The first, for many years, was reserved for the plush playing fields of the Northeast — Long Island, Baltimore, Boston, Connecticut — where prep school kids from Choate, Andover, Deerfield and other boarding schools took part in this elite spring pastime. There the weather is temperate in spring and fall; the game is established; and top players could continue playing in the Ivy or Patriot leagues in college.

The second, as I found out, is a completely different animal.

At 3:30 on Friday afternoon, a handful of Aspen High School students appeared on the Astroturf football field. Surrounding them were 12-foot-high white barracks of snow plowed and dumped there during a monstrous winter.

Wearing only shorts, pads, and jerseys, they took to the field and began warming up — white balls sailing through the air, sticks cradled, cleats digging into the turf, shots whipped on goal.

This was the first year some of these students have ever played the game. For others, it was only their fourth, which is how long lacrosse has been played in Aspen. But all of them are a part of something brand new: This is the first year Aspen has ever had a sanctioned lacrosse program that is part of the Colorado High School Athletic Association. Before that, lacrosse was limited to a club sport.

Then, as the players lined up for a scrimmage, and the action began, nasty storm clouds moved in. Immediately, snow began to dump; the conditions deteriorated to whiteout, and the temperature dropped even further.

Briefly, the game stopped and players began to shake their heads. They are trapped in a cloud.

“Seriously?” one student yells out. “Isn’t it April?”

The players continue to wait, flipping their sticks in the air and hoping the snow will pass.

And just as it does and the game starts up again, a different player sums up the whole moment, and shouts, “Welcome to Aspen Lacrosse!”

LAX EXPLOSION

Aspen’s lacrosse program officially began four years ago with 20 Aspen High school students who are now seniors. They knew very little about the game and had the most rudimentary equipment, but what was important was a keen interest in learning to play a sport that has slowly traveled from east to west.

Mike Goerne, the head lacrosse coach at Aspen who played Division I lacrosse at Marist College, still remembers when he met this group of kids during their sophomore year.

“They were all really excited and enthusiastic,” he said. “But they didn’t have much experience or much gear. At that time, they were all wearing second-hand Arizona State University jerseys, which I thought was pretty funny.”

After getting to know the players that year, Goerne signed on as head coach and began to develop the program.

“We began with the fundamentals, like how to field ground balls and how to throw with your right hand. We also watched a lot of college tapes to give them a sense of the pace of the game.”

According to Goerne, the players caught on quickly for one very basic reason — their athleticism.

“You have to remember that all of these kids are incredible athletes, and they all play multiple sports. Lacrosse is a mixture of all the sports: It requires the stick skills of hockey, the coordination of basketball, the speed of soccer, and the contact of football. These kids already had the right skills – it was just a matter of turning them into lacrosse players.”

What began with 20 high school boys four years ago grew rapidly, and so did the legitimacy of the program. Now, in 2008, there are more than 250 kids — boys and girls, from second to 12th grade — who participate in the Aspen lacrosse program.

Because Aspen lacrosse is now a member of the Colorado High School Athletic Association (CHSAA), they are now a sanctioned team that can compete with any school in Colorado.

But the lacrosse explosion is not happening only in Aspen, but all up and down the valley and beyond.

Basalt, Glenwood Springs, Battle Mountain, Eagle Valley, and other schools are in the process of developing teams. With so much interest in the neighboring areas, CHSAA is creating a league called the Western Slope 5, which will begin its first season in fall 2008 and will include Aspen, Steamboat Springs, Eagle Valley, Battle Mountain and Summit.

MAKING CONTACT

The question that arises immediately out of this phenomenon of local schools’ suddenly developing lacrosse programs is, simply, why? Why is it that a sport that for years was the special province of the East Coast migrated west and into the Rocky Mountains?

“It has been a natural progression,” said Goerne. “These days, Denver has some of the best lacrosse teams in the country, and it just seemed to be a matter of time before it made it out to areas like Aspen.”

But beyond that, Goerne believes that it is the nature of the game that is attracting so much attention.

“It is the fastest game on two feet,” said Goerne. “Also, it is the same rush that you get from skiing and mountain-biking.”

Goerne’s players agree wholeheartedly.

“I switched over from baseball because there is more competition in lacrosse,” said Logan Tierney, 17, a junior at the Aspen High School. “It is a lot of fun. You get to make contact, hit as hard as you can, and it is a really fast game.”

Sophomore lacrosse player Jack Bird, 16, agreed with Tierney.

“I have never really experienced a sport like this,” he said. “You are always moving and always getting ready to make contact. And I think that is one reason that we are really into it — there were no contact sports for boys in the spring. It gives us something new to play.”

STEPPING AHEAD

With more players joining at all ages, and new leagues being created to accommodate Aspen, lacrosse is off and running.

“The fact that younger kids in middle school are beginning to play lacrosse is huge,” said Goerne. “I can only imagine this program getting bigger and better every year.”

Also upcoming is an elite lacrosse camp to be held in Aspen June 5-8, which will include the Division I coaches and players from Duke, Bryant, and other big-name college programs.

Even more exciting, this summer Goerne has been asked to lead a group of Western Slope U-17 all-stars, which will include five players from Aspen, to the Vail Shootout — one of the most prestigious lacrosse tournaments in the country.

“Between the camp and the games in Vail, these kids are going to get great exposure by playing with the best players in the country,” Goerne noted. And for Mike Goerne, that is what it is all about.

“My goal is for these kids to be competitive with any team in the country. This will open up new avenues into college for them. But, more importantly, it will give them a new passion that they will have forever.”