Sunday, January 24, 2010

The In Crowd

Play at yesterday's National Pond Hockey Championship was sloppy and soggy. Rain made the ice soft and by early afternoon the rinks were covered with half an inch of water. Hardly ideal conditions.

Still it was fun in a twisted sort of way and definitely will be remembered by all who experienced it. There's always a sense of camaraderie among the pond hockey players since we're all dealing with the same weather variables (bitter cold or rain and everything in between). I discovered a little extra camaraderie when I showed up yesterday wearing my Surly Brewing hat.

As I made my way through the maze of players in the warming tent, a guy popped up, pressed something into my hand, and whispered conspiratorially "Keep it down, man." I gazed downward to see that I was now holding a can of Surly Furious. He then informed me that he was part of the Surly team that was playing in the tourney and was glad to see me representing with my head wear. Since no outside alcoholic beverages were permitted in the tent, I quickly stuffed it in my bag and moved on. The circle of hockey players is relatively modest and tight. The circle of hockey players who love Surly is even smaller and tighter.

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