The game of gorodki involves a complex coordination of muscle action, which, in turn, produces a beneficial effect on all other body functions.

To play gorodki, all participants were divided into two groups, roughly equal in strength. Each group was headed by the most experienced and strong player, who was the first to hit a solid figure — not only to break it up but rather to knock as many pins out of the gorod area as possible. Ivan Petrovich was usually the head of his group and it should be noted that despite him always throwing the bat with his left hand, he did an excellent job, better than others, and was openly proud of it.

Everyone in the country had a lot of free time, and the game of gorodki could start at any hour of the day, but along with this, so to speak, random and spontaneous process, Ivan Petrovich also organized whole tournaments for summer residents, which regularly continued throughout the summer season. There were always two competing groups — one consisting of the older generation, and the other — of the younger one. Ivan Petrovich always headed the senior group, while Volya (Ivan Pavlov’s eldest son), also an excellent player, was the leader of the junior group. The matches usually took place in the evening, they were lively and noisy, with the ringing voice of Ivan Petrovich heard on top of it all. Many curious people gathered to watch the game. The results for the day were recorded in a journal, and at the end of the season, the winners of the entire tournament were announced. I have been to the final meetings of the gorodki players and seen how the winners were celebrated, but I remember seeing somewhere a photograph of the ‘apotheosis’ of the tournament: Ivan Petrovich sitting in the middle, surrounded by a group of players with their gorodki bats raised, forming something resembling a tent.