We Move On To The East

by Alex Morrison

We are back at it this weekend, as the NARCh regional season brings us to the Big Apple.  Daryn and I each boarded planes yesterday for New York, as our event is on Long Island at Skate Safe in Bethpage.  I got a great shot of the city when I was landing using my phone.

Yesterday was gorgeous, with temps in the 60s, and blue skies.  Today…. well… not so much.  It was raining cats and dogs as we left our hotel near Central Park, and made our way out to the island.  Our 30 mile trip took about an hour and a half through monsoon like conditions and potholes on the highway.  It was a white knuckler at times, but we made it in plenty of time to get things set up and get a rest in before our 12 games tonight.

Once we got back to the rink, we were right into it, as 5 of our first 8 games were decided by 1 goal, and the other 3 were very competitive!  This means each and every game is very important with regard to seeding.  It will be interesting to see on Saturday night when we are determining the playoff matchups how that one extra goal determines a seed.

As exhausting as it is travelling cross country to run an event that keeps us at the rink for 18 hours on a Saturday, it is really great to catch up with some of the good guys that are the lifeblood of roller hockey on Long Island.  It was nice catching up with Jason Muro of Black Ice tonight.  Other than the occasional Facebook post here and there, the only time I get to chat with him is when we are at these events.  He is a passionate person that loves his Mets, and does a ton for roller hockey.  I also got to spend some time with Brett Kotcher, coaching Pain Train teams this weekend.  He is a great guy, from a great family.  He and his brother Jeff grew up playing NARCh, and give a lot of their time and energy to making the sport better.  At some point, I am sure Vio will have a game off, and I will be able to chat with him as well.  He spends more time on the bench than anyone, and this weekend will be no different, as he has 10 teams playing!

Daryn has already captured some great footage of tonight’s play, so make sure you look for that on the NARCh Facebook and Instagram pages @narchplayers.  I’ll keep the live scoring updated on the website as well, so you can follow along at home.  Keep checking in this weekend!