Sports -The Waloopers
The 30's and 40's when I was growing up was an era without TV, computers, and all those hand held devices that now keeps everyone permanently on line. There was The Great Depression going on and then a war so there wasn't much money around either and marketers hadn't yet discovered something called a youth market. Typical of that era the moms expected their kids to 'go out and play' after school and on the weekends. Once we reached about 10 or 11 years of age the boys left cops and robbers behind and the girls put their dollies away. At that age getting together with friends became what it was all about and this usually meant spending a lot of time playing sports. Most of it was pretty informal without any adult supervision or coaching. It was sports like pickup softball, touch football or street hockey where we made up the rules depending on how many wanted to play; anyone was welcome. The score wasn't important and the objective was simply to have some fun. If we didn't have a puck for our street hockey a handy frozen horse bun, always plentiful on the roads, was quite acceptable. Back then kids got a lot of exercise and there weren't many fat ones.
In my teens most of us began to take one or more sports more seriously. My choices were skiing, swimming, tennis. I never became a member of the big three sports teams (Football, Hockey and Basketball) that awarded players huge crests to display on their jerseys and made them trophy catches for some of the prettiest girls in the school. My swimming and soccer team crests were tiny and not held in high esteem. In other words I was a good student but an obscure run-of-the-mill athlete.
At Dawson College intramural sports were a big thing with as many teams formed as people who wanted to play. Floor hockey and basketball were the most popular team sports - I recall at least 10 or more teams for each sport - and I looked around for teams that I might join. It soon became apparent that with many of these teams were in place from previous years and I since I couldn't claim any passed team experience I was destined to spend a lot of time as a second stringer warming a bench. I decided to form my own teams instead and talked to my room mates and some others, most of whom had limited experience as well, and liked the idea and we put together teams for floor hockey and basketball.
To join the leagues our teams had to have a name and I can't recall who named them, I suspect it was Don Beauprie, and the name chosen was the Waloopers or something like that. Then to my surprise Don asked if he could supply our publicity. No other team had anyone supporting them with publicity but the team liked the idea and we said, "If it isn't going to cost us anything, why not?" Don then came up with the idea that we needed uniforms that would change each time we played and posters would be put up throughout the college announcing the date of the next game and include the statement, "What will the Waloopers winning wardrobe be this time?"
I can't recall where we got the ideas and materials but each time we changed outfits: for example from, sugar sacks, to diapers, to Indian warpaint and even normal garb.
This publicity brought out a lot of students to watch our games. And from game to game the numbers kept growing.
As for our basket ball team I don't recall many winning games because with the exception of one skilled player, John Garneau, we were inexperienced neophytes having a good time and 'learning on the job'. Several of us liked to spend our spare time shooting baskets but the art of the game eluded us. The quality of team play was extremely varied in the league with some teams having serious members from the national team of their respective nations and high school stars, and fortunately a few teams like the Waloopers. For us it was a lot of fun and exercise.
McGill threatened at one time to ban floor hockey because the authorities claimed that it resulted in more injuries than the combined injuries of all other intramural and intercollegiate sports. For those of you reading this not familiar with this sport, the rules of this game are the same as ice hockey. As shown in the photo the stick is straight and the puck is a round felt disc shaped like a doughnut. Placing the stick in the doughnut allows the player to stick handle and pass just as in hockey. However a hefty player once in control of the doughnut can decide to charge like a bull thus resulting in violent clashes. Unlike hockey there was little or no protective gear and bruises and bloodied hands and shins and bruised ribs were common.
As an occasional volunteer to referee these games I must confess that the quality of refereeing left a lot to be desired and at times it could be a highly dangerous profession because of the emotional outbursts of players and their supporters disputing our well intentioned decisions. Some teams were formed around cultural heritage, Students with a Latin American or Mediterranean Rim background were particularly prone to doing this. Supported by their rabid fans, and with their nation's honour at stake, it added fuel to the fire. A menacing crowd surged onto the floor whenever a penalty or offside was called. It became difficult to find any referees who had the courage to volunteer for these games.
Following a shaky start The Waloopers floor hockey team began to win most of its games. I think that Don Beauprie's marketing effort pumped a lot of adrenaline into our system and no doubt this had something to do with it. In the semi finals we faced a team from the McGill campus that included many players from the university's football team. It was a brutal game, more like rugger, and I recall at one point being tossed into the third row of seats. Suffice it to say we won because the McGill team thought they were playing football and forgot about the puck.
Battered and torn we left the field of battle. I believe it was only a day or two later we were playing the final match. I recall passing by the beds of our team members pleading for them to rise up for the match. The typical answer was "I'm dying and go away" although there were murmurs of "I'll think about it". With the exception of our goalie who was on crutches and another with his arm in a sling they did show up at game time. I don't know what is in that adrenalin but within minutes of the game starting these wounded warriors had forgotten their aches and pains. I can't remember who the other team was but it was a well fought battle that we narrowly lost.
The 30's and 40's when I was growing up was an era without TV, computers, and all those hand held devices that now keeps everyone permanently on line. There was The Great Depression going on and then a war so there wasn't much money around either and marketers hadn't yet discovered something called a youth market. Typical of that era the moms expected their kids to 'go out and play' after school and on the weekends. Once we reached about 10 or 11 years of age the boys left cops and robbers behind and the girls put their dollies away. At that age getting together with friends became what it was all about and this usually meant spending a lot of time playing sports. Most of it was pretty informal without any adult supervision or coaching. It was sports like pickup softball, touch football or street hockey where we made up the rules depending on how many wanted to play; anyone was welcome. The score wasn't important and the objective was simply to have some fun. If we didn't have a puck for our street hockey a handy frozen horse bun, always plentiful on the roads, was quite acceptable. Back then kids got a lot of exercise and there weren't many fat ones.
This publicity brought out a lot of students to watch our games. And from game to game the numbers kept growing.
McGill threatened at one time to ban floor hockey because the authorities claimed that it resulted in more injuries than the combined injuries of all other intramural and intercollegiate sports. For those of you reading this not familiar with this sport, the rules of this game are the same as ice hockey. As shown in the photo the stick is straight and the puck is a round felt disc shaped like a doughnut. Placing the stick in the doughnut allows the player to stick handle and pass just as in hockey. However a hefty player once in control of the doughnut can decide to charge like a bull thus resulting in violent clashes. Unlike hockey there was little or no protective gear and bruises and bloodied hands and shins and bruised ribs were common.
Following a shaky start The Waloopers floor hockey team began to win most of its games. I think that Don Beauprie's marketing effort pumped a lot of adrenaline into our system and no doubt this had something to do with it. In the semi finals we faced a team from the McGill campus that included many players from the university's football team. It was a brutal game, more like rugger, and I recall at one point being tossed into the third row of seats. Suffice it to say we won because the McGill team thought they were playing football and forgot about the puck.
Battered and torn we left the field of battle. I believe it was only a day or two later we were playing the final match. I recall passing by the beds of our team members pleading for them to rise up for the match. The typical answer was "I'm dying and go away" although there were murmurs of "I'll think about it". With the exception of our goalie who was on crutches and another with his arm in a sling they did show up at game time. I don't know what is in that adrenalin but within minutes of the game starting these wounded warriors had forgotten their aches and pains. I can't remember who the other team was but it was a well fought battle that we narrowly lost.
