GRUB 2010 Preview

Pool A

A1: Pimpin' Aint Easy, Boulder,CO

A2: Golden Spike, Salt Lake City, UT

A3: Operation KillJoy, Fort Collins, CO

A4: Midnight Threat Level, KS

Pool B

B1: Liver Punch, Boulder, CO

B2: Swingline, Colorado Springs, CO

B3: Blast Susie, Denver, CO

B4: Red or Green?, ABQ

Pool C

C1: Barrio, Tuscon, AZ

C2: Trollhaveners, San Francisco, CA

C3: The Business, Denver, CO

C4: Love Tractor, Boulder, CO

Pool D

D1: LA Metro, Los Angeles, CA

D2: Operation Kapow!, Denver, CO

D3: Mesteno, Denver, CO

D4: Rule of Thumb, Boulder, CO

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This is the first tournament that we are participating in that will feature our new squad for the 2010 season. The tryout process started way back in May and now in mid-July, our roster has been finalized and we are ready to roll. This is also the first time our team will be attending GRUB (Grass Roots Ultimate Benefit Tournament), which is now in its 19th year (http://gru.org/play/grub-2010).

This tournament will feature some of the top teams from the Southwest Region, most notably perennial powerhouse Barrio from Tuscon, Arizona, and the new upstarts in Operation Kapow as well as some other solid teams from the Denver/Boulder area. I am not familiar with the majority of the teams going to this tournament, but the ones I do know about are the Trollhaveners from San Fran, which are a bunch of BCBC players + friends. Mesteno, Swingline, and Love Tractor were all teams that we played in Regionals in Arizona. They are solid teams and it will be interesting to see how they stack up in the Region. Golden Spike is a team from the Northwest Region that gave us a very good game last year. They were athletic and very skilled in our only meeting at the Labor Day Championships in SF.

Essentially, this tournament is a barometer for our team in the region. We are already slated to play against Operation Kapow, which will prove to be a tough match since word has it that they have been actively recruiting in the Colorado area to improve their already talented team. If you remember, Operation Kapow was the team that we beat in the Semifinals of Regionals last season to secure a bid to Nationals. It was a close game in the beginning but with our team breaking it open with a 6-0 run to pace us to a 15-9 win. I guess it's safe to say that this is a pretty anticipated rematch between the two teams. Although our team won't be at full strength with several key players being absent, this tournament will be an indication to our team identity, our style of play, and what we need to work on in preparation for ECC and Labor Day. Regional Champs Barrio will also be there, and although it might not line up for our teams to play each other, it will be a good thing to have an early gauge on how difficult the road to Nationals will be. We still believe that the road to Nationals goes through Southern California with the likes of Metro, BCBC and 7 Figures, but this tournament will allow us to see what the Colorado and Arizona teams have in store for us.

The altitude will definitely play a role, and I've been running my track workouts with that fact in mind. The air is thinner, the oxygen density in the air is less, and the Colorado teams will definitely have an advantage being acclimated to that altitude for months, while we have mere hours to do so. I'm stoked to play this tournament, and I am anxious to be playing at top level again. Ten more days until first pull.

-Hammie #10