- This article is about the drinking practice. Shotgunning can also mean shooting with a shotgun.
Shotgunning is a means of consuming a canned beverage, especially beer, very
quickly by a particular technique involving punching a hole in the side of the can near the bottom. It is usually practiced as a
form of drinking game and is especially popular among US college
students.
Procedure
To shotgun a beverage one punches a small hole in the side of the can near the bottom before the tab is pulled; this is
usually done using a key or other sharp instrument. The drinker then places this hole to his or her lips, tilts the can
right-side-up, and pulls the tab in the usual manner. The combined effects of gravity and the pressure change that follow when
the tab is pulled cause the beverage to be forced out of the can, and into the drinker's mouth, very rapidly. Unless one is
skilled in the technique it is easy to become soaked as the drink rushes out of the can. Depending on the beverage and the way
the technique is performed, a beverage of twelve US fluid ounces can be
consumed in well under a minute. Accomplished shotgunners can consume this amount in several seconds. The method of shotgunning a
beer is demonstrated by John Cusack and Daphne Zuniga in the 1985 film The Sure Thing.
Scientific explanation
It can readily be seen that when one pours liquid from an open vessel such as a
glass or mug it emerges in a steady stream, whereas when one pours a liquid from can or bottle it 'chugs' from the container
somewhat more slowly.
The reason for this is that as a liquid leaves a container the space it once occupied must immediately be filled by the
surrounding air. This is because otherwise a vacuum
would result. Because "nature abhors a vacuum", as a liquid leaves a container atmospheric pressure forces air into the vessel to take its place. This process is usually
unnoticeable in the case of a glass or mug because the surrounding air has no difficulty gaining access to the vessel. However
this changes in the case of a container with a single, narrow opening such as a bottle or can.
When a liquid is poured out of such a container quickly, surrounding air has no easy way to gain access and take its place.
For this reason the stream leaving a can or bottle is regularly interrupted to allow air to enter, resulting in the familiar
'chug-chug' sound.
Shotgunning works by creating a second hole in a can so that air can enter one hole (the can's original opening) while the
beverage can be poured, in a rapid, uninterrupted stream, through the remaining hole (cut in the side of the can). Tilting the
can ensures that gravity is also put to maximum effect.
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