Family on the Field

If you, like so many others, seek to make significant changes in your life, the New Year is a time for resolutions, such as that long-dormant goal to stay in shape. To do so, you might want to consider joining up with some other like-minded gay men and play with some balls. Soccer balls, that is. Lucky for you, Long Beach has such an opportunity available with the Long Beach Waverunners, the city's only gay soccer team.

Established in 2007 by longtime Los Angeles soccer club members Hans Laursen and Eddie Valazquez, the Waverunners gave local athletes and, um, athletic supporters an opportunity to participate in a team function within their own community and stay in shape while building solid friendships.

"On the surface, our team is about promoting the sport of soccer, fitness and physical well-being with the gay community," says Waverunner Coach Tommy McCall, a longtime soccer player who was promoted from team player to coach within a year of joining the team in 2011. "But our primary reason for being is to provide a community to any LGBTQ person who needs one. We don't care about the skills you bring to the table. We don't hold tryouts. We never exclude. All are welcome to join us and become a part of something that goes beyond the game we play."

Acknowledging the exclusion of openly gay athletes on sports teams throughout history, McCall says that the Waverunners face a challenge specific to the gay community.

"Our biggest problem continues to be convincing people to give organized sports a try," he explains. "A lot of gay men are sports-averse. I think part of it has to do with the alienation from sports we felt growing up, as the typical locker room is a pretty homophobic place. The antipathy towards sports that developed in us as a result is a hard thing to overcome."

Additionally, McCall continues, "let's face it: Soccer is a pretty demanding sport, even at the recreational level we participate in. There's a certain level of commitment and responsibility you have to give it. Whereas some [sports teams] can party on the town the night before a match - some even during - a soccer player has to respect his body and treat it accordingly. You can't get away with showing up less than fit and rested on game day. That's one of those truths we can't do anything about and it presents a significant consideration for anyone looking to become a part of a team."

McCall points out, however, that scrutiny from the other players may give resolution-averse members added incentive to fulfill those New Year's goals once and for all. "Nothing is worse than hitting the field with a hangover, let me tell you," he says with a chuckle. "Your teammates will notice."

A new recruit will be joining a team that has already seen its share of victories, including inclusion as the only primarily-gay team in the Latin American Football Club in Long Beach, where they wound up being the runners-up in the club's league championship, placing fifth out of 13 teams in the 2011 Vancouver OutGames and scoring inclusion in a widely seen series of advertisements for Los Angeles's Condom Campaign, which plastered images of the players across billboards, buses and magazines throughout Southern California.

For McCall, however, the Waverunners' biggest accomplishment remains the feeling of inclusion that all the club's team members feel. "I love when we can bring in a new recruit - someone who may have never heard of us before - whether they're experienced or not," he professes. "Someone who simply wants a place to be himself and a place to belong."

Citing the many friendships he has formed with club members, McCall adds, "The team is more than a team or an organization involved in the community; it's a community in and of itself."

For more information on the Long Beach Waverunners go to longbeachgaysoccer.com