Cincinnati Broomball

How do people from the Midwest amuse themselves in the Winter?  Apparently, some play Broomball (ice hockey, but with broom-like sticks and sneakers) at night in the freezing cold in downtown Cincinnati!  You can see that this area is tucked among the buildings in the downtown. Did you notice the red star? That star is 5 feet across and sits on top of the 65-foot Christmas tree that illuminated Fountain Square over the holidays.

Crazy, but fun, right?  I tell you, these people were having a blast participating in the HGC Broomball League in Fountain Square.  This is a major part of a Cincinnati Winter.  The link above shows that this league is comprised of 40 teams!  Amazing. 

We had just finished dinner at The Rock Bottom Brewery around eight o'clock and the lights and cheers of this game lured us over.  The announcers lively commentary (and the fact that the game was being broadcast on a jumbo tron screen) made the whole experience feel authentic.  I mean, if you are going to leave work, layer on a ridiculous amount of clothes to ward off the cold and give your all "out on the ice," you should at least have some fanfare, right?

I cringed over crashes and wipe outs, but I could tell that in Winter, this is where their heart is.  At Fountain Square, out on the ice.