2008 NEW ORLEANS RUGBY RECOVERY EFFORT

Wendy Young | November 13, 2007, 12:41 am

2008 NEW ORLEANS RUGBY RECOVERY EFFORT

Last year&rsquos effort was a great success thanks to all the volunteers that participated. The United States Women&rsquos Rugby Foundation is once again coordinating volunteers to lend a hand with the ongoing recovery effort in New Orleans.

The New Orleans Rugby Recovery Effort is a volunteer opportunity to spend two days working side by side with other volunteers to help clean up and rebuild homes in the New Orleans area. We will be organizing volunteers for the New Orleans Habitat for Humanity and will assist on one or more of their ongoing projects. Projects will include both the construction of new homes and repair of surviving homes. We have selected the dates of this volunteer effort to coincide with the Mardi Gras Women&rsquos Rugby Tournament.

• Volunteer Group Name: U.S. Women&rsquos Rugby Foundation
  
• Dates: January 30th to February 1st, 2008 (arrive Wednesday PM, depart Friday PM or Saturday AM)
  
• Transportation to New Orleans: Responsibility of volunteer
  
• Food and Lodging: Camp Hope $ 20.00/day tax deductible – responsibility of volunteer
  
  If you would like to volunteer please send an email to mholmes@uswrf.org. She will contact you for additional information.
  
  PLEASE NOTE: Volunteers will be asked to sign a Liability Waiver Form in New Orleans. Volunteers under the age of 18 cannot stay at Camp Hope but can volunteer with Habitat for Humanity. They will need guardian’s consent to participate at the HFH worksite.
  
  This and more rugby blogs can be found at http://westrugby.blogspot.com. Thanks!

NA4 Details

Wendy Young | July 3, 2007, 4:26 am

NA4 Details

Satiated Beaver Tour Day 6 -10

Wendy Young | June 25, 2007, 7:58 pm

Day 6 … according to Burns &quot3rd Degree&quot Chamberlain

Long Beach, California

Satiated Beavers Tour Day 5

Wendy Young | June 22, 2007, 9:28 pm

&nbspSatiated Beavers Tour Day 5

Day 5 … according to Stephanie &quotKitty&quot Dorsey

Las Vegas to Long Beach, Califas

What up! Here is Monday, Day 5 coming at you! While most Americans were starting their work week the Beavers were either still in bed or pool side sipping Bloody Marys. Around noon we packed up our kits and gifts for the Da Bus and rolled outta Vegas. Our ride to Cali would be a scorcher, good thing it was a short drive. When Shalay announced that we would be passing the world’s largest thermometer (fulfilling one of her punishments from Kangaroo court) it read a cool 105 degrees. Once we made it out of the desert and into the coastal plains, it was as if Da Bus’s A/C had turned on. The Beavers started to move around a bit more and you could fill the excitement of being in a new cooler state.

With several stops, including one at Peggy Sue’s for lunch, we arrived in Long Beach for our poolside BBQ hosted by the Belmont Shore Landsharks. It was my turn to give out the accessories and in true LBC fashion I had gold chains with a big $ sign for my fellow beavers. After friendly convo, burgers, chicken sausage, and beers we headed over to Miller’s where most of the beavers would be staying. Linda Miller is one of the Belmont Shore coaches and was also one of the first women to play rugby overseas representing the U.S. of A! Miller and Grace were awesome hosts. They put most of the Beavs in their back house next to their 1920’s crib that was about a mile from the beach. A couple of the other beavers stayed with Beef, Amy, and Brie who were equally amazing hosts. Beef and Chou Beaver were teammates in Florida so they got to catch up on the good ol’ days.

