Underwater Hockey

[scott]

Has anyone ever done this?

[javelindan]

Heard of it but not familiar with it. I've also heard of "underwater hockey" with ice diving where you stand upside down under the ice and hit a floating "puck" with a hockey stick... However, I doubt there are any organized leagues for ice diving underwater hockey!

[freedivernd]

I know a lot of freedivers around the country are into underwater hockey.. I think Jon (freediverwi) is active with an underwater hockey team in Wisonsin during the winter. Sure would be good practice for c02 buildup. I guess it gets to where you spend only seconds under the water because you're really using up your oxygen and building co2 chasing the puck and everyone else around. They use a short rubber stick, about 1' long, and mask, fins, snorkel..gloves.. long freediving fins usually aren't allowed because they get in everyone's face, and I think most scuba fins aren't the best either.. I have access to all the equipment and was hoping to get some folks interested last year but it didn't work out. Maybe next year.
Fred

[Freedive WI]

Sorry that I am just responding now, but I didn't see the thread until today. :-[

Our underwater hockey season starts up again on September 8th. We play every Monday night all iwnter long. Starting in January we'll play every other Wednesday night as well.

The sport was invented by the British in the 50's as a way ot keep in shape for diving through the winter months. I have heard that it is taught, as a regular sport, in Australian high schools.

The gear is pretty minimal. All you need are a mask, snorkel, fins and hockey glove. The gloves can be purchased off of the internet, or you can make your own out of a cotton gardening glove and a glue gun. You need the glove to prevent scraping up your stick hand on the bottom of the pool. The sitcks can be made out of plasitc or wood. There are certain dimensions that they must fit, which you can find on one of the hundereds of underwater hockey websites.

Sticks are colored either black or white to determine which team you are on. The puck is plasitc coated, so you don't mark up the swimming pool, and sinks. During competitions, they may require you to wear ear and mouth guards as well.

We allow poeple to use whatever fins they want in our club. They usually figure out pretty quickly which fins are good and wich ones are useless.

Freediving fins are too long for underwater hockey. They don't allow you to turn as quickly as you need to. They are also hard plastic, which can cut you up if it slices you wrong.

Force fins and splitfins are a total joke and I always invite people to try them out during a game to prove it to themselves. After one game while wearing them peopleare always looking to borrow an extra pair of whatever is left lying on the pool deck. ;D

Rubber scuba fins will work, but seem to be too heavy if your going to be playing a lot. The best fins are rubber full foot snorkeling fins. They are comfortable, fast, light, and allow you to turn quickly. There are some really good ones out there made by Mares, Aqualung, Sporasub, Cressi-sub, and Dacor.

All of the gear is acutally pretty cheap and it is a great way to keep in shape during the long winter months, besides freediving inder the ice.

Here is a shot of to people from my club, who are on the same team as you can tell by their stick colors, moving the puck down to the deep end of the pool.

Jon

[Freedive WI]

I just help set up another team in the Milwaukee area, with some help from some of the other guys I play hockey with.

They now have a regular group of 12-15 people, from at least 3 different dive shops, who play every Tuesday night. The will play through the end of March- maybe even longer. We play through the end of April in our Madison club.

If your interested in starting up your own team, it's a great way for people to stay active throughout the winter months- besides ice divng. All ability levels are welcome, since even the best hockey player has to come up for air and you can steal the puck from them when they do. ;D

All players need are a mask, snorkel, and fins. People last night found out that smaller snorkeling fins (read: cheap) work better than any of the open-heel scuba fins. They also found out that a basic snorkel works better than those huge dry snorkels- too much resistance when swimming fast through the water. Last thing that you need is a glove to protect your hand as it scrapes across the bottom of the pool. A garden glove with some hot glue on the knuckles is cheap and easy to make.

The only other things you need are sticks and a puck. One of the Madison club members has started making sticks, and plans on making pucks in the near future. He can be reached at:
ebb_mart@yahoo.com

Jon

[Freedive WI]

Things got a little out of hand last night at hockey. A few people got bumped and bruised, but I took the grand prize for blocking the puck with my face. :'(

Popped the lens right out of my mask and cut my cheek. Worst part was that it ended the game for me when I was on a hot streak. :-[

Jon

[LKunze]

Ouch! :o I didn't realize UW hockey was as physical as ice hockey...LOL!

[Freedive WI]

You should have seen the poor girl with the bleeding gum- which happened when her boyfriend's mother hit her in the mouth with her stick on accident. :-[

Jon

[MNLakeDiver]

time to design an underwater goalie helmet :

[shamre]

Any underwater hockey leagues that run during diving season in Twin cities area? It seems like a great way to keep in shape while not diving.