Heronemus’ transition to urban lifestyle captures part of the reason why these young professional “athletes” gather every Sunday night dressed like extras from an unreleased sequel to The Warriors.
“I'm from Kokomo, Indiana, a.k.a. Boringsville, U.S.A.,” she said. “When I moved to New York City, I came in search of fun and excitement. What better opportunity than to play a faux-sport, drink beers and have massive amounts of fun with 300-plus people on a Sunday night? I have met the majority of my closest friends through kickball in some way or another.”
WAKA promotes the social networking possibilities of its leagues. There are parties throughout the season and the association’s website and press kit go so far as to offer the testimonials of couples that have met thanks to league rule 5.02: “Teams must field a minimum of at least four members of each sex.”
For some players, kickball acts as a yuppie Facebook or Myspace, just with pegging and ghostmen. Actually, bylaw 16.01 in the WAKA rulebook states very clearly that “ghostmen are not allowed.”
Ghostmen might be out, but beer is definitely in. WAKA is 21-and-over, and each division designates a bar for post and sometimes mid-game activities. BKKB fires up the public park grills each week and has a seemingly casual attitude with the city’s open container laws.
If nothing else, an adult kickball league is an excuse to party. Actually, adult kickball seems to be an excuse for almost anything, which probably explains its booming popularity. BKKB’s other co-director, Kevin Dailey explains his league’s growing appeal. “There is very little we discourage.”
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