28 'GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE
MAY 14, 1993
SPORTS
Gay-Lesbian Aquatics: Making a new kind of splash
by Bill Podojil
Name a sport that has very little equipment cost, where you don't sweat like a pig, nobody cares what your hair looks like and is probably one of the best all-around aerobic activities. If you guessed swimming, you're right!
With those thoughts in mind, two Cleveland men started a fledgling chapter of the International Gay-Lesbian Aquatics (IGLA) last December as a way of promoting swimming, scuba, water polo and diving in the gay community. Dan Reichert and Tom Nobbe decided to look into starting a club after the two met while swimming at a local pool."I was not a competitive swimmer through high school or college," said Reichert, "I just like to swim to stay in shape." Nobbe had heard of IGLA and contacted them for information on starting a chapter in Cleveland. Now, almost six months later, the group boasts thirty men
and women of varying skill levels on its roster. The club meets once a month at a local pool, either Notre Dame College or the Lakewood YMCA. During a typical gathering, the members do laps to build strength and endurance and are coached on various swimming strokes. All of this hard work is in preparation for one of the many national swim meets sponsored by IGLA.
Currently, the club is planning on sending five swimmers to a meet in Chicago during Memorial Day weekend, and then to another meet to be held in Toronto during that city's Gay Pride Festival, June 26. At these meets, local IGLA members volunteer to house the out-of-town swimmers and also provide transportation and entertainment for them.
The competition can be pretty intense. However, each meet is lightened up by the campy "Pink Flamingo Relay," a race in which costumed swimmers swim 100 meters while carrying a plastic pink flamingo.
NCAA Softball game times
This year, the North Coast Athletic Association softball league is playing Sunday afternoons at Tremont Fields 4 and 5, which are just south of I-490 off West 7th St. No games on Memorial Day; rained-out games will be played June 20. This field has no bleachers: bring lawn chairs or blankets. Schedule for the first half of the year:
May 16, 1:00 pm: May 16, 2:15 pm:
May 16, 3:30 pm: May 23, 1:00 pm: May 23, 2:15 pm: May 23, 3:30 pm:
Memoirs vs. U4ia; Detour vs. Mustangs Cleve. West vs. Detour; Memoirs vs. Farm Boys Cleve. West vs. U4ia; Mix vs. Mustangs Memoirs vs. Mustangs; Mix vs. Farm Boys Mix vs. Mustangs; Cleve. West vs. Detour Detour vs. Farm Boys; Cleve. West vs. U4ia
June 6, 1:00 pm:
June 6, 2:15 pm:
June 6, 3:30 pm:
June 13, 1:00 pm:
June 13, 2:15 pm:
PURE
June 13, 3:30 pm:
Cleve. West vs. Farm Boys; Mix vs. U4ia
Memoirs vs. Mustangs; Mix vs. Detour Mustangs vs. Farm Boys; Memoirs vs. U4ia Memoirs vs. Cleve. West; Mix vs. Detour U4ia vs. Farm Boys; Mix vs. Cleve. West Detour vs. Memoirs; Farm Boys vs. Mustangs
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Reichert added, "These swim meets offer both competitors and spectators alike the opportunity to experience some really great swimming and also to have a good laugh occasionally. One of the members of the New York club is Olympic medalist Bruce Hayes."
Long-range goals for the club include increased membership and sending a team to the Gay Games IV in June of 1994. "It will be a lot of hard work, but I think we can do it," Reichart was quick to point out. Besides the competition, another objective Nobbe and Reichert had in starting the swim club was to provide a social outlet for people with a common interest. This club, like the others spotlighted in previous months, was founded on the basis of fun, friendly competition and the promotion of a healthy lifestyle. "More and more gay
men and lesbians seem to be attracted to these athletic groups," Reichert commented, "Exercising and living a healthy lifestyle seem to be positive new trends in the gay community. I think it's great! I hope that this club will attract even more people to this great sport!"IGLA is a very well organized network of swimming chapters across the world. The cities represented include Boston; Brisbane, Australia; Montreal; London; Honolulu; San Francisco; Toronto; New York; Weisbaden, Germany; Cincinnati; Chicago; and Cleveland. Each of thesemember cities welcomes out-of-towners to join in their swim "workouts." The Cleveland swim club also provides its members with a monthly newsletter that notifies them when and where the next swimming gathering will be. For more information, please call Dan Reichert at 229-2138.
Sports Briefs
by Bill Podojil
During the March on Washington weekend, approximately 1,000 Frontrunners from around the country got together for a three mile fun run. The run, which started on the Mall and looped around the Capitol and Washington Monument, attracted a large group of spectators watching the sizable pack of runners and walkers who all looked surprisingly awake so early in the morning.
The event, sponsored by Frontrunners of Washington, D.C., was very well organized and provided the opportunity for club members from around the nation to get to know each other. Our fair city was well represented with 12 Cleveland Frontrunners making the trip to the March.
Most were housed by D.C. Frontrunners. The group's striking T-shirts caught many an eye! Look for them in the Revco Marathon and 10K, as well as future races. For information on Frontrunners, please call 397-9346 or 368-3537.The Cleveland Cyclones Bicycle Club is steaming ahead and now has a membership roster of over 45 riders. The Boston to Provincetown Ride is coming up on June 19, and the team will be represented by 5 riders making the 128 mile, one day trip. The club is also having a logo contest to develop a new symbol for the club to be displayed on all sorts of cycling paraphernalia.
The Cyclones were highlighted in the City Bike newsletter, which has helped in attracting more members. Plans for this summer include some joint rides between the Cyclones and the Columbus and Toledo gay-lesbian cycling groups. For information on the Cyclones, please call 6511621.As a commentary, I have noticed the lesbian-gay community expanding in many
positive ways. One of those ways is by the start-up of the new athletic clubs within the past year, and the continued support of the more established groups.
Frontrunners, International Gay-Lesbian Aquatics and Cyclones were all born within the past year, each receiving much enthusiasm from the public. Groups like NCAA Softball, Volleyball and Bowling have been around a bit longer, and are still enjoying continued support.
Since I started this column in February, I have had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with many of the participants, founders and spectators of these groups. I hope to have a new group every month about which I can write, because the positive feedback has been inspiring! If there are any sporting or recreational groups out there, whether they be chess clubs, canoeing clubs or ironman clubs (especially ironman clubs!), please call me and we'll get you some publicity.
With summer just around the corner, try to find a group that fits your interests and abilities. If there isn't a club in existence, start one up! Contact me at the Chronicle and I will help you. Remember to Play Hard, Play Fair, but most of all . . . just Play!
Opening Day 1993
NCAA Softball Scores-May 2
Game 1: Cleveland West 24 Game 2: Detour 8 Game 3: Memoirs 19 Game 4: Farm Boys 25 Game 5: Detour 16 Game 6: Mustangs 19 Game 7: Mustangs 42
Mix 16
Memoirs 7 Cleveland West 3 U4ia 13 Mix 6 Farm Boys 2 U4ia 6
For information, please call Michelle at 892-0886.
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