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Step 1
Beat the classic plate toss carnival game, where your tossed dime falling in the center of a plate can win you a fancy prize. Plates are slick and often made more so with petroleum jelly or vegetable oil, so the trick to winning is to slow down the trajectory of the dime to ensure that it lands and stops on the plate. The first and easiest tactic for winning the plate toss is to toss the coin high with a sharp angle and absolutely no spin so that it falls flat onto the plate. The other more difficult trick is to practice bouncing the dime, as you do when you skip rocks, so that it first hits the table before jumping into the plate.
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Step 2
Burst a balloon and win a trinket in balloon dart throw carnival games. The operator has a couple of tricks up his sleeve in this game, as the darts are usually dull, the balloons under-inflated and difficult to pop and the best prizes placed on the outside of the board where players are less likely to aim. You have three tries, so pick one balloon for all three aims, choosing a balloon on the outer edge to win the best possible prize. Aim for the lower portion of the balloon where the rubber is weakest and more easy to pop.
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Step 3
Climb the ladder and ring the bell, a trick the operator does swiftly and easily. It may seem simple enough to climb a rope ladder and beat the game, however the ladder usually pivots around on a pulley system so that you fall off in mid-climb. Watch the operator climb and you will see that he pushes his feet against the ropes between the rungs, and does not climb directly on the rungs themselves, pulling himself up with his arms.
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Step 4
Claim to be born in October, whether it's true or not, when trying to beat "Guess Your Birth Month" games. The operator will write down his guess on a piece of paper and stick it in his pocket, saying that he can guess your birth month within two months. His trick is that he writes either "June," "July" or "January," in horrible handwriting so that he can claim it to be either June, July or January. October is the only month that won't work for the game operator.
Comments
justthisonce said
on 11/8/2009 Geez magimaker, that kinda sounds like cheating not winning.
Yeah, I don't know of places you can get away with sleazy old-fashioned carny tricks, myself. With the exception of the Guesser, games are either really hard, or else you pretty much pay your way up the prize size. Any decent sized carnival can't afford to run any sort of cheat because it could cost them the fair...
magimaker said
on 2/1/2009 Actually, as an ex-carny myself, I can tell you the ultimate way of winning the coin toss. Usually the operators never have to spray down the glass with substances to make it more slippery as it's just never really needed. The glass is very slick already and is usually bumpy making the landings very erratic. Adding a substance to it just is never needed. So here is the trick, and it's best to use an accomplice. On most of these games there will be a sign posted that says "One coin throw at a time" or something like this. The reason is two fold, one is because if you throw a handful of dimes or quarters, they can't tell who won if there are other players. The other reason is for the trick I'm about to tell you. Have your co-conspirator go to the game operator at one of the game. Have them stand at the far end and make the operator come to him/her. Make sure they give the operator a large
itsme7811 said
on 1/20/2009 I'm really sorry that you have such a poor opinion of carnivals. The modern carnival cannot get away with tricks any more. The games are subject to inspection in almost every state to assure the public that the games can be won. Some are harder than others. Remember, the larger the prize = the harder the game! And have fun!