TROMPO GAME

A Trompo or Whipping Top is a toy popular in Latin America

much like a top. Its name can vary between countries.

In Spain it is known as "peonza" or "trompo". Trompos

 have a pear-shaped body and are usually made of wood,

although new resins and strong plastic materials have

also been used.

The trompo seen in this picture is exactly like a top which

 has been made in Sasebo, Japan for hundreds of years.

 It is believed that the tops used in Mexico were brought

over from Japan. In Japan the name for a top is called

 a Koma. Most cities in Japan have a particular design

for their koma.

A trompo has a button-shaped tip on top, usually

bigger than the tip on which trompo spins, and generally

 made of the same material as the rest of the body. This

tip exists so that the trompo can spin on the metal-made

tip when thrown.

Playing with a trompo consists of throwing the "trompo" and

 having it spin on the floor. Because of its shape, a trompo

spins on its axis and swirls around its conic tip which is

 usually made of iron or steel. A trompo uses a string wrapped

 around it to get the necessary spin needed. The player

 must roll the cord around the trompo from the metallic tip up.

 The user must then tie the string in a knot on the button-

shaped tip before releasing it. When rolling the cord around

the trompo it must be done so that the cord is tightly attached

 to it. The technique for throwing a trompo varies. One end of

 the cord must be rolled around the player's fingers and with the same hand the trompo must be held with the metallic tip facing upwards.

Championships are held in different Latin American countries,

 especially in Chile, Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Cuba and Nicaragua

 where it is very popular among children of the middle and

lower classes.

In Puerto Rico, one of the ways trompos are played is similar

to playing marbles, with trompos being within a circle drawn

 on sand, the object being to knock them out of the circle,

this can be played for keeps or otherwise. Failure to spin

 or spin within the circle causes your trompo to be added

to it and another person has a turn to spin. Frequently,

trompos in Puerto Rico and Chile are modified to have a

sharper point, where in a game the object can be to split the

 other players trompo.