ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, December 6, 1995 TAG: 9512060044
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-4 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
COLUMN: Community Sports
SOURCE: CHAD WILLIS
The American sports scene has for the longest time been dominated by baseball, basketball and football, but in recent years ice hockey has begun to work its way into the American sports consciousness.
Riding the sport's recent popularity, the Blacksburg Roller Hockey League has been making gains in interest and participation . The league is made up of six teams and most members are from the Blacksburg area.
Roller hockey rules are similar to those of its ice-bound cousin, with three notable exceptions. Roller hockey rules prohibit checking in the open court, although the game still has some physical play along the boards. Offsides and icing calls are also waived in roller hockey.
The rules differences between the two brands of hockey make for a fast-paced and exciting league says Blacksburg RiverDawgs general manager Mike Scanlon.
"Roller hockey is a great sport because of the amount of action that occurs," Scanlon said. "We technically don't allow checking, but you still get some pushing and shoving along the boards, and the lack of offsides and icing keeps the action moving."
The BRHL was founded in 1994 by a group of players who played the sport for fun on local school and playground hardtops, Scanlon said. Since that time, the league has seen a rise in public interest from experienced and novice players alike.
"We wanted the league to be a beginners league," Scanlon said. "Of course we have some players who have been involved with the sport for a while, but we felt it was important to keep the league focused on the beginners."
The league charges participants a $50 fee. That covers rink rental, which Scanlon estimates to be about 85 percent of the cost, and team jerseys. Team captains or volunteers call the games, not paid officials.
"We figured no matter who the officials were, people were going to complain about them," Scanlon said. "So we decided we might as well save some money and call the games ourselves."
Scanlon said in addition to the participation fee, players must buy in-line skates, helmet and gloves, which are required by the league for player safety.
"A helmet is required in our league and even if the gloves weren't, I would highly, highly recommend using them," Scanlon said.
The BRHL league plays its games at a rink located in the back of Christiansburg's Play-It-Again Sports store. Scanlon said the rink may be a little smaller than the ideal roller hockey size, but it is suitable.
"The owner of the store has done a really nice job with the space he had available," Scanlon said. "He's got a nice floor laid down and he put up the boards and the glass himself. It's a nice rink."
The BRHL competes against the Roanoke Valley Roller Hockey League during the season. The BRHL has dominated play against the teams from Roanoke because, according to Scanlon, the BRHL has a draft to spread the talent to all six teams.
"The Roanoke league has a couple of good teams, including the Undertakers, which is made up of people from the Roanoke Express organization, but they also have some really bad teams," Scanlon said. "We feel that by having a draft, we keep our league a beginner league and we have people on every team that can play."
If you have an idea for a story or a note about recreational sports, call Chad Willis at 381-1672 or at 1-800-346-1234, ext. 672. Faxes may be sent to 381-1656.
LENGTH: Medium: 68 linesby CNB