Practice optional for teams vying in DodgeBrawl

Chalk it up to confidence, gamesmanship or preoccupation with Pokemon Go, but participants in Saturday’s adult dodgeball tournament at Intrust Bank Arena are downplaying the need for preparation.

Practice?

“No, we haven’t had practice yet,” said Sam Salas, captain of a team made up of Westar Energy linemen playing on behalf of Big Brothers Big Sisters. “The only practice we really do is on Tuesday when we play basketball after work to kind of keep in shape. As far as throwing a ball around, we haven’t gotten that serious yet.”

Kyle Starkle, captain of a group of friends playing on behalf of Wichita Children’s Home, said they will “probably just get together a little beforehand, talk a little strategy. I might Google ‘dodgeball strategy.’ ”

Then again, the purpose of DodgeBrawl 2016 is to raise money for a good cause, so maybe just a willingness to show up and be dinged with a ball is sufficient. The event starts at 11 a.m. Spectators get in free, and on-site parking also is free.

The event raises money through corporate sponsorships and the registration of players, which costs $35 per person. Twenty-seven teams of up to 10 players each have registered. Players must be 18 or older.

DodgeBrawl 2016 is a double-elimination tournament played on a standard dodgeball court – 30 feet wide by 60 feet long. The dodgeballs are 6.50-rubber-coated foam balls. The game is pretty much the same you remember from grade school: Players eliminate opponents by either hitting them with a ball (”head shots” are frowned upon) or catching a ball thrown at them. Games run six minutes.

One difference from school: There will be a beer garden set up nearby.

The event is being run by the arena’s management company, SMG, which has staged similar tournaments at several of its other arenas. The top three teams get to designate a charity of their choice to receive a donation, and that seems to be the main motivation for most players. Prizes also will be given for best dressed team and best team name.

Kris Adams, captain of a team made up primarily of hair stylists from Eric Fisher Salon, said they chose Rainbows United as their intended recipient.

“I have a nephew with special needs and have been touched by a few special needs children, and I have been genuinely inspired by the people working there” at Rainbows United, Adams said. “They love what they do.”

Adams’ team is split about evenly between men and women, which should provide a good mix of brains and brawn. Asked to name a key to victory, she said “ba--uh, strategy.”

Nathan Harrison is captain of a team playing for United Way, where he works. Most of the team is made up of 40-and-under volunteers in the organization’s Young Leaders Association, who contribute time and money to United Way.

“It sounded like a cool kind of bonding thing,” Harrison said. “We’ve had a meeting. I don’t know if we’re going to do a practice. We might get there early and stretch or something. I think we’ll just kind of go for it.”

Starkle, a tax analyst, said he’d been wanting to enter the dodgeball tourney held during Riverfest in recent years but always had a conflict with his summer fast-pitch softball schedule. “I used to love playing it (dodgeball), but you don’t get a lot of opportunities,” he said.

Several players on his team also play fast-pitch softball, he said, although whether that skill is transferable to dodgeball remains to be seen. As captain, his biggest decision so far has involved the team name.

“Dodge Fathers was our first choice,” he said. “The organizers told me that name was already taken. We scrambled and came up with ‘Game of Throws.’ We’re all big ‘Game of Thrones’ fans.”

This story was originally published July 14, 2016 at 4:08 PM with the headline "Practice optional for teams vying in DodgeBrawl."