August Issue of WIRED Magazine Tells How to Win at Carnival Games.

People who want to win at carnival games can increase their chances of winning big prizes by following some simple advice - and never play for money, WIRED magazine says.

• Ask about the equipment before handing over your money. Wonder about whether the metal milk bottles are weighted? Ask to hold them so you know how heavy they are.
• Ask the operator to demonstrate the game, and then use the same equipment. You probably have a fair chance of winning a game of skill if the carny successfully wins and you stand in the same spot and use the same equipment.
  
• Ask about the rules and understand them before playing. If someone has a sign up stating 'No Stupid Questions,' move to another game.
  

'But here is a tip that you should always remember: Never play for money or prizes worth hundreds of dollars,' Gryczan says. 'Unless you are playing in a place like Nevada or Atlantic City, wagering money is a sure tipoff you have hit a gaffed carnival game that's ‘gaffed.' And don't accept a carny's invitation to cheat. '

Other games appear to be easy, but the odds are against players, he says. For instance, the Ring a Bottle game where the object is to throw a plastic ring over the neck of a soft drink bottle has odds of more than 580 to 1 against winning, according to research done by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. And a game like Roll Down where the player rolls six balls into slots on inclined board may have probabilities of more than 115,000 against winning the jumbo prize.

Skill games like Cover the Spot and Bottle Set-up offer better odds if a player practices and has some athletic skill. 'It isn't any easier to win at a carnival game of skill than it is to win at pool or bowling without practice,' Gryczan says. 'The only reliable method of winning a game of skill is to build a model and practice before hitting the midway. Then you hope that the same game is running there under rules that will favor your skill.'

There is still hope for the less ambitious who hope to win a carnival game. There are two other types of games in addition to skill: games of chance and games of entertainment. Group games and percentage games are almost always run on the up-and-up on the modern midway. A book like Carnival Secrets will help give you make an educated guess at the odds of winning games of chance, but you can usually tell the difficulty of a game by the value of its prize.

For more information on the WIRED article on carnival games, refer to the story's link at www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/magazine/16-08/howto_hero.

My mom Journalist Kemi contributed to this story.