Fit: Inner Tube Aptitude

ATTEMPTING TO SCORE a goal while splashing across a pool and fending off attacks from hard-bodied opponents is what makes water polo such a tough sport. Unless you do it from the comfort of an inner tube. But even then it can be strenuous, says Alex Bagden, founder of Inner Tube Water Polo, which begins its inaugural season next week.

"I'm a runner, but I get very fatigued, especially my arms," says the 27-year-old physics teacher.

He first played at the University of Virginia, where the game has a fanatical intramural following (as it does at many other colleges). After a few years of withdrawal, Bagden decided to curb his cravings by establishing the league.

He's secured a pool in Annandale, a pile of inner tubes and goals. Experienced players or newbies just need a bathing suit to join as long as they register — $30 per individual, $155 per team (at least eight members) — by March 1.