Forget skates; grab a broom and get a workout on the ice

The sunny 70-degree days are gone for a few months and that means outdoor sporting activities have come to a close (unless you are a professional football player or love to battle the wind and cold). Fortunately, for those of you who are ready to move your workout indoors, there are plenty of options to choose from - including broomball.

Broomball is similar to hockey, but different because there are no skates - sort of a combination between ice hockey and floor hockey.

"It is called broomball because (the game involves) a 7-inch rubber ball and a 'broom,' which is a wooden dowel with a plastic - triangular wedge at the bottom," says Nanci Fragassi, Operations Manager at the Robert CrownIce Complex in Evanston, where broomball leagues are held from September through December and January through May.

Think this is a new, weird sport? Nope. Broomball got its start in Canada in the early 1900s by streetcar workers using a small soccer ball and small corn brooms and was introduced in the States during the 1930s.

"All games and rentals are played on the studio rink which is 60-by-80 feet and the players play on roughed up ice," Fragassi says. "Games are 45 minutes long consisting of three to 15 minute periods. The rules are just like hockey, but it is played with four players and one goalie versus five players and one goalie."

Just like hockey, there are penalties and time outs, and each team scores points by getting the ball in the other team's goal.

But unlike hockey, you don't have to be an expert skater. You do have to be ready for the challenge of getting around that ice rink in your shoes (you can wear gym shoes, any shoe with a heavy tread or special broomball shoes with rubber grippers on the bottom),

"Broomball is a total body workout" Fragassi says. "It is played like hockey with a lot of running, sliding, stickhandling and sweating."

The next series of league games at the Robert Crown Ice Complex begin in January and the games are played on Sundays. The cost to play is $765 per team. For more information, you can contact Nanci Fragassi at Nfragassi@cityofevanston.org or (847) 448-8258 ext. 2523. The complex also offers broomball private rentals for special occasions. You can also check out sportsmonster.net/chicago/broomball for information on leagues or usabroomball.com.

Haven't you always been slightly curious to see what it is like to run on ice with your shoes and not get in trouble for it?