August 25, 2005
Hockey In The Desert
A couple of soldiers from the 3rd Infantry Division serving in Iraq have taken up a pastime not common in the desert -- roller hockey:
On the other side of the goal, Specialist Eric Armstrong let out a belly laugh as he weaved around other players, an orange rubber ball on the tip of his stick. He shot and scored. Then the players promptly lost the ball in the darkness.
"While still in Kuwait, I joked that we'd be playing hockey here in a few months, but I was totally kidding," said Specialist Armstrong, 20, who is from Appleton, Wis., and has played hockey since he was 10. "Now it's weird to play this here, because Iraqis have probably never even seen hockey, or ice, for that matter.
"But after awhile, I couldn't watch another movie, couldn't play another video game," he said. "I needed hockey."
The troops started playing after a sporting goods store from Armstrong's native Wisconsin donated 13 sticks and 16 pairs of skates. They only have one net, and that was fashioned out of tent poles.
Click here for a slideshow.
Anybody out there know how we can get these guys some more equipment? I'd be up for raising some cash to buy a pair of nets, and ship these guys some more sticks. Who's with me?
POSTSCRIPT: Big props go to Juliet Macur, the New York Times reporter who did the story.
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12:27 PM