After we dropped our kits we walked down to 2nd street, the main drag in the LBC. Accompanied by a few Landsharks, our first stop was Panama Joe’s. In true Beaver fashion we quickly took over the local bar which included a cover band. The drinks flowed and the Beavers started shaking their tails! Many of the locals, especially the ladies, seemed intrigued by the beaver take over. We did look pretty pimp in our matching beaver shirts, visors, and gold chains. Before leaving Joe’s we walked it out, got a free round of shots from The Moose, and danced with some of the local ladies. Our next stop in the LBC was Belmont Station. We headed straight to the dance floor and tore that shit up! T-Hole even danced it up with an older gal when her husband refused to step on the dance floor. Last call was quickly announced and the Beavers headed to the front door. All of the sudden…dun dun duuun a fight broke out! From what I could see there were three ladies involved which included plenty of grabbing and hair pulling. As the Beavers witnessed the throw down they all had different reactions. T-Hole and Touche clung to each other, Bags threw her donuts, and Rocky headed straight for the action. Rocky, with her Gucci bag intact, broke up the fight by grabbing one of the girls from behind and threw her to the ground. A few moments later a second fight had started and this time it was 3rd Degree who stepped in to break it up. Thank goodness the amazing Beavers of the 512 were there to save the day! Still a little thirsty and with some dance left in us we looked for a third place to party but we were out of luck. On our way back to Miller’s the free shots and other spirits of the night had gone straight to our beaver bladders. We scattered into a neighborhood where some of us leaned against cars and the side of houses and peed in unison. Feeling much lighter we finished our stroll to Miller’s and headed to bed.

And that is Day 5 according to Kitty.

Satiated Beavers Day 4

Wendy Young | June 21, 2007, 3:49 am

Day 4 … according to Rachel &quotRocky&quot Osborn

Las Vegas

The day began with a call for breakfast. We were hungry beavers! We began walking up and down the strip, grabbing food, sipping drinks, playing slots and shopping for cheap Vegas crap… I mean thoughtful souvenirs. We took some fun pictures out and about.

Our Beaver &quotKitty&quot found the Kitty Club at Mandalay Bay. She was escorted off the stage.

WE won BIG on the world’s BIGGEST SLOT machine and sweated like beavers walking in the 115 degree heat.

The highlight of the day was Kangaroo Court poolside at the Paris Hotel. We began promptly at 4:18 pm PST and heinous crime after heinous crime was brought to the judge. And, par for the course, the judge’s decisions were unfair, cruel and frickin’ hilarious. The pictures of us chillin’ at the pool make me wonder if this is REALLY A RUGBY TOUR??? We ended up having drinks and appetizers poolside until it was time to head out for dinner. We loaded up Da Bus and made our way to McMullan’s Pub, the rugby team’s sponsor bar, for fantastic Shepherd’s Pie, Lobster Rolls, Potato Soup and Salmon. We ate and ran as we had FREE tickets to a Hypnotist show at 10:30 pm at the new Planet Hollywood Hotel (formerly Aladdin). Tiffany &quotT-Hole&quot and I both went on stage as hopeful volunteers and neither one of us was remotely hypnotized… the catch is that I left the stage and T-Hole faked like she was under and stayed on the stage acting a fool with the rest of the 12 or 13 people that REALLY were hypnotized. The Beavers cheered and were the most rowdy fans in the crowd. T-Hole represented well as she stomped around like a River Dancer, tried to pick up a man in drag (remember Wanda from In Living Color?), and competed in a &quotlolly pop&quot licking contest. Let’s just leave it at that.

Some of us were so exhausted that we could barely walk back to the hotel while most of the crowd continued to the casinos for some more late night gambling.

One interesting thing today is that I taught Bags and Burns to play Roulette… and created MONSTERS! My next call may be to Gamblers’ Anonymous as these two could not get enough of the game tables.

And that is Day 4 according to Rocky.

Satiated Beaver Tour Day 3

Wendy Young | June 21, 2007, 3:49 am

Day 3 … according to Rosalind &quotChou&quot Chou

Tempe to Las Vegas

Austin is synonymous with the phrase &ldquoKeepin&rsquo it Weird.&rdquo For we Austin based Satiated Beavers, it is unclear if it was Austin &ldquoweirdness&rdquo or the mysterious winds of Roswell, New Mexico that were responsible for our oddly, adventured-filled day three of da&rsquo bus tour.

All things seemed to be in order for the Beavs as we hit the road by 9:30am. We finally veered from Interstate 10 and were hit with beautiful scenery filled with Joshua trees. The temperature in the early morning was eighty-five degrees and it was only going to get hotter as we made our way to Las Vegas. As we trekked across the dessert, towns and filling stations became few and far between.

