I am looking for a game.  I don't know what it is called.

It is two ropes about 25 feet long that have handles at each end.  Two
players, one at each end of the rope.   Both rope are strung through a
hole in the center of a "ball".  The ball is about 8 inches long, 4
inches round.  sort of like a football, but made of hard plastic.

The players hold the rope so it is slightly taught.  Player one starts
with the "ball" close to them and both handles (end of the rope)
together.  They sharply pull the handles apart.  The ropes seperate
force the ball down the line.

Then the first player puts their handles back together adn the second
play gets a turn.  Tehy pull their handles apart sending the ball back
to the first play.  This continues.  It usually gets faster and faster
uncil someone misses a beat and doesn't get the ball all the way to
the other player.

The ball moves really fast.  Faster than a baseball pitch.  The
handles protect the hands, or else the ball would break some fingers.

I used one of these as a kid about 30 years ago in gym class.  I also
found one in the discount bin at Target a couple of years ago, but
can't find it there anymore.

I want to know what the name of this is and where I can buy one some
for an upcoing cub scout campout.

I have a visio diagram that I can send you if that helps.

Hello.

It's called "Zoom Ball" or "Zoomball."

See these photos of people playing it:
http://www.pbase.com/osocarras/zoomball

Various commercial versions:

"Zoom Ball"
http://www.tpesonline.com/product.phtml?product_id=50666

"Ultra Zoom Ball"
http://www.funagain.com/control/product/~product_id=013651

"Zoomball Ultra Mini Keychain" & "Small Zoomball"
http://www.pfot.com/ShowProducts.php?interest=Bilateral+Coordination&startrow=20


The Cub Scouts can make their own version with plastic soda bottles. 
Here are instructions:
http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/preview.cgi?LPid=10037
or
http://www.kare11.com/recipes/recipe-detail.asp?recipe_id=2900

-------
search strategy:
"ropes apart" game
"apart the ropes" game
"zoomball"
"zoom ball"

Have fun!

Hello, I have only been at my job of a therapy asst. for about a year
now. We had a Zoom Ball that was amazing and was used more then a few
times a day. It recently broke, and I was unable to fix it. SO I
tossed it thinking that I would just go over to a local target store
and buy another one. I didnt realize that it would be so hard to find
another one. And still my search continues. I purchased one about a
month ago that has a soft cloth ball in replace of the once hard
plastic one. None of the therapists I work with will use this one
because with our kids at The Children's Hospital its sort of hard fro
them to have enough strength to move this sotf cloth one to the other
person because it does not move as fast or easily as the hard plactic
one did. Does anyone know where I could find just the plain original
old school zoom ball? Do they make them anywhere?!?!