Remember the old days running around in your cape, protecting the neighborhood from evil forces lurking within the shadows? Or the days spent besting your classmates at dodgeball in a physical education class on an elementary school playground or gymnasium? Now’s your chance to combine the two into one epic event and the best part is — it’s geared toward adults.
Torian Brown, the athletic director at the Pascagoula Parks and Recreation Department, said city leaders want to enhance adult recreation and thought a dodgeball tournament would be a fun way to include grownups in city programs.
“Once someone surpasses the age of 18 there’s not a lot of recreational offerings,” Brown said. “But, there’s a huge need for it and we decided to bring back a classic, childhood favorite.”
Play is Saturday, Jan. 28 from 1 p.m. until the last team loses. Participants are asked to wear a favorite superhero or villain costume because no one wants a secret identity reveal. Players are asked to invite sidekicks, too.
Brown said if you can’t don a cape and tights, just come dressed in a pair of your favorite superhero or villain socks.
“Anything wacky or tacky,” he said.
Brown was tight-lipped about the reward but said the team crowned the grand champion of dodgeball would win a substantial prize.
The deadline to register is Wednesday, Jan. 25 and the registration fee is $75 a team. Businesses and individual groups or teams are encouraged to participate. There is a six-player roster minimum and an eight-player roster maximum. Match play is set for the best two out of three games. Each team is guaranteed a minimum of four games, which will be played in sets.
Now send out a bat signal to get your team ready and always remember the 5 Ds of the game, according to that golden line from dodgeball master Patches O’Houlihan in the 2004 hit “Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story” — dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge.
Oh, and if you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball, according to O’Houlihan.
Register online by clicking here. You can also email Brown at [email protected] or reach out to the parks and recreation department at (228)938-2356 for additional information.