The last time I played volleyball was in 1990, when I tried out for Ms. Vogel’s volleyball team at Westfield Junior High. Ms. Vogel didn’t think I had the right stuff. And she was right. My serves hit the net. Or the ceiling. I had no control over the ball or my body or whether I instinctively “ducked and covered” any time the ball came my way. In a nutshell: I stunk.
Considering I’ve done absolutely nothing to improve my volleyball skills since then, it’s safe to say it’s one of many team sports that I continue to stink at.
But that doesn’t mean I don’t fancy a night of friendly volleying every now and then. And it turns out there’s just such an opportunity twice a month in Portland.
The Volleyball for All group meets the first and third Tuesdays of the month from 6:15 to 8 p.m. at the First Baptist Church on Canco Road in Portland. It’s as informal as informal can be – just show up in comfortable clothes and you’ll be welcomed with open volleyball arms. The teams are switched up after every game, which means there’s more camaraderie building that competition.
And everyone playing seems to have equal parts of volleyball enthusiasm and oops, I just hit the ball into the overhead ventilation system again. My point: Even if you haven’t played volleyball since you were a pre-teen (and were pretty bad at it even then) you won’t feel out of your element here.
In fact, you might even surprise yourself with a sweet save or string of serves that go over the net, as if you did it on purpose.
Jamie Terrilyn, one of the group’s organizers, said the whole point is just to get together and have a good time. She helped start the group with some friends and fellow volleyball fans simply for the fun of it. And the group is called “Volleyball for All” for a reason: It’s for everyone. Any level. For free.
So go ahead, check it out. 6:30 to 8 p.m., first and third Tuesday of the month. FREE.
FMI: Check out the Volleyball for All Facebook group and email Karen, the organizer, at kabogart2@maine.rr.com.
Note: This post was originally published on Oct 25, 2015
