Some of my favorite weekends and least regrettable hangovers are courtesy of long nights spent playing traveling drinking games. Forget laid back games involving ping pong balls or a deck of cards - I’m talking about mobile, interactive drinking games that get you drunk quick and keep you there all night.

Plus you’ll have some fantastic photos of your sloppy buddies in novelty costumes…for better or worse.

My two favorites are Le Tour De Franzia and Liquid Golf. Here the rules:

If you look online, the Tour has a few variations. Here’s how we do it where I come from:

1. Assemble two or three teams of 10-12 people each. Prior to the event, give each team a color or tell everyone to come in cycling/fitness clothes. Helmets are encouraged (and may very well be necessary by the end of the night).
2. When the whistle blows, each team starts drinking a box of the best boxed wine around: Franzia. You can keep things tame, or get rid of the box for increased excitement. “Slapping the bag,” is half the fun of drinking boxed wine. Heaven knows it doesn’t taste very good.
3. Now in some variations of the game, the first team to finish the box wins…but what’s the fun in that? It’s a Tour right? When I’ve played, the first team to finish can run/skip/leapfrog/crab walk/etc. to another house to drink another box. If you don’t have another person willing or able to host, each team can travel around the block and come back inside. The traveling is the best part (it provides endless opportunities for hilarious photos) so don’t leave this part out!

4.The team who finishes the second box first earns the yellow jersey…err wins. You can make the event more official and fun by incorporating a Jock Jams CD, some fun fake medals (think Office Olympics), and posters of Lance Armstrong.

Liquid Golf is also tons of fun. Here’s the breakdown:

1. Liquid Golf involves a bit of set-up. You’ll need a headcount of who’s playing, people to host/bars to go to, and you’ll need to make a score sheet. You can find a few of those online. You’ll also need a little bit of knowledge in golf scoring. Encourage everyone attending to dress in golf apparel. The end results of this are very funny as some people show up looking like extras from The Legend of Bagger Vance, while others wear actual Nike Golf polos. Either way, hilarity ensues. (Editor’s Note: FACEBOOK PIC!!)
2. Once you know who’s playing, pair people up. I like to keep the teams co-ed, or at least combine strong drinkers with weak ones.
3. The game works like this: Each pair is required to take down the drink/s listed at each house or bar. The drinking responsibility doesn’t have to be even, meaning one person can drink the entire hole if they so choose, but they probably wouldn’t be able to keep up the pace for long. If the drink/drinks are consumed within the pre-approved time-limit, the team makes par. The team that finishes first gets to subtract two points. The team that finishes last or any team that doesn’t consume their drinks in the pre-approved time-limit has to add two points to the par.
4. When the time limit is up, teams travel to the next house or bar for a new hole. Game play continues until all the holes are completed (a true rarity) or if they’re the last team to throw-up (much more likely).

Here are our holes from the last time we played: Four beers, two vodka lemonades, a bottle of champagne, three Tequila shots, two screwdrivers and two vodka gimlets. No, this is not 18 holes. Yes, that is still ok; even the strongest teams were brought down after the tequila shots. I don’t even think we made it to the house serving gimlets. 18 holes would have killed someone.

Be advised that neither of these games is for the faint of heart, literally and figuratively. If you’re hosting, encourage challenge by choice, and serve water and a few snacks. If you’re concerned about safety, you can also make the teams larger, as the events are still fun and everyone consumes less booze. It’s also a good idea to have a Sober Referee. Not only does he or she keep things fair, but they can help people navigating streets and let people know when it’s time to call it a night.

Anyone else have any awesome drinking games? I’ve heard of a great one called Beer-A-Thon but can’t find the rules? Any idea ladies?

[Photo: sizzup.com]