Lunchtime approached and we were hoping for a quick stop at a sandwich joint. We entered the town of Wikieup, AZ. It was the only town we had seen for miles and we were unsure when we would hit another. So, after driving down the main thoroughfare (which was about a half mile in length) Steph turned da&rsquo bus around in a dirt patch so that we could pick up some lunch at the Wikieup Trading Post. Rebelliously, we ignored the posting &ldquono buses&rdquo and unloaded.

An Old Western Trading Post is an acutely accurate description of our lunch destination. An old miner fortuneteller rests in the front hallway, which divides the store from the restaurant. We headed into the restaurant and one-by-one we ordered our sandwiches and burgers. We loitered in the middle of the dining area as three other tables of customers sat quietly enjoying their lunches. Suddenly, a table of four elderly patrons (two couples) began to sing as if they were a barbershop quartet, harmonizing, snapping in sync, and even Doo Wopping! Breaking into song is not really something you expect to happen in the everyday so, we stood mesmerized by the quartet. Apparently, they were an act called the &ldquoDouble Dates&rdquo that had just performed in Las Vegas and were heading home. They performed a total of three songs, and even emptied their booth to stand up for their finale which incorporated some synchronized dance movements. Bags was especially enamored by the performance and got their autographs, talking with them, and sharing our beaver tale. In return, we thought we should share our beaver song, but in retrospect, we should have just kept our song to ourselves. The 65+ year-old crowd did not find &ldquobeaver dives&rdquo and hip gyrations as amusing as our past crowds. Some of us were left feeling awkwardly embarrassed afterward, while others were very proud. Live and learn, right?

We boarded back onto our bus and again made our way to Las Vegas. The ride got hotter and hotter and we got sweatier and sweatier. We continually drank water and Gatorade, but we Beavers&rsquo thirst was NEVER satiated. We were more like the Dehydrated Beavers.

Signs began to appear for Hoover Dam, a modern man made wonder of the world. Most of us had never seen the dam before so there was much interest and curiosity in witnessing it for ourselves. The traffic came to a halt as we approached the dam. The road was filled with switchbacks and the water from Lake Mead was a shining turquoise blue.

[Disclaimer &ndash this rendition of what happened at the Hoover Dam does not represent the thoughts and opinions of all the Beavers, but can appropriately be called the most accurate. (I, Rosalind, will be leaving the collective voice of all beavers and give the perspective of those who were the beavers were out of the bus.)] *

A number of us decided to exit the bus and walk along the dam. Krafty and Steph stayed in the bus as parking was difficult to find and they had to keep moving with the flow of traffic. We walked along the backside of the dam and Shalay took pictures of the scenery. Next thing I know, I see my teammates (Rocky, Tiff, Shay, and Burns) running. Shalay, Bags, and I straggled and were bringing up the rear. The three of us were unclear about the urgency to catch the bus while the wonderment of the Dam was intoxicating. Shalay took more pictures, and asked Bags and I to pose alongside the ledge of the dam. There were large pillars along the dam that acted as restrooms with golden doors that were reminiscent of when it was built in the 1930s. We passed by some cub scouts and automated tour guide voices as we lost sight of our bus. As we approached the visitor center, we three spotted the bus waiting at a yield sign at the exit road from the parking garage. Concerned, we started to pick up our pace so that da&rsquo bus wouldn&rsquot block traffic. We did not make it in time and da&rsquo bus was forced to enter back on to the main road. Apparently, the other beavers were warring a Nazi-esque parking attendant who was unimpressed by our tale of woe.

Da&rsquo bus headed up the mountain, looking for a place to pull over so that we cold reunite our beaver family. Unfortunately, the road was so narrow and the shoulder so small that they had climb to the apex of the mountain until they were able to find a pull-off spot. Luckily, I had my cellular phone so we could remain in contact with da&rsquo bus. We wanted to march up the mountain, but a sign was clearly posted that no pedestrians were allowed past the parking garage. Hoping to appeal to the humanity of other Hoover Dam tourists, we thought we would thumb a ride with ease. Car after car passed us by, motorists shaking their heads as we attempted to communicate with them through closed windows. Bags attempted to talk to a group of three bikers, but they were carrying bags on their backseats and would not have room to tow us along. A security officer outside of the visitor center shouted at us from across the street:

Officer: You can&rsquot hitchhike. It&rsquos against the law.

