While I can fully appreciate the
writeups above, I do feel that there is something most important to add:
Kickball: It's not just for kids anymore!
Yesterday, I performed my first
duties as the official
captain of a kickball
team, organising my group for a quick,
dusk-shortened
scrimmage with another. The teams which participated were just two of the thirteen that exist in
Northern Virginia which, alone, has
three divisions.
At this point, I'm sure you're probably
shaking your head, thinking, "Kickball
divisions?".
Let me assure you that it's
true.
It's all true.
Since its inception in
1998, the
World Adult Kickball Association, or
WAKA, has continued to
grow at an astounding pace, with 13 divisions currently existing in the
DC/
Virginia/
Maryland area alone, where it originated. Beyond the beltway, it had expanded to three divisions in
California and one in
Ohio. In 2003, the growth has been explosive, however. Today, there are now divisions in the process of forming, all across the
United States, in cities such as "
Atlanta,
Denver,
Sacramento,
San Francisco,
Oakland,
L.A.,
Orange County,
San Diego,
Portland,
Tampa,
Miami,
Orlando,
Chicago,
NYC,
Boston, and others."
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"Everybody Loves Kickball
(TM)" is the WAKA motto, and it is proving to ring true. This is my second year playing; after having enjoyed it so much last season, I ended up with my own team!
Some background:
- Adult league kickball pretty much follows most of the same rules you played as kids -- in fact, WAKA even has its own official rulebook, to give some semblance of order to the many permutations listed in earlier writeups. In addition, there are referees (usually members of another team) to make sure everything is played correctly.
- Games are five innings long.
- WAKA games use an official, red Baden 10-inch playground ball. It's not as easy to kick as you might recall it being, either.
- WAKA bills itself as "A social-athletic organization". Yes indeed, the emphasis is on social, because:
There is a World Championship of Kickball, where competing teams vie for the coveted Founder's Cup.
In the end, although a lot of people might view it with some
skepticism, virtually all who play
adult league kickball end up enjoying it.
You probably would too!
WAKA's
website can be found at:
http://www.worldkickball.com/
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http://www.worldkickball.com/home.html