Bug Bowl 2020 has been cancelled.
We are so sad we won’t be able to celebrate our 30th Anniversary with you in person, but glad we can contribute to the safety of our community.
Cricket spitting is a unique sport invented at Purdue in 1996 by Professor Tom Turpin.
All ages are invited to participate; no pre-registration is required before the day of the event.
Cricket spitting takes place on the Purdue Memorial Mall.
Open Qualifying rounds take place each morning and afternoon. The top 5 spitters in each category from qualifying rounds are called back to the spitting circle during the Spit-Off finals.
The four competition categories are:
- Senior men
- Senior women
- Junior women
- Junior men
The break point between senior and junior age category is 14. Ribbons are awarded for 1st through 4th place in each category.
Cricket Spitting Contest Qualifying Rounds:
10:00 am – 12:30 pm
2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Spit-off Finals:
1 pm and 5:30 pm
Cricket Spitting Rules
- The crickets are brown house crickets (Acheta domesticus), weighing between 45 and 55 milligrams on average.
- Crickets are frozen, not alive!
- Contestants must spit within 20 seconds of placing the cricket in their mouth.
- Contestants must not step outside of the red spitting circle.
- The cricket must be fully intact, and held fully in the mouth before the contestant may enter the spitting circle.
- If the contestant swallows the cricket rather than spitting it, one additional attempt may be made before disqualification.
- The cricket must remain intact, and an official will check the spat cricket for six legs, four wings, and two antennae before the spit can be counted.
- The distance is measured from the center of the edge of the spitting circle to where the cricket comes to rest, using a measuring wheel.
Yes, it’s a real sport!
The current world record Cricket Spit is 32 feet, 0.5 in (9.766 m), held by Dan Capps.
Dan performed this feat on the set of Guinness World Records: Primetime on June 26, 1998.
Click here to find out more!