This week, the Glass Eye will take a look at local hockey. Yes, there IS hockey in Clearfield County, although not many know about it. Most Saturdays, a small group of skaters gather at the Bigler YMCA (aka ‘Biggie’) and play for 2-3 hours. However, late December brings a special event, the Biggie Christmas Invitational, a tournament which draws a large number of skaters to the ‘Y’ for almost an entire day. Teams are formed, food is eaten, and a good time is had by all. The accompanying video shows highlights from this tournament, as well as interviews with prominent ‘Biggie’ stars – Jon McCaulley, generally considered the best player in the area, and goalie Darrin Swanson, who organizes the games and manages the group’s email list. I’ve played at the ‘Y’ for the last 11 months but this was my first experience with the Christmas tournament, and it was alot of fun.
A little bit about hockey at Biggie: The ‘rink’ is far from ideal, as there are many odd bounces (also called ‘Biggie bounces’) off the walls, and the size (a basketball court) is far smaller than a regular hockey rink – but the sport-court surface is the best one in the area for skating. Russ Krise, manager of the Bigler ‘Y’, has been very supportive of roller hockey and has worked the group into the gym schedule whenever possible. The game is played with a roller hockey puck, which is a piece of plastic molded in a typical puck shape but with small rounded studs on top and bottom to allow it to flow across the court easier. Players range in age from 16 to early 40’s, and on any given week 8 to 20 skaters show up. Most are from the local area, but skaters come from Dubois, Altoona, and State College to participate as well. Beginners are welcomed – Biggie is a great place to learn the game once you’ve mastered basic rollerblading skills.
If you have any interest in hockey and would like to learn how to play, or if you already play but didn’t realize there was a local gathering of players, I strongly encourage you to contact Darrin at swanny69@verizon.net. Hope to see you at Biggie soon!
Dave Glass can be reached at buggyracer@verizon.net.