Im looking to get into wheelchair rugby, but can only seem to find teams around my area for quads.

Does anyone know where I can look for a team to join in the Nor Cal area? If not does anyone know it this even exists for para's?

Any help would be great. Thanks,


Marc

Technically it's a game for quads only - you're supposed to play basketball if you're a para or amp. It was developed as a game for quads with limited hand function who were unable to play basketball.

Doing a brief search, I'm finding references to paras and quads playing w/c rugby, but I can't locate a site where one could sign up.

But traditionally, it's a quad game....although I'm sure there are groups where paras play too. You could always just start your own team.

You won't be able to play quad rugby in any games or tournaments. Just like basketball, points determine the players on the court. And they only give points to people with some loss of function of their hands/arms (remember, the game is quad rugby, not wheelchair rugby).

With that being said, there's nothing stopping you from making a wheelchair rugby team that paras can play. You won't have any competition unless you can get other teams started as well, but there is nothing stopping you from doing it. You can also work with the local quad rugby team. The teams I've worked with love it when paras and join their practice because it gives them a chance to develop their skills against a higher ranked player (if paras got points in quad rugby) than they would otherwise get the chance to play against.

Point of clarification: the game IS called Wheelchair Rugby. Quads, Amps and CPs make up the majority of the players. Classification dictates your ability to play not whether you are a quad or not.

SUPPOSED to play basketball? supposed to? with all the other sports out there, telling people that they're supposed to play basketball is misleading. If as a new injury, I was told about weelchair softball or sled hockey or the hundred other possible activities it wouldn't have taken me 4 years to take back control of my life from video games.

It's been near a year since your post Thurston, but if you were looking into rugby for the physicality, try sled hockey. full checking!! or find a local team of rugby players and just practice with them.

If I was a para, I'd be a Sled Hockey boy! Saw bits-n-pieces on youtube........freakn awesome!

thats what I like to hear. it is freakin awesome!

Point of re-clarification, in the USA it IS called Quad Rugby, and the governing body is the USQRA (United States Quad Rugby Association). In the USA, some impairment in all 4 limbs IS a quad, be it CP, paralysis, amp, or whatever. Not wanting to start a fight, just wanting to clarify for those in the USA the true details. As for paras playing, find a team and see if you can practice with them. We used to have a para who practiced with our team, and though he couldnt compete in games, he did enjoy practicing and helping and being a part of the team regardless.

My use of the term "quad" was to replace quadriplegic. Each country that plays the game under it's own governing body (eg. USA=USQRA, Australia=WRA-Wheelchair Rugby Australia). Internationally the game in governed by the International Wheelchair Rugby Federation. Bottom line is Murderball=Quad Rugby=Wheelchair Rugby.

here this web site should tell you what ever you need to know quad rugby

or IWRF.
Interesting to note that under IWRF rules:

To be eligible to play, individuals must have a disability which affects both the arms and the legs. They must also be physically capable of propelling a manual wheelchair with their arms. Athletes with neurological disabilities must have at least three limbs with limited functions; athletes with non-neurological disabilities must have limited function in all four limbs.

The majority of Wheelchair Rugby players have spinal cord injuries which have resulted in full or partial paralysis of the legs and partial paralysis of the arms. Other disability groups who are represented include polio, cerebral palsy, some forms of muscular dystrophy, dysmelia, amputations, and other neurological conditions such as Guillain-Barré Syndrome. Men and women are classified equally and compete on the same teams; there are not separate teams for men and women’s competitions.

Hey there. I've been playing quad rugby for two years now. While the name is still quad rugby, it is fastly becoming wheelchair rugby. As you would suspect, being a T-11/12, i have been asked what I am doing playing quad rugby. I joined the sport just hopeing between my SCI and a shoulder impairment, I would be able to squeeze in on clasification, and if not, get enough experience to coach. Well it turns out, that they loss of any function above the waist counts. it doesn't have to be in the arms specificly. I was worried prior to classifications, but I saw so many who have been playing for years with the same functional ability as myself. I don't have anything wrong with my arms short of a little range of motion issue with my right shoulder. BUT, I have absolutly no waist control. i.e. if i'm sitting on a flat bench with nothing to brace on, I fall over like a tree. I was hopeing to squeeze in as a 3.5, but ended up getting a 3.0. So, depending on your functionality, you may be able to play competitavely. Defininetly give yourself the opportunity, and let the USQRA have the say on the matter.

That being said, even if you are not eligable for competitave play, you can always play just to play, with anyone who can hop in a chair and play AB's included. I know plenty of AB's who love to come to our practices and hop into an availble chair and play with us. Sense we are a small team at the moment, we can always use the extra players. So check on Quadrugby.com and if there is a local team see if they don't mind you comming out to play. More often then not, they will welcome you with open arms. It may be technically a game for quads, but the more attention it gets the bigger and better it will become.

I reckon there a lot of punching going on in para rugby!

But,why not have para rugby?I am feckin hopeless at basketball!And SUPPOSED to play basketball?Nooo.

I just played chair rugby for the first time tonight and it was AWESOME!!! I was over at Variety Village ( http://www.varietyontario.ca/village/index.htm ) in the Toronto area and it was sort of a right place, right time kind of thing. Every Wednesday night is rugby night (it's actually organized by Erika Schmutz, who is the only female member on that Canadian national team) and they had a spare chair that would fit me, needed a player, and asked if I wanted to play. Being a para, I'm not sure that I can play on the elite levels but my ab/trunk function is affected by my injury so I think that would mean I would qualify if I ever got serious about playing. On the rec levels, anybody in a chair can play, whether you are quad/para/other mobility issue. I've never played before and had no idea about any of the rules but I'm super competitive and aggressive in sports and I think I scared the crap out of some of the boys, haha. The chair was really cool, total space age Mad Max chair, though the way you push the wheels takes some getting used to. I have no idea what kind of chair it was and I know absolutely nothing about rugby chairs. I used an abdominal binder since the chair had a really low back and kind of like in monoskiing (where I also use an ab binder) I needed that extra trunk stability in order to make full use of the ab function that I have. Anyway, it's a great way to get aggressions out and I can't believe how fun it was! It's also one hell of a workout. I'm think I'm going to regularly start playing since I can use the borrowed rugby chair I used tonight. Fun!

And, btw, reading the above posts, I have to say that no one should be told what sports they are "supposed" to play. Yeah, on the higher levels of chair rugby there's detailed classifications but not one of the quads on the team tonight had a problem with me 'only' being a para. Everyone was really welcoming. They were excited that they had someone new playing, especially since I told them I want to regularly play. If you want to play rugby, play it! Teams can be balanced out by level of function. If someone tells you you can't do something, don't listen. There's always a way to get active and have fun.

if your a para you coould always play wheelchair rugby league (there are a feww club about the place) or you could invent a way to play wheelcahir rugby union (ive got a few ideas that i will share with you when ive more time- it far too late now)