Rusty

The 2005 Vancouver women's hockey tournament is less than two weeks away, and I'm starting to panic. Up 'til now I've been 98% excited, 2% nervous, but now I'm finding that nervous is now running closer to 68% or so. I'm still thrilled to be returning to my favorite tournament (not to mention the Holiday Inn North Vancouver, which is such a nice place to stay), but I'm a little worried about being completely rusty hockeywise.

I've only been on the ice twice since I got pregnant over a year ago, and both times were at public skates (and only for about 15 minutes each time). What if I can't remember how to set up a triangle or break out? What if I can't pass worth a damn? What if I'm a total spaz and forget to play position, go offsides constantly, or line up on the wrong side at the faceoff circle?

GOOD LORD, WHAT IF I CAN'T REMEMBER HOW TO PUT ON MY GEAR???

OK, I think chances are good that I'll remember how to put on my gear. (I always have my old instructions about how to put on hockey gear to use as a reference, if I forget.) I do worry a bit about things not fitting, however; even though I've lost the last bit of baby weight that I mentioned in my March 15 post, my body shape *is* a bit different than it was pre-pregnancy.

Other things I'm worried about include:

• Timing Austen's feedings so that he's not screaming with hunger while I'm on the ice. Luckily he doesn't *need* to eat every two hours like he used to when he was really little, but sometimes he still likes to.
• Getting to Vancouver with a stroller, a hockey bag, two sticks, a suitcase, and a baby. Two things that will make this easier than it otherwise would be: I rented a car with a car seat (so we don't have to bring ours), and Al will be coming, too.
• That car seat availability is not guaranteed until we pick up the car. What the heck does that mean, anyway? "We can only guarantee that you'll get a car seat... after we've given it to you?" If that car seat ain't there, we can't leave the airport.
• The 3.5-hour layover in Chicago. This will be our first time traveling to the tournament from the east coast, and there don't seem to be any direct flights from Philly. We had to choose between 45-minute layovers in Chicago, 1-hour layovers in San Francisco, or 3.5-hour layovers in Chicago. On the advice of the woman sitting next to me on the plane to San Francisco last month (who's flown cross-country several times with her small children), we took the long Chicago layover. "The time will fly by," she said, given the feeding, diaper-changing, and gate-hopping that will need to be done. (By "feeding", I'm referring to Al, btw. ;) I hope so.
• Getting injured. I'm seriously so rusty that playing four (and possibly five) games in three days might kill me, even if no one falls on me, takes my legs out, or sticks a bench in my path.

The above list would make you think that the nervous percentage is a bit higher than the previous estimate of 68... but I'm finding that just writing about hockey makes me remember things I thought I'd forgotten (not least being how much fun it is). Call it excited: 54%, nervous: 46%. Good enough to play, I'd say.

Posted by Lori in Vancouver Tournament 2005 | May 17, 2005·09:58 PM