It seemed only appropriate that just one day after the Wheeler Opera
House hosted the “Gays in Sports: The Invisible Athlete” panel
discussion, the all-gay hockey team would best their straight
counterparts in the penultimate Gay Ski Week event.
All-gay team GForce dominated the all-straight
Eurotrash All-Stars 7-3 this past Sunday evening at the Aspen
Recreation Center, which proved a raucous end to a week of both
exciting and debaucherous Gay Ski Week activities.
And whether the packed, nearly all-gay crowd was a
result of a newly found appreciation for all things hockey, or, more
likely, a convenient pit stop on the way to the adjacent Gay Ski Week
wrap-up pool party, the spectators would have made “regular” hockey
fans proud with all the chanting, yelling, fist pumping and trash
talking that took place — albeit with a decidedly gay twist.
“Give it to 'em hard,” “Gays like it rough” and, my
personal favorite, “S-E-X. What does it spell? SEX. What does it mean?
SCORE!” were the most prevalent chants of the night, although a few
other gems not quite suitable for print also made strong appearances.
“I've been coming to this event the past couple of
years, and this year was definitely the best,” said Michael Chandler of
Philadelphia, Pa. “The crowd was incredible. I've never seen so many
gays cheering for a hockey game in my life.”
And even though Chandler followed up his comment
with, “How many quarters are left in the match?” his enthusiasm in the
face of limited hockey knowledge somehow made it all OK.
The competition is actually dubbed the
Friendship Cup, with this year's match-up marking the fifth annual
event. Team GForce is comprised of some of the best gay hockey players
in North America who are a part of the International Gay and Lesbian
Ice Hockey Association, while the Eurotrash All-stars are comprised of
several teams playing at various levels in the Aspen Men's Ice Hockey
League. Until this past Sunday, the series was tied at 2-2, but an
aggressive GForce offense tipped the scales in favor of the gays,
leaving the series at 3-2.
“It was an amazing experience. I played last year,
and this year was better and even more competitive,” said 21-year-old
GForce center Kirby Pumper of Minneapolis, Minn. “I think a lot of it
has to do with the fact that we're playing on a team from all over the
U.S., and they're great hockey players. And it's also one of those
things where we're essentially changing stereotypes. Well that and we
got to beat a bunch of straight guys.”
And the win for the gays was made all the sweeter by
the additional challenges they had to face. Not only is the entire
Eurotrash team living and practicing at 8,000 feet, they also regularly
play together.
“We definitely didn't get much time to practice
together, and team chemistry is so much apart of good play,” Pumper
added. “And the altitude is also a big factor. But we all showed up a
day early this time and drank a lot more water, so that helped.”
Pumper, who plays in both a gay and a straight
league back in his hometown, says there are definitely differences in
playing on the two types of teams.
“The interaction with the players is what changes,”
he says. “There are a lot of things you can't do with straight guys
because they'll get uncomfortable, whereas if you make comments on a
gay team, no one will think twice. But the competitiveness of hockey is
still there. I hate to lose. So when you're out here on the ice, you're
out there to play hockey.”
Insult was added to injury in the last 17 seconds of
the third period when a GForce player slapped a slow shot across the
entire length of the ice while Eurotrash's goalie was out of place. The
entire arena went quiet, waiting with bated breath to see if the puck
would slide into the goal. It did — right in the center in fact — and
the crowd went wild. Team GForce had an unexpected celebration for the
end of a hockey match, as players hugged and kissed and generally
showed lots of affection.
Then everyone dropped trou and headed to the pool. Gay Ski Week went out with a bang.
damien@aspendailynews.com
