Coney Island Beach & Boardwalk

The Daily Plant : Thursday, August 19, 2004

NEW YORKERS SPIKE UP THE WEEKEND AT SNAPPLE’S CITYWIDE BEACH VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT

Despite gloomy skies, intermittent rain and the looming threat of a major tropical storm, volleyball players from across New York came out to compete in Snapple’s Citywide Beach Volleyball Tournament last weekend at beaches and parks throughout the city. Now in its eighth year, the five-borough tournament culminated on Sunday at Coney Island Beach, where 100 finalists competed for $3,000 in cash prizes. In the end, Manhattan captured the Men’s title while the Women’s went to a pair from Staten Island.

Borough preliminaries were held Saturday at Orchard Beach, Coney Island, Far Rockaway, South Beach, Riverside Park and Central Park. Prospective players came out at 9 a.m. to kick off two days of non-stop beach volleyball action. The rain held off for much of the day, and all boroughs were able to complete the preliminary rounds. Winning teams moved on to Sunday’s citywide finals at Coney Island.

Fears of Tropical Storm Charlie getting in the way of play proved overblown, and on Sunday at around 12 p.m., after a morning of intermittent rain, the citywide finals at Coney Island got underway. The best of the boroughs took to the soggy sand to compete in five divisions, including open, intermediate, novice, coed fours, and junior coed fours—it was five hours of non-stop volleyball action just steps from the bustling Coney Island boardwalk. Players played and onlookers mingled and at the end of the day there was prize money to be awarded.

"This year’s citywide beach volleyball championship was a huge success with a brand new junior division and widely successful Learn to Play clinic," said Dave Kovall of Parks & Recreation’s Marketing and Special Events division, which helped coordinate the two-day tournament. "Thanks to the support of our sponsors and the hard work of Parks & Recreation employees, we were once again able to hold this great annual event."

Topping off some impressive volleyball were plenty of giveaways provided by the event’s sponsors. Snapple was on hand with free water and iced tea, while Smuckers satisfied hungry onlookers with "Crustable" peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Along with the cash prizes, tournament winners received free sneakers provided by Nike. Additional event sponsors included the New York Post, Viacom and WKTU.

This year’s tournament featured a Learn to Play clinic where around 30 participants learned basic volleyball skills. The clinic was designed to give New Yorkers of all ages the basics of the game of volleyball. Lead by a professional volleyball instructor, participants young and old learned how to spike and block on the court. And best of all, an appearance was made by Cyclones mascot Sandy the Seagull. 

Written by Ashe Reardon

QUOTATION FOR THE DAY

"Every man is a volume if you know how to read him."

William Ellery Channing
(1810-1884)