Kicking Back

Kickball is often marked by a spirit of irreverence that's quite refreshing in today's world of hypercompetitive sports.

Teams bear names like the Kick Asphalts, Midlife Crisis, Orange Jews and Thick Femurs. Noxon writes about a team whose players even dressed up as nuns at the recent WAKA (World Adult Kickball Association) Founder's Cup in Miami.

Much of the fun of is in the apres-kickball socializing. Noxon met his wife playing kickball, and subsequently proposed to her on the kickball diamond; the Brooklyn Kickball League even hosts a popular annual dance, dubbed The Kick Ball.

Dailey says that in 2005, 200 people went to the ball. This year he expects 300 to 400 attendees for the Sept. 16 event.

Noxon says that kickballers enjoy themselves "in a way that's less pretentious than most people in their twenties. Once you've made a total fool of yourself on the kickball field, you can't keep up that 'cool guy' image."

A League of Your Own

Those interested in joining a kickball team can check out WAKA's site. However, Murry notes that WAKA can be (relatively) expensive -- annual dues are around $60 a player.

Independent leagues like those in Brooklyn and Baton Rouge are much cheaper. It costs about $10 a player per season in Baton Rouge, and teams in Brooklyn pay about $30 a team per week. (Dues cover field rental and referees.)

For independent and WAKA leagues in your area, check out Kickball 365.

Rules vary throughout the coed leagues.

Some have specifications about the number of women on a team. And although team sizes vary throughout the leagues, the standard number of players is 10.

Single players are usually welcome -- Dailey invites New Yorkers to come down to McCarren Park any Sunday night, April through October, and join in.

Seasons do vary by region: Most leagues have at least two rounds of play each year, culminating in a final match between the teams that have won the most games.

	Pitcher Scott Murry

Also gaining in popularity are one-day kickball tournaments.

Baton Rouge recently held one just for service-industry workers. And area restaurants pulled together teams that played in an all-day elemination match, sponsored by Budweiser.

And clearly, kickball is here to stay.

Murry's original vision was a group of people who played pick-up games -- but the Baton Rouge league doubled in size in less than a year.

"Initially, I planned to have two seasons per year, but everyone got so upset about having a break that we're going to be running it year-round," he explains.

And now, Murry has problems finding referees for games, because "everyone wants to play," he explains.

Batter up!

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