Roller Hockey Rules
By Lauren Sauter
Sports Associate

Roller hockey, or in-line hockey, is intensely popular in Canada. They are also big fans there of the ice version, on which roller hockey is based. To this I have to say, “Canada, I am a big fan of you!” Roller hockey has similar rules to its mama, ice hockey, but only four players and a goalie play at a time, versus five players and a goalie in ice hockey. The game generally takes place on a plastic floor that is a little smaller than an ice hockey rink. It may also, however, be played on the cement floor of a hockey arena. Alternatively, it can be conducted on the street, as evinced in everybody’s favorite movie, Wayne’s World. If this portrayal is correct, roller hockey is a time for heart-to-heart conversations between platonic male friends.

It may come as a thrilling surprise to learn that Pomona, as well, is a fan of roller hockey. Sadly, the 5C league is small and grossly under-funded. Yet despite financial difficulties, roller hockey has a following among previous ice hockey players, including Canadian-born Tony Sevold ’05 and California native Bobby Gullett ’05. I spoke with these boys on Monday evening, and although I tried to be friendly, they were eager to end our brief phone conversations before I discovered the heart and soul of that which is roller hockey. Nevertheless, I feel comfortable sharing with you what I did learn.

To begin with, the colleges have four separate teams, each of about seven people. These teams play in an adult league at the California Roller Hockey Center, located in Upland. Pomona is part of the Gold League, which is the highest skill level, towering above less valuable leagues named after elements like silver, copper, and bronze. There have been three games so far this semester, and the boys have a tidy record of two wins (one by forfeit) and one tie. This is pretty good, considering that playing in the league does not imply that participants are either trained or sober.

Both Sevold and Gullett played ice hockey in high school and would have liked to play in college. Pomona, however, has no ice hockey team, due to an apparent lack of interest. Some may argue that there are enough kids from the Northeast who might like to join an ice hockey team, but it does not look like ice hockey will be a top athletic priority in the near future. Roller hockey presents a less expensive and more accessible alternative, one in which it is easier to score, and the pucks are much lighter than ice hockey. So our friends Gullett and Sevold find themselves in their third year of roller hockey competition at Pomona College.

It can be difficult for people to take roller hockey seriously. There is something innately silly about shoes with mini wheels on them that roller hockey cannot escape. Roller skates make us think of Roller Girl or kids with lollipops, and roller blades make us think of early 90s fitness fads. Ha, wheels are silly. Ice hockey is another story. Ice hockey is shoes with razor blades! So we have teeny tiny wheels on one hand and razor blades on the other.

In the words of its participants, Pomona roller hockey is something of a non-organization—more a chance to get off campus and blow off some steam than engage in serious athletic competition. It is a sort of “halfway sport,” with little discipline and a mostly offensive game. This is not to say, of course, that there is not inherent value in such endeavors. Canada digs it, and we should, too.