Portable Washer Pit Tailgate Game

My friends and I are big-time tailgaters and we go to plenty of college football games in Texas. Every year we add more equipment and last year, we wanted some tailgate games. Unfortunately, we found most of the tailgate games at our local stores were plastic and didn't hold up to being packed up and stepped on throughout the football season. My Pops said it would be easy to make a long-lasting, portable washer pit on the cheap. I admit, he was right.

We made a few of these and thought I would share. Materials were about $30 and took about 6 hours to complete.

Lumber:

• (1) 1/2", 2'x4' plywood
• (2) 2"x2"x 8' board
• (2) 1/2"x2"x8' board

Hardware:

• (8) 3" deck screws
• (8) 1" screws
• (20) 1" finishing nails

Other Stuff:

• (1) bottle wood glue
• (1) 2'x2'x1/4" carpet pad
• (1) 2'4"x2'4" outdoor carpet / artificial grass
• (2) cabinet door handles

Tools:

• Box Cutter
• Hammer
• Jig Saw
• Hack Saw
• Tape Measure
• Power Drill w/Screwdriver Bits (or a regular screwdriver and ton of elbow grease)
• Sandpaper Sheet
• Pencil

2' x 4' Plywood:

• Cut in half for (2) 2' x 2' boards
• This will be the main surface

2" x 2" x 8' Board Support Frame:

• Cut (2) 21" long
• Cut (2) 24" long
• These will be used to make the support frame under the surface boards

1" x 2" x 8' Trim Board:

• 2 boards 24' long
• 2 boards 25 3/8 long

• These will be the finishing trim on the outer edges of the surface

Carpet Pad:

• Cut (2) 2' x 2' squares
• Goes under the carpet to dampen the bounce when you throw the washers

Artificial Grass / Carpet:

• Cut (2) 2' 2" x 2' 2" squares
• This is the top surface

Take one 2'x2' plywood board and find/mark the center. Use the 3" PVC pipe to draw a circle around the center mark. Cut or drill the 3" hole in the middle of the board. Jig saw works best.

Repeat on second board.

Let's build out the frame. First, line up the frame boards flush with the 2'x2' surface boards. Screw in a 3" screw into the ends of the frame boards (one in each corner). This will secure the frame together and it's ready to be attached to the surface.

Repeat for second frame.

Now it's time to attach the support frame to the 2' x 2' surface/plywood boards. Use wood glue on the bottom edge of the 2' x 2' support frame and attach to the surface/plywood. Make sure the frame is flush with the surface board then nail four 1" finishing nails to secure the plywood to the frame.

Repeat for second surface/frame.

Find the center of the carpet pad, mark it, and use the 3" pipe to draw a circle and cut it out.

Use plenty of wood glue to attach the carpet pad to the plywood surface. Add some weight and give it a few minutes to attach properly.

Repeat for second board.

Take the artificial grass/carpet, find and mark the center, and with a knife or box cutter. Cut your circle like cutting pizza slices. Do not cut in a circular fashion.

Cut 2"x2" squares out of the corner of the artificial grass/carpet. Apply glue to the bottom of the carpet and attach to the surface. The edges should drape over the plywood surface but go ahead and fold the flaps down to secure to the side of the plywood and support frame.

Repeat for second board.

Use glue to attach the trim to the side of the surface boards, then attach with 1" screws to the frame itself. Make sure it's flush with the top so that the support frames are the only thing that touch the floor.

Repeat for second board.

Push the 3" pipe through the hole until it stops on the floor. Mark the pipe just below the carpet line.

Now, remove the pipe and cut it (with a hack saw) at the mark you made. The edges of the pipe may be a little rough so smooth pipe edges with sandpaper as needed.

Apply a little glue to the top side of the "pizza slices" and slide the pipe through the hole.

Repeat for second board.

Attach your cabinet/door handle to the edge of one side of your board.

Repeat on second board.

Pat yourself on the back. Repeat. ALL DONE!

Finally, buy a washer set (8 washers total, 4 for each side) – there's lots of team branded ones but you can get real metal washers from your local hardware store. It ain't regulation, but we won't tell. Start playing your new tailgate game like we do in Texas!