How is it for a begineer to get into playing ice hockey in the UK?
608446
Not hard at all geezer if there is an ice rink near to you then all you have to do is go down and ask at the main desk most ice rinks have a quite established league and are always looking for new people to join in. If they cant give you an answer there is always the local show off on the ice who more than likely plays hockey just ask him
940160
To my knowledge, there are 4 ice rinks in London that are there all year round: Alexandra Palace, Lee Valley, Streatham and Queens in Bayswater. For the best venue for location  I would say Alexandra Palace or Queens. There will be learn to skate courses with qualified instructors or you can try a general public session where you will find marshalls to oversee the sessions, however they cannot provide tuition. \nTo be honest a beautiful place/setting to skate is not entirely covered by the rinks I have mentioned and over Christmas there are a number of temporary ice rinks erected over London which are outside and are a great place to skate. The natural history museum and Hampton court are two such places that are beautiful settings to skate in. However they generally do not have instructors to provide tuition. It is best to buy tickets for these ice rinks online beforehand as there sessions are very popular over the xmas period and can become full.
968173
Friend,\nI didn't learn to play hockey until I was 34.\nPlaying in adult leagues is not to be compared to high school or college games.  The speed alone would wipe us out.  But the principles are the same.............positioning is the key.  You have to read the plays and anticipate where to be.  Your position on the ice is the key to your success or failure.
1162968
There are some great skills programs at the Foxboro Sports Center.  Check out foxborosportscenter.com.\n\nHowever, "inexpensive" and "hockey" are pretty much mutually exclusive terms. lol
650187
Depends if your good enough, if you are young enough try and qualify through various schools.. idid it. and i am still playing semi pro 15 years later when i was first scouted .\n\nBELIEVE IN YOURSELF.
42361
Hockey No Doubt. It Is Legal To Check You, It Is Legal To Fight ( It Results In A 5 Min Penalty But Talk To The Players And Its Worth It )You Have To Know How To Ice Skate, ( Which Can Be Murder On Your Ankles Especially If You Dont Know How To Skate ) Oh And Did I Mention The Puck Comes At You At Speeds Of 98 MHP?!!!!!! Yes Its Hockey
880364
Snowboarding is an expensive sport and it is very rare to find a place which offers such an intense course. It is best to get private intuition as group sessions can only progress at the slowest students level, but perserverance is very rewarding. Here is a site that gives you information on starting Snowboarding.\nhttp://www.doctordanger.com/other/Snowboarding2.html\n\nHere is a site where you can find a snowboarding school in the UK.\nhttp://www.snowlife.org.uk/directory/default.asp?searchsect=skiboard_schools
753023
Ha! Not much chance of that mate. I'm sure people play it here, but you'll have to get your gear ordered in from overseas. And finding a team will be really difficult. Try rugby. Or League. Heaps of people play it, and it's easy to find a team and gear.
129205
It depends on what your goals are.  If you're a beginner, balance and uneven pavement will be your greatest obstacles.  If you have ever skated on ice, you'll be ahead of the game.  If not - take some lessons.  Common injuries to beginners are usually to the wrists and the head.  Wear a wrist guards and a helmet.  Here's a beginner's tip for you:  learn to glide/roll on one skate at a time to develop better balance.
336635
Even better.  hang out with hockey fans.  Go to games with them.  IF they are good they will help by explaining things to you.  That's things that I do with my friends that aren't big hockey fans, but are interested.  I help increase their knowledge and therefore their love of the game.
