On the Blueline: Cahow on the Joy of Pond Hockey Over the Holidays
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The following article, written by former Harvard standout Caitlin Cahow, appeared December 28 on the USA Today Web site.
By Caitlin Cahow
Special for USA TODAY
USA women's hockey national team member Caitlin Cahow, a 2006 Olympic bronze medalist, will document her experience for USA TODAY as she prepares to compete at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver.
Entry No. 6 - Dec. 28, 2009
Happy HO-HO-Holidays! My teammates and I were granted a few precious days of vacation to go home and visit our families. I decided to stay a couple extra days in Minnesota because it is pond hockey season, the most wonderful time of the year! All of the parks have rinks set up. For a hockey player, it doesn't get much better than this.
Park hockey is a good reminder for those of us who have grown a bit too big for our britches in the big leagues. It had been quite awhile since I had had to be my own Zamboni. Clearing the ice for the big showdown took about 45 minutes with five of us pushing snow shovels. Suffice it to say, I did not need a pre-game warm up after that. My teammate Jenny Potter and I played about six hours of park puck in two days the weekend before Christmas. The game was fairly cutthroat and I emerged with several bruises given to me by none other than Jenny herself, which would be understandable had she not been playing on my team at the time. What can I say, she just always wants that puck! MVP of the weekend went to Jenny's 8 year-old daughter, Madison, who seemed to be our leading goal scorer even though the rest of us were working hard, giving it the old college try. The coolest part was that Jenny was joined on the ice not only by her daughter, but also her son Cullen, husband Rob, and father Dwayne. Three generations of goons on one ice sheet. No wonder I walked away with a few scrapes.
Complete article can be accessed via the USA Today Web site by clicking here.
