Though the South Dakota weather has been much kinder this winter, the cold dark days can still be long and somewhat dull. Luckily, folks in Smalltown U.S.A have gotten creative over time and there are now many activities available to adults in the Britton area and beyond to occupy oneself during winter.
One of those local activities that has risen in popularity in recent years is the Britton Cornhole Club, known as the B-Town Baggers. A 2023 poll found that cornhole was the most popular sport actually played by Americans in the last few years. Locally, a group of enthusiastic baggers decided to capitalize on the trend.
In 2021, a few friends were looking for adult activities after the bowling alley in Britton closed. The group comprised of Jason Devine, Matt Kinsky, Steve Young, Ryan Thibert, and Aaron Micko enjoyed cornhole and began playing around with the idea of starting a club. “It started off as a ‘wouldn’t it be cool….’ conversation which turned into a ‘what is stopping us?’ conversation,” said Micko.
The friends decided to make it happen. “We started off with six sets of boards and some homemade boards with initial seed money from Horton and Troy Dahme Trucking,” explained Micko. “Our original score keepers were made from wood bought from Scott’s Lumber.”
“We have since upgraded our boards, scoremates and drinkmates and actually have tablets to electronically score real time games using the Scoreholio app,” noted Micko.
The B-Town Baggers now host a weekly tournament at the Britton Event Center every Tuesday at 7 p.m. For $5, anyone 16 and over of any skill level can come toss bags. You don’t have to bring a board, a partner or even your own bags.
The founders are pleased that the club has grown over the last few years and has started to attract throwers from afar. “We never expected people to drive close to one hour to throw,” emphasized Micko. “I would say that people enjoy it because there are various levels of talent from beginners to competitive throwers plus it gives people another form of entertainment in the winter.”
Besides their Tuesday throws, the Baggers sponsor various special events throughout the year, including their big tournament during Harvest Days in August. They have also helped with fundraisers for Relay for Life and last year started a Matt Kinsky tournament in honor of Kinsky.
One of the things that keeps the club sustainable and homegrown is the support and assistance from locals, whether they have helped with some aspect of the club or sponsor equipment. “Our logo was drawn by local talent, Jason Holman who is a sponsor of the club via Heads Up Taxidermy,” said Micko. “Our board graphics were done by HH Design and sealed by Melissa Stark at Off the Wall Signs, and many local businesses contribute sponsorships in exchange for advertisements on the boards, scoremates and drinkmates.”