589138
Ice hockey is played with two teams having six players on each side on the ice at a time.  Each team has five skaters and one goaltender, who stands guarding a net at each end (a red line called the goal line).  \n\nThe object of the game is to gain possession of the puck (a disc of vulcanized rubber that's deceptively small and alarmingly hard when you get smacked with it (inevitably on the two inches of your body that aren't currently covered by padding)), and work with your team to get the puck into the other team's net.\n\nMuch like in other games like soccer and basketball, the strategy of the game is two-part:  offense and defense.  The five skaters on the ice are designated as either forwards (offense) or defense (defense), with two of each of those (right wing, left wing and right defense and left defense (usually you say right or left D)).  The fifth skater is a center, whose job is to cover both ends, assisting with defense in front of the net, and driving plays coming out on offense.\n\nThere are far too many rules in hockey to cover here.  They have to do with everything from the face-off -- where the puck is dropped by the ref where play stopped or at center ice -- to what kind of contact is illegal versus legal -- you can push and shove in front of the net but you can't whack somebody with your stick, for example -- to what can be done where on the ice, which is divided up by lines.\n\nThe lines are what really differentiate regulation hockey from "pond" hockey, which is hockey in its simplest (and some might argue purest and most fun) form.  The lines are the goal line where the net is, and the two blue lines, which form a "neutral" zone in the center of the ice.  The zone where your goalie is, behind the blue line closest to you, is "your" zone.  After you cross the neutral zone over the other blue line, you're in enemy territory (aka "their zone" or for real, the offensive side (and believe me, some teams are move offensive than others)).\n\nIf you think the lines are confusing now, just wait until you hear this next part.  Ready?  Coming out of your zone, you can do anything you want with the puck.  Go back, forth, across the blue line, up and down the blue line, anything you want.\n\nBut when you get to "their" blue line, the puck carrier has to cross first.\n\nThis is apparently the single most difficult rule to understand in hockey, for players and spectators alike.  So let me explain it again.\n\nIf you're coming out of your zone towards the offensive zone, the person with the puck *has* to cross the far blue line first.  If anyone else does, they're "offsides" and play stops and everyone gets all crabby and if you're the one who blew a really good play by getting your skate ahead of your linemate who had the puck, you're all embarassed and some girl in the stands is going "wait, why did they stop play, now?" and it's just bad all around.\n\nThat's just one rule that has to do with the lines.  There are others.  Icing, which is basically just an excuse for the ref to blow a whistle after you've sprinted end to end, and then gloat while you limp wheezing to the faceoff.  There's also a rule called a two line pass rule, which is basically an offsides rule and everyone ignores it anyway.\n\nThere are also rules about what you can and can't do around and with the goalie, most of which you get thumped by the goalie for doing anyway, and if not the goalie his or her enforcer.  Not that I'm speaking from experience.\n\nEvery time you get the puck in the net (their net, not yours) you get a point.  Regulation games are played in three 20 minute periods, which usually wind up being longer on account of all the time people spend between whistles arguing their case with the refs.\n\nHockey is played with sticks, and there's rules around what you can and can't do with your stick (e
474757
Most historians place the roots of hockey in the chilly climes of northern Europe, specifically Great Britain and France, where field hockey was a popular summer sport more than 500 years ago. When the ponds and lakes froze in winter, it was not unusual for the athletes who fancied that sport to play a version of it on ice.\n\nNot surprisingly, the earliest North American games were played in Canada. British soldiers stationed in Halifax, Nova Scotia, were reported to have organized contests on frozen ponds in and around that city in the 1870s, and about that same time in Montreal students from McGill University began facing off against each other in a downtown ice rink. The continent's first hockey league was said to have been launched in Kingston, Ontario, in 1885, and it included four teams.\n\n\n\ninfo from: http://www.nhl.com/hockeyu/history/evolution.html
763630
You need to become a Uk citizen first.
843886
you can go on websites these places are amazing cuz i play hockey too and this is how i get my gear\n\nhockey1.com\n1800faceoff.com\npurehockey.com\n\nhope this helps you at all
1125012
If you are familiar with Ice Hockey, it will help you understand some of the rules, like offside and delay of game. Although, this game dosen't have a sin bin or goalies covered in padding. I would look on wikipedia or go to your local library and have a look about. You will definatley fall in love with this beautiful game.
289056
you need to be playing in a team and then hopefully get spotted thats what i did when i lived in scotland i played for a local team and then got picked for trials with ross county football club but i never made it. its not easy but good luck just look at people like bobby convey he is ace and he plaays for my fave team reading. so just try your hardest and see how you go. good luck
406119
It's certainly cool here in England (we call it football)and it is the world's most popular sport. Look out for the Football World Cup starting in Germany this June. The US have qualified and will have done well if they get to the knock out stages. The first games are on a 4 team, league basis with 3 points for a win, 1 for a draw and none for a loss. They play each other once, 3 games in total. The top 2 teams in each group qualify for the next rounds where it becomes a straightforward knockout in each match. Win - and you advance towards the final. It is a hell of a lot bigger than the Olympics, although most Americans do not know of it's existence. Get your kids playing on to an adult level. With your population you should be worldbeaters - but you are nowhere near it. Catch the World Cup on TV if you can. The atmosphere will be phenomenal!