Quidditch for Muggles

My husband's university holds an open house and family day every spring, and this year the highlight of the event for Monkeys1&2 was Quidditch. Yes, the sport of wizards like Harry Potter, played on broomsticks, has been translated into Muggle(non-magical) form and is played on many college campuses as a club sport. The university team was facilitating games all day, with team members explaining the rules and playing alongside excited children.

I had seen a video clip a few years ago of a Quidditch World Cup hosted by Middlebury College, so I had a vague idea of what to expect. We came to the Quidditch pitch area, this day part of the softball outfield, just as a game was starting, so we all sat on the grass and watched. People were running around with broomsticks, hurling partly deflated dodge balls at each other or trying to toss a volleyball into one of several hoops set up on tall posts. And then someone in bright yellow shorts and T-shirt ran across the field, two players in hot pursuit to catch him and end the game. The Monkeys ate their snacks and were excited to join the next game.

They were given brooms to ride, and Monkey2 promptly mounted hers backwards. My husband and I were laughing so hard we didn't get a picture of that before Monkey1 corrected her sister. The group of gathered children divided up and went to opposite ends of the field, where they were instructed to close their eyes for the release of the Snitch. The yellow shorts and T-shirt guy ran off to hide. Then play began, two Seekers running off the field to to try to find the Snitch, some players (Chasers) tried to grab a volleyball and score points by tossing it through hoops on top of poles, avoiding other players (Beaters) who threw several partly deflated dodge balls at them to stop them from scoring.

Monkey2 was the smallest player on the field. Within the first few minutes she fell off her broom; I think she tripped over herself. Monkey1 had a great assist also at the beginning of the game. My husband videoed the action while I nursed Monkey3, and we chatted with another parent. Her daughter, one of the Seekers, came over after a bit, and we asked her, "Aren't you supposed to be looking for the Snitch?"

"Yeah, but he's hiding over there by the fire truck [part of a safety demonstration], and I feel silly running around there with a broom. Over here, it's okay with the game and everyone else. But over there I just look silly. He said he'd come back here in awhile, so I'll just wait."

We all laughed. Ah the truth of her words! Here we were watching our children run around on broomsticks, throwing balls at each other, while at home we probably would be shouting, "Put that down! You're going to get hurt!" Call it a game from a book, and suddenly we entered a different world.

The Quidditch match lasted a bit less than ten minutes. Monkeys1&2 rejoined us, panting and happy and tired. Their Quidditch debut, at Daddy's school. A great day for my little Harry Potter fans, born the years books six and seven were published.