Wheels up

Hidden away behind hospital buildings at the VA Medical Center in Brockton, out of sight of motorists on Route 123, a nationally ranked sports team is quietly building a softball dynasty.

The New England chapter of Paralyzed Veterans of America calls its stretch of regulation asphalt the "Field of Dreams." To the players, it's simply the Brockton VA, the only wheelchair softball field in New England and the place where the NEPVA Red Sox are getting ready this summer to win their third national championship.

There's not a blade of grass on this softball diamond, nor a stitch of fake turf. It's pure asphalt, with bases and baselines painted on the blacktop. Across that landscape, the players use the strength of their forearms and biceps to propel their wheelchairs, catching fly balls and fielding grounders.

"We go hard," said second baseman Damon Isles, 34. "When we get knocked out of our chairs, we get right back up."

The team includes a dozen players ages 23 to 62. They come from across Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and they travel around the country to play. Their closest competition -- the United Spinal Yankees and the United Spinal Mets -- is in New York.

"We have a great bunch of guys," said right fielder Thomas Dodd . "We're all very competitive. We can't go through an airport without trying to race each other."

Ryland Page, 28, who is quadriplegic, is one of four veterans on the roster. Six years ago, Page was serving in the Navy when he suffered a rare auto-immune reaction to a vaccine that left him paralyzed. The 6-foot-4 former marathon runner plays what is known as "quad rugby" as well as wheelchair softball, and prides himself on not becoming "fodder for another . . . Lifetime movie."

Page was named "Best Quad" and "Best Rookie" for his performance during last year's Major League Baseball Wheelchair Softball Tournament at Shea Stadium. (The quadriplegics who play softball still have some functionality in at least one of their upper limbs, which allows them to catch and throw. They are allowed to bunt, and may customize their bats so they are easier to grip.)

Isles has been in a wheelchair since March 2002, after he was diagnosed with transverse myelitis, a rare neurological disorder caused by inflammation of the spinal cord. A self-professed "sports fanatic," Isles joined the NEPVA Red Sox four years ago, after hearing about the team through a friend. He signed up immediately, eager to play instead of just watching from the sidelines.

"I need this; this is my outlet," he said. "I'm the kind of guy who wants to be in the game. You can only watch so many games."

Isles said he enjoys the camaraderie of the NEPVA Red Sox, as well as the physical exercise.

"It's the adrenaline rush when we're out there, and the challenge," he said. "It's therapeutic."

The NEPVA Red Sox play hard, but they also keep a sense of humor. During a recent practice, a hard line drive smacked pitcher Ray Beers in his shin. When his teammates asked if he was all right, Beers responded with a smirk and said, "Don't worry. I couldn't feel a thing!"

The NEPVA Red Sox are one of the few adult wheelchair softball clubs on the East Coast. Most teams are in the Midwest, where the sport developed in the 1970s. The National Wheelchair Softball Association credits Sioux Falls, S.D., as the birthplace of organized wheelchair softball. After the Sioux Wheelers formed in 1970, other wheelchair softball teams started popping up in places such as Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, and Illinois.

The National Wheelchair Softball Association, based in Denver, has been the governing body of the sport since 1976. It adopted a standard set of rules for the game, which is similar to slow-pitch softball, with a few twists.

The biggest difference is the ball field. Wheelchair softball games are played on hard surfaces, such as concrete or asphalt. The bases are flat, and there is no pitcher's mound. Games are played with a 16-inch ball, which is softer than a typical softball, so most fielders play bare-handed.

Wheelchair softball spread to the Northeast in the late 1990s, and the first game in New York was played in 1999. Around that same time, a group of local wheelchair athletes had started playing softball games in the parking lot of the Massachusetts Hospital School in Canton.

Those informal games -- "It was just a small pickup game with a bunch of guys," recalls Dodd -- evolved into a full-fledged team, and the NEPVA Red Sox were born. The team joined the National Wheelchair Association in 2000.

"We came out of nowhere," said Dodd, 39. "Within a year of forming the team, we were competing in the nationals. From there it progressed."

Last August, the NEPVA Red Sox won their second consecutive Division 2 National Championship at the 2006 National Wheelchair Softball Tournament in Chicago. Seven NEPVA Red Sox players were named to the Division 2 All-Tournament team.

The team is looking to capture its third straight title in August, at the 2007 tournament in Minnesota. Then, in September, the NEPVA Red Sox will head to New York for the seventh annual Major League Wheelchair Softball Tournament, where they'll play against other wheelchair softball teams with Major League affiliations, such as the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago Cubs, the United Spinal Association Mets, and the United Spinal Association Yankees. Those games will be played in the Shea Stadium parking lot.

The National Wheelchair Softball Association has grown, mostly by word of mouth, to include more than 30 teams, although the NEPVA Red Sox are still the only team in New England. The club wants to launch more teams in this area, and would love to see another field built.

"We have a very strong program, and we want it to grow," said Dodd. "We're trying to keep the momentum going."

Anyone interested in joining, sponsoring, or volunteering for the NEPVA Red Sox should e-mail Thomas Dodd at ThomasD10@aol.com, or visit the New England chapter Paralyzed Veterans of America website at nepva.org. Emily Sweeney can be reached at esweeney@globe.com.