This blog post is about the sport of Lacrosse with a very local spin.  The sport of Lacrosse has always been "Stanwood" lacrosse to me - as I've never seen it played anywhere else.  My youngest son Joey played Lacrosse when he was in middle school and in high school.  Joey played little league football for 5 years in elementary and middle school.  But as the kids got bigger - Joey, who was growing taller - just didn't carry the weight some of the other boys did.  So he didn't like football as much as he was getting older and consequently didn't play as much.  He came home from school one day and announced "I'd like to play Lacrosse!"   I had never heard of Lacrosse.  In checking into it I found it was predominantly an East coast sport - that was spreading West.  There was a group of boys in Stanwood who were starting a Lacrosse Team.  The rest really is history.  From this small group of boys a large and significant local Lacrosse organization has grown in the Stanwood / Camano community.   I think there are about 10 local teams now, covering ages from 6 or 7 up to high school.

There seemed to be many things that attracted Joey to Lacrosse over football.   Among them was:  he didn't need to be a "big guy" to play Lacrosse.  Yes - they wore shoulder pads and helmets but for the most part there wasn't any tackling. Suited up with stick in hand - he looked so cool.  It DID prove to be a rough and tumble game.  But the pads and helmets protected him.   Lacrosse required Joey to learn a different skill set which included being able to catch this little hard ball with a "stick" with a little net on the end (and to keep it from falling out of the net as you run down the field).  And passing this little hard ball and catching it - often on the run!  Very challenging - and fun (take it from a dad who's had some fun trying to get the hang of it all while practicing with his boy..). Of course, it takes practice.  But my experience is that with even a little practice, most kids are capable of getting incredibly good at it..  Over the years I've watched many of the kids who - if they stuck with it through High School - transformed into rock-star like athletes amazingly fun to watch play.  

Those in the Stanwood / Camano community who don't know about Lacrosse - you should check this exciting game out. The rules aren't too complicated to understand - most anyone on the sidelines can give you a quick rundown on how the game is played.  And if considering a sport for your kids - you'll find the Lacrosse coaches to be among the most dedicated volunteer coaches to be found.  Over the years a small group of Lacrosse enthusiast parents turned coaches built a very large, respectable & well run sports organization in our little local community.  The camaraderie and team spirit that they engender amongst the kids each season is remarkable.  The kids don't seem to just be playing "a" sport - it's something different, something more intense, something more exclusive.  It seems a sport regarded with it's own kind of respect and unique esteem.  Many of the Lacrosse playing kids seem to feel part of a more exclusive club than I've seen with other sports (I say this having raised three kids playing all sports..)

Games start at the beginning of March and are played at local fields on the weekends:  usually on Saturdays.  If you want to see some thrilling, live sport action - and close to home, here you go.  For kids or parents looking for an alternative to football, baseball or soccer - investigate this game!  I know there are still many folks out there - with kids - who likely don't know what Lacrosse even is let alone that it is played in Stanwood.   A start would be by going thru the many galleries on my web site - you can get a pretty good vision of the game. For a very thorough understanding of the game and how to get involved, go visit the Stanwood Lacrosse web site - the site is full of many informative pages and links about Lacrosse.  And did I mention that watching it is free?  There is no cost to watch any of the games!  Free + Fresh Air + Exciting & Action Packed Games + Local / Short Drive = could be an answer to the Saturday morning statement of "I'm bored" and the question "what should we do THIS Saturday morning?"  

This video from the 2012 Senior team (7/8A) captures some of the excitement.  These boys played hard for Coach Jesstin who was a great young player himself (he played with my son in 2007 time period):

Coming Soon:  the Lady Spartans!