Bags: We are just trying to get a ride to our bus. It&rsquos just up the hill.

Officer: Nope, sorry. Call a cab.

Call a cab? Really? In the dessert? With no help from the officer, we headed to the parking garage. We hoped to convince some tourists to help out wayward beaver ruggers before they entered their vehicles. First, we spoke to the parking lot attendant, ignorant of the fact that she had already had a run-in with da&rsquo bus. She referred us to the parking garage manager who said that we could walk up the hill, if and only if, we had permission from a security officer. That option was out. He informed us that we could tell our bus to turn around, but that this meant that we would have to cross over the dam, back to Arizona. This did not seem like an appealing option. Or the bus could come in the garage and pay $110 to &ldquopark&rdquo which really meant paying a ton of money to turn the bus around in the stinking garage.

Still in constant contact with our mother ship, we told them that a bit further down the road was a turn around spot for buses. The three of us continued to try to find a ride to no avail. We received a call that da&rsquo bus had turned around and the rest of the beavers were coming to get us. In true Hollywood fashion, the white bus came rolling down the hill as we waited behind a fenced barrier. As soon as da&rsquo bus came into close range, the three of us scaled the fence, ran across the street, dodging cars, and hopped into the bus. Rocky masterfully whipped the 13,000 pound beast of a bus around, crossing over the main road, onto the parking garage road, and then back out to the main road missing all obstacles or avoiding all of the curbs. It was incredible!

The beaver clan was reunited as no beavers are to be left behind. Imagine the bus scene in the movie The Graduate in the final scene where Dustin Hoffman and Katherine Ross hop on the city bus and sit there happily laughing together, well it was like that at first, but then we three stragglers were informed that we were to face some serious charges at the next kangaroo court for the most heinous of crimes.

Shortly after our dramatic afternoon adventure, we received a call that the Las Vegas team wanted to change our game time from Sunday afternoon, to that evening. We agreed that playing in the 100 degree 7pm weather would be better than 111 degrees the next day, even if we had been seating in the bus all day. We pressed on, fluid-less in the sweltering heat of the dry dessert.

We arrived at our hotel, the Paris, at 5:30pm. We have no further details to share because what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

On an end note, Tiffany just received a phone call from her uncle Eddie who is here in Vegas for his kids&rsquo soccer tournament. He informed Tiffany that the coach&rsquos dad for the soccer team was late in his arrival to Vegas because of a &ldquotraffic jam&rdquo at the Hoover Dam. It was established that we were there at the same time and it was revealed that we were in da&rsquo beaver bus. Uncle Eddie said, &ldquoOh, yeah. My niece also got held up on the Hoover Dam as well.&rdquo The coach&rsquos dad replied, &ldquoThey weren&rsquot stuck in the traffic jam, they WERE the cause of it!!&rdquo

Family, friends, fans, and foes of the beavers…just know that we are doing our best to gallivant across the country and leave our mark. Whether disrupting lunch at local eateries, or causing major traffic jams on state highways, people know The Satiated Beavers were here.

And that was Day 3 according to Chou.

Long Shot

Scrummy in England | May 31, 2007, 10:06 pm

I need a job.&nbsp Bad.&nbsp Upon graduating from Ox in mid-September, I will have acquired a nice bit of loans and will need to get an apartment, furniture and a million other things (as I practically sold everything I owned upon leaving the US).&nbsp While my background is finance, specifically analyzing derivatives, I want OUT of this and really would like to get into marketing strategy, esp. in sports.

