Thunderball

By Sean Reid
June 8, 2005

Stand in the hallway outside any basketball court and you'll hear the typical echoes of a game: teammates shouting, a bouncing ball in play. Stand outside a quad-rugby game and you'll hear something extra: the thunderous, merciless clashing of metal.

These are the sounds of wheelchair behemoths tackling each other for the chance at victory. But fear not, the aggression is all part of the fun in quad-rugby, nicknamed "murderball" by its Canadian originators. The sport, created for quadriplegics with limited use of their arms who play in specially-modified wheelchairs, is poised to capture the mainstream attention in a few months.

The buzz is due mostly to the documentary Murderball, which won the audience award at Sundance and was recently screened at the Seattle International Film Festival.

Hopefully, the film's upcoming release may steer eyes towards Seattle's own team, whose members are now preparing for a new season in October.

Mike Wagner, an Edmonds native, has been playing for 12 years. Initially, the motivation to join was simple: He wasn't having any fun.

"It was a year out of the hospital and I was depressed," Wagner says, when he saw a quad rugby flyer at the University of Washington's spinal cord injury center and he took a chance on the sport. The commitments were big: customized wheelchairs run around $2,500 and the game's aggressive nature, to a first-time observer, can be jarring.

But he seems unfazed as he speaks on the court sidelines of the Highline Community Center in Bellevue, where Team Seattle practices on the weekends.

"I came out the first time and I've been here ever since. I love it."

Now, when Wagner meets individuals who have suffered a spinal cord injury, he talks up the game's merits and addictive fun. Team Seattle members occasionally visit rehabilitation centers around the area to do the same. Still, some quads will come for one practice and never come back.

Curt Chapman, Mike Wagner, and Ted Kuoppamaki scramble after a loose ball on the court of a quad-rugby game in a Bellevue community center. Team Seattle is preparing for its fall season of the game, played by people with limited use of their arms and legs. Photo credit: Mark Sullo

Though quad rugby has been around for over two decades and remains an international sport, its notoriety hasn't made the leap outside the realm of wheelchair sports.

There are certainly myths to dispel. Contrary to popular belief, all quadriplegics are not totally disabled in four limbs, but may be impaired in each to varying degrees. Team Seattle's players must be disabled in at least one arm and one leg in order to play. Out of this comes the game's ranking system. A scale of .5 to 3.5 is used to measure a player's ability to compete on the court. To be on the court, a quad rugby team must have players whose sum rank cannot exceed eight.

The game is also not as dangerous as people think, says player Ted Kuoppamaki. Chairs are built to minimize the chances of tipping over after a crash. A bigger concern for him is staying cool via a water bottle shower, since (like other quadriplegics) his spinal cord injury prevents his body from sweating.

I ask him if that's the main reason for taking periodic breaks during their practice.

As he's about to nod, a player a few feet away shouts, "No, it's because we're out of shape!"

The gist of quad rugby is to move a volleyball across the court and score by getting your chair past the opposing teams goal line, ball in hand. All players are strapped into their chairs and wear gloves, usually palmed with tape or glue to grab the ball if their fingers are unable to grip tightly. Players must dribble every 10 seconds, but speed and looking for players to pass to is mostly on your mind, says Kuoppamaki. If you have the ball, you're destined to be tackled by players hungry to steal it.

Wagner points to the bumper grill on the front of his chair, laughing, "You can see how many times mine's been re-welded."

Injuries that result from tackling seem to occur mostly due to chairs not suited to the user, as was the case with player Curt Chapman, who suffered a broken finger and head injury before he got a new one.

"It's really all about the chair," says Kuoppamaki, who ordered his, like some other members of the team, from a local designer. Unlike a normal wheelchair, the models for quad rugby have tires with metal caps that are tilted slightly diagonally for stability, along with three smaller wheels. Straps and frames built for the user keep riders in place, ready to inflict damage -- though all for the sake of a friendly win, of course.

The obvious questions spring to mind as Team Seattle's players huddle for the interview. Is there any trash talking?

"Oh yeah, oh yeah, all the time," they say.

Wagner chimes in: "One time I had somebody pissed off at me; he left the game because I had him so pissed off. He wanted to kick the shit out of me, too!"

Any fights?

"Not much," Kuoppamaki says, "We usually take it out in hits -- you know, legally."

Rivalries are not uncommon, though you'd probably never peg any of the players as types to hold grudges. It's the personality shift that comes with playing, Kuoppamaki reveals.
"I turn into an asshole out there."

Quickly, he flashes a grin and rephrases: "Well, let's just say I get upset very easily."

The competitive attitude switches on when he rolls back to the court near his scrimmage team of four. His teammate lobs the volleyball into the air to pass but falls short. An opposing player picks it up and passes it to Chapman. Swiveling around, he darts through a massing crowd of tacklers just as Kuoppamaki turns toward him. Before he can line up for the tackle, another player blocks him with a crash, shoving him sideways as Chapman heads for the goal line and scores.

Kuoppamaki appears frustrated but the look passes as they swiftly prepare for the ball to come back into play. His teammate throws it into the air, but another player fails to catch the loose ball.

"He's taking dives, man!" one guy shouts, and suddenly, the game halts while everyone bursts out in laughter.

In between the smart-ass comments, violent sounds, and the rabidly competitive play, you start to wonder: How can this be anything but fun?

Reprinted with permission from Real Change News.
www.realchangenews.org
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