of Canadian or French Canadian descent.

Contextual Data:

Cultural Context: Sports team usually have a traditional social aspect passed down through the team. These pre-game aspects are usually superstitious in nature and are believed to help the team win. J.B. happened to pick up his superstition from his old football team which is a sport in the US which many people, players and viewers alike, create superstitions to help their team win.

Social Context: Knuckle cracking is a typical action that people will mindlessly do, but in J.B. case it serves to mock the opponent/signify they are going to break their bones (beat them in the game). Joseph got his knuckle cracking superstition from his old high school which he believes originated about thirty years ago. The schools rival did this to his high school before the coin flip and now it is a tradition that the whole football team cracks their knuckles to the rival right after the coin flip.

Item:

J.B. knuckle cracking superstition is that he must crack his knuckles before the game starts and every time before he enters the water polo game after a timeout or other stoppage (instead of a football game like in high school). He specifically cracks each knuckle one at a time starting with the right index figure and going to the pinky and then repeating it on the left hand. He believes this helps his team get the lucky bounces or calls in the game.

Associated files/pictures:

Transcript:

“I start on my right hand and crack each knuckle, minus the thumb, individually and then go to my right hand and repeat it. I believe it helps my team with bounces and getting lucky so to speak. Like instead of hitting a post, the ball will clip the post and go in for a goal.”

Informants Comments:

He hopes his high school continues this tradition and that he can get the knuckle cracking superstition to start at Dartmouth.

Collector’s Comments:

Although I do not crack my knuckles I have other hand warmups I do for hockey. I also find it hilarious that this tradition has continued for thirty years at his high school, just to mock the rival high school.

Collector’s Name:

Tags:

Dartmouth Folklore Archive