So, upon my many searches, I came across the perfect job, the CEO of the London Wasps Rugby Team.&nbsp Knowing I didn&rsquot have a chance in the world, I decided to apply anyways in hopes that my r&eacutesum&eacute would be seen and there would be interest in me working for the Wasps in any capacity.&nbsp I got rejected, citing the lack of experience that other candidates offered.&nbsp I knew it was coming&hellip

What I didn&rsquot know was coming&hellip and surely not a month after my rejection was a call from the current Wasps CEO and Chairman.&nbsp He called to talk about my application and, to be honest, the conversation was the best and most thorough feedback I&rsquove ever gotten from a job application.&nbsp In a nutshell, they were impressed with me!&nbsp They liked my business background and what I could offer, but my weakness was the fact that I had no industry experience (apparently volunteering for rugby isn&rsquot considered a profession, although at times, it seems like a freakin&rsquo job!).&nbsp They actually considered me too they didn&rsquot toss my application the second they saw it!&nbsp And this was out of a pool of 98 applicants �&quot applicants that I can assume were much much more qualified than me.&nbsp Further, I was told that my coverletter and r&eacutesum&eacute were very well written and what I could offer was compelling.&nbsp WOW!&nbsp I&rsquom still in shock.&nbsp It was a great conversation, though and I&rsquom insanely excited that I was actually looked at.&nbsp Hopefully that wasn&rsquot the last phone call I&rsquoll get from the Wasps&hellip hopefully they&rsquoll find a place for me somewhere&hellip

MBATs—the Rugger Gals

Scrummy in England | May 23, 2007, 12:42 am

We came into MBATs with three formal training sessions, yet had never played together as a group (due to people missing practices because of classes, meetings, etc.).&nbsp My hopes were high for us- I knew we had great potential to kick some European touch rugby arse.



Our first game was against London Business School 2 (LBS is so big they entered 2 teams in EVERY sport).&nbsp We came out strong, but because we didn&rsquot really have our game plan together left some massive defensive gaps for LBS to run through.&nbsp Because of the 7-minute halves, LBS got the better of us and won 3-1.



Second game was versus ESADE, I think&hellip they were wearing purple&hellip&nbsp These poor girls looked like they never read the rules, let alone practiced together.&nbsp Whilst we won the game, the important part was that we came together as a team.&nbsp We figured out a configuration that worked for us, came together on the field and started to execute some moves.&nbsp It was beautiful.



Third game was versus Rotterdam School of Management.&nbsp They were tougher than ESADE and much bigger.&nbsp They also had the benefit of a girl who played rugby.&nbsp However, they were no match to Oxford.&nbsp We came out strong and hit em hard, meshing even more as a team.&nbsp It was in this game that one of our players transformed from the sweetest, nicest person you have ever met into a rugby-playing machine.&nbsp It was the emergence of Evil Tang Evil Tang made things happen&hellip



Next game was the quarter finals and versus a cheatin&rsquo IESE (who swept us the day before in football).&nbsp Like the prior game, our skills and defense versus IESE was flawless.&nbsp Whilst they were a tough team, it seemed we might have the best of them as we took a 1-0 lead.&nbsp However, IESE had a break-away&hellip it seemed for a minute that they might score, but then, outta nowhere, one of Oxford&rsquos ruggers tagged the IESE girl.&nbsp However, the cheatin&rsquo w* ran in for the try, denied the tag and tied the score 1-1.&nbsp We lost in overtime.



Final game was the 3rd/4th place game versus LBS 1.&nbsp We assumed they&rsquod be a tougher team than LBS 2, but were confident that we had come together and improved since our first game and we were right.&nbsp Everyone was exhausted and beat, but we looked like we could play forever and were determined to win.&nbsp My favorite parts of this game were when:

1. a girl on the other team complained that we were slapping instead of touching



2. Oxford&rsquos rowing cox (also a rugger) got in a fight with a girl on the other team regarding placement of the ball and the fight had to be broken up by the ref and some of our men ruggers



3. a LBS rugger complained to the ref that I was tackling her, yet I was the one with the ball and running at her, thus was in no position to tackle



Needless to say, the final 14 minutes of hard fought touch rugby paid off and we won the match 1-0, got a trophy and metals.



A special thanks to our coach and the men ruggers for standing behind us and cheering us on.