Dec 9, 2006
…………..like hockey!! Since moving to Denver a year and a half ago, I've been swept up in the passion that Colorado has with their sports. In the past, football has always been about anticipating the comfort on Thanksgiving afternoon, and Monday nights if Dallas played, along with that one Sunday at the end of January that we patiently wait for.....and not just for the commercials!! Otherwise, the all American sports games have been brushed to the back burner waiting for the excitement of the playoff games. But, the enthusiasm of Denver is contagious. For the first time in my adult life, I purchased the very basic, basic cable plan so I wouldn't miss a Broncos game, or Monday nights, or Sunday afternoons, or Saturday Nebraska college games. I've been sucked into this fun filled pastime wholeheartedly, however, there is one sport that at just the mere thought of it, makes my pulse race……..
Last night we drove the highway down to Colorado Springs to watch the University of Anchorage Alaska and the University of Colorado play hockey. We sat in the 5th row up from the goal and with the first slam on the boards, the adrenaline kicked in. In one second, all rational emotions were gone, in one moment my childhood memories flooded into my head. Memories of float planes, now with their skiis on the bottom, surrounding the perimeter of the lake as we shoveled the snow to the edges to clear the biggest rink a kid ever laid eyes on. We would walk the quarter mile early Saturday mornings with our father's shovels and our skates tied together and hanging off of our shoulders, bundled up for hours of freedom. The girls would be skating on one side swirling to their Miss America theme playing in their heads watching the boys chase that little black circle of rubber from one homemade snow goal to the other. We skated until our toes were numb, our fingers were blue, and our noses were red until the sun set across the inlet behind Sleeping Lady and our parents drove up in their trucks and beckoned us home with the promise of cups of hot chocolate with mini marshmallows from the Swiss Miss lady.
UAA dominated the first period scoring 4-1 and after realizing that we were the only ones in a sea of 2000 people whooping it up for the Seawolves, I knew this was going to be a GREAT game!!!! J Amidst generations of Tigers sporting yellow and gold coats, jerseys, tiger ears, painted tiger faces my first thought was that we should have worn the Alaskan green and gold, because the team needed to know that we were there in consuming support! With the help of the two vodka 7's, my normal self-restraint was cast aside!! The man seated next to me moved across the aisle and gave me back glances with a sneer every time Colorado had a little win. Suddenly I felt like Mrs. Larkey.
Mrs. Larkey was a married mother of six that lived next to the elementary school. It wasn't a wealthy area compared to the neighborhood down the street, yet it was rich in spirit. She had a son named Robby. Robby was our star. Our school had two rinks, one with boards, one without, available 24/7, he lived on that ice, and it showed. No one ever talked about Mr. Larkey, we didn't know who he was or where he was, but everyone talked about Mrs. Larkey because she was the loudest cheerleader in the crowd. Cool and tough. She had a smile that would light up a room, and when she perceived any injustice on penalty calls…….oh boy, watch out!!!! I don't remember how many games from 5th grade on that I saw her get into highly intense verbal altercations in the stands.....and winning ever single one of them! She was passionate about the game, and passionate about our team. Always.
The game intensified. By the middle of the second period UAA started losing their legs and Colorado was spending way too much time within reaching distance of our goalie. The third period began with the Tigers scoring their second goal. You would have thought by the insanity of the crowd that the Broncos had won the Super Bowl. Within minutes, they scored their third, then their fourth and then their fifth. The Tiger fans were ballistic. The man in front of me turned around and gave me a high five saying that he had listened to us all night and finally he could rub it in. However, God truly does exist, and with the scoring of their 5th goal, He decided that since the Tigers had kicked the puck in with their skates, it was invalid. Hence the third period ended in a tie and the overtime began. Everyone in the arena was standing, screaming, until the Seawolves took over the ice and scored the winning goal. It was dead silent. Except for the handful of Alaskans that were there dancing around in circles, cheering and knowing that for us, hockey isn't just a game…….it's engrained in our soul like baseball and football are to the lower 48'ers. It's how our winter weekends under the northern lights were spent on the lake beneath the stars. It's home. It's Mrs. Larkey.
Current mood:
happy
happyThere is No Other Game.........
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| Sleeping Lady with Anchorage in the foreground. |
UAA dominated the first period scoring 4-1 and after realizing that we were the only ones in a sea of 2000 people whooping it up for the Seawolves, I knew this was going to be a GREAT game!!!! J Amidst generations of Tigers sporting yellow and gold coats, jerseys, tiger ears, painted tiger faces my first thought was that we should have worn the Alaskan green and gold, because the team needed to know that we were there in consuming support! With the help of the two vodka 7's, my normal self-restraint was cast aside!! The man seated next to me moved across the aisle and gave me back glances with a sneer every time Colorado had a little win. Suddenly I felt like Mrs. Larkey.
Mrs. Larkey was a married mother of six that lived next to the elementary school. It wasn't a wealthy area compared to the neighborhood down the street, yet it was rich in spirit. She had a son named Robby. Robby was our star. Our school had two rinks, one with boards, one without, available 24/7, he lived on that ice, and it showed. No one ever talked about Mr. Larkey, we didn't know who he was or where he was, but everyone talked about Mrs. Larkey because she was the loudest cheerleader in the crowd. Cool and tough. She had a smile that would light up a room, and when she perceived any injustice on penalty calls…….oh boy, watch out!!!! I don't remember how many games from 5th grade on that I saw her get into highly intense verbal altercations in the stands.....and winning ever single one of them! She was passionate about the game, and passionate about our team. Always.
The game intensified. By the middle of the second period UAA started losing their legs and Colorado was spending way too much time within reaching distance of our goalie. The third period began with the Tigers scoring their second goal. You would have thought by the insanity of the crowd that the Broncos had won the Super Bowl. Within minutes, they scored their third, then their fourth and then their fifth. The Tiger fans were ballistic. The man in front of me turned around and gave me a high five saying that he had listened to us all night and finally he could rub it in. However, God truly does exist, and with the scoring of their 5th goal, He decided that since the Tigers had kicked the puck in with their skates, it was invalid. Hence the third period ended in a tie and the overtime began. Everyone in the arena was standing, screaming, until the Seawolves took over the ice and scored the winning goal. It was dead silent. Except for the handful of Alaskans that were there dancing around in circles, cheering and knowing that for us, hockey isn't just a game…….it's engrained in our soul like baseball and football are to the lower 48'ers. It's how our winter weekends under the northern lights were spent on the lake beneath the stars. It's home. It's Mrs. Larkey.
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| Anchorage, Alaska at sunset. |
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