Jam On!!
I've never really been the organized sports type. For the most part I've always found the idea of spending time watching grown men chase little balls around to be... incredibly boring. To say the least. On very rare occasions I've gotten caught up in a sporting event, and they are usually small scale, local teams, or teams of friends. Maybe it's the scale of organized sports that turns me off... I dunno.
Last night though... last night Kid Flash took me to something new: Roller Derby. Now HERE'S a port I can get behind. Small teams of local girls, obviously playing for the love of sport, not money, in a fast paced and exciting game that is not burdened down with esoteric rules. (No lengthy discussions of "in-field flies here.)
Last night was the Queens of Pain vs. the Bronx Gridlock. I'll grant that the first few "jams" (which is what they call the plays) I was completely lost. I was still trying to get a handle on the rules, how to follow the action, who to pay most attention to, things like that. Kid Flash was very handy at helping me understand, and very patiently explained it to me several times. He kept me up on strategy and gave me the histories of every player, pointing out their playing styles, what they are best at, where they are weak, (he's really into it and has been at every bout this season). About half-time I had gotten a pretty good hold on what was going on, and how the game was played. It didn't take long for me to have chosen a team (the Gridlock) and even had favorite players (Blissy Sadistick and Pop Rox) and was feeling the excitement of the crowd. Cheering, stamping my feet, and reacting with the crowd is something I'm really not used to being caught up in, but there I was, cheering, stamping my feet and reacting with the crowd. This game is exciting! The tongue in cheek nature of the players, with character names (my fave name is "Brigitte Bar-Ho") and in some cases costume bits like wigs, fuzzy ears, and face make-up added to the fun too. The player's ability to be deadly serious in the rink and at the same time playful and edgy made the whole thing for me before the game started, and then after things got really underway the excitement of the action and the pace of the game kept me hooked. If all sports were played like this I might actually end up watching ESPN now and then.
In a couple weeks Kid Flash's best friend will be playing and I can't wait! I wish I had discovered this earlier in the year so that I could have followed the whole season, especially since there are only two games left at this point, but there's always next year.
Last night though... last night Kid Flash took me to something new: Roller Derby. Now HERE'S a port I can get behind. Small teams of local girls, obviously playing for the love of sport, not money, in a fast paced and exciting game that is not burdened down with esoteric rules. (No lengthy discussions of "in-field flies here.)
Last night was the Queens of Pain vs. the Bronx Gridlock. I'll grant that the first few "jams" (which is what they call the plays) I was completely lost. I was still trying to get a handle on the rules, how to follow the action, who to pay most attention to, things like that. Kid Flash was very handy at helping me understand, and very patiently explained it to me several times. He kept me up on strategy and gave me the histories of every player, pointing out their playing styles, what they are best at, where they are weak, (he's really into it and has been at every bout this season). About half-time I had gotten a pretty good hold on what was going on, and how the game was played. It didn't take long for me to have chosen a team (the Gridlock) and even had favorite players (Blissy Sadistick and Pop Rox) and was feeling the excitement of the crowd. Cheering, stamping my feet, and reacting with the crowd is something I'm really not used to being caught up in, but there I was, cheering, stamping my feet and reacting with the crowd. This game is exciting! The tongue in cheek nature of the players, with character names (my fave name is "Brigitte Bar-Ho") and in some cases costume bits like wigs, fuzzy ears, and face make-up added to the fun too. The player's ability to be deadly serious in the rink and at the same time playful and edgy made the whole thing for me before the game started, and then after things got really underway the excitement of the action and the pace of the game kept me hooked. If all sports were played like this I might actually end up watching ESPN now and then.
In a couple weeks Kid Flash's best friend will be playing and I can't wait! I wish I had discovered this earlier in the year so that I could have followed the whole season, especially since there are only two games left at this point, but there's always next year.
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