The Beijing Olympics begin today.  Men & women from around the world will be competing in events from swimming to track and field.  While these well-trained athletes get ready to take their marks - in just another week or so - another group of well-trained athletes will literally be running for their lives - and ours.  They are taking part in a Team in Training half marathon in San Francisco - the Nike Women’s Half Marathon. 

What’s unique about these athletes - they are cancer survivors.   Now it’s time for the shameless plug.  Witih just a week left - Anita is still in need of some help to make her goal.  She’s about $1560 shy of her $7500 goal. 

Anita Lawson is a former resident of Rehoboth Beach and a former WGMD employee.  Please help in her Mission to wipe out blood cancer.  You can find out more about Anita and her run at - http://pages.teamintraining.org/sfl/nikesf08/alawson

UPDATED (with more audio)

If you’d like to to listen to the audio from The Sports Booster Awards, which includes Dan Gaffney, myself (Jared Morris), The President of WGMD (David Schoumacher) and interviews with the Winners (see below) you can listen to that audio here:

Sports Booster Broadcast (mp3 appox: 11 min)

Sports Booster Gaffney Introductory Remarks (mp3)

Pastor Gary Knapp’s Opening Prayer (mp3)

Sports Booster Gaffney Introduces some of the Athletes (mp3)

Keynote Speaker Larry Bauer (mp3)

Full Audio of Awards and Scholarships (mp3)

If you’d like to to listen to the audio from The Sports Booster Awards, which includes Dan Gaffney, myself (Jared Morris), The President of WGMD (David Schoumacher) and interviews with the Winners (see below) you can listen to that audio here:

Sports Booster Broadcast (mp3 appox: 11 min)

Also Special Video of the awards including Gary Knapp, The Keynote Speaker Larry Bauer and more is coming soon!

JMX

Baseball season begins tonight (that’s opposed to the two games earlier in the week between Boston & Oakland in Tokyo).  It’s going to be an interesting year - with a lot of firsts, milestones and finals.  

President Bush will throw out the first pitch tonight at the Washington National’s new home National Park (they’re playing the Atlanta Braves).  The largest baseball crowd ever (they hope) 115,300 - gathered to celebrate the LA Dodgers 50th anniversary on the left coast with the last exhibition game of their season - played at their former home - the LA Coliseum.  The folks at the Guinness World Record will determine on Monday if it’s an international world record.  

It’s been 100 years since Jack Norworth composed a song that would become known as “Take Me Out To The Ball Game” which is now a game staple during the 7th inning stretch.  And it’s been 100 years since the Chicago Cubs last won a World Series! 

Monday’s Opening Day will be the last ones for two stadiums in the same city - Yankee Stadium & Shea Stadium in New York.  This year’s All-Star game will be the 4th and last played at Yankee Stadium (2008, 1977, 1960, 1939).  

Throughout the season new milestones will be reached in batting, pitching and scoring.  New managers will get their first wins and old managers will call it a career.  Players will get their first home runs, first put outs, first strike outs, more records will fall – and likely more players will get into trouble for one thing or another.  

2008 is a fresh start for a game that’s been overshadowed by the steroid scandal and other headline-making news that has put too many black marks on what is supposed to be “America’s pastime.”  But if you’re a fan – you’ll stick it out through thick and thin – just like I root on my Mets in good years and in bad.  I just hope that September 28th takes its sweet time getting here! 

PLAY BALL!

Sussex Central Vs. Middletown (or is that Little-town) tonight!

GO CENTRAL!

A Dan Gaffney Show audio pep ralley.  Listen here (3.5 minutes).

Thanks Mari Lou

You’ll never call me an Orioles fan – I’ll be a NY Mets fan till the day I die, but living here on Delmarva it’s hard to avoid everything orange and black during the spring, summer and fall.  But I will admit to watching a few O’s games in my day – especially when it came to some of the bigger games – like championship games and Cal’s streak, but now, the era of Orioles’ Magic is truly over.
 
While Orioles’ Magic generally refers to the team’s glory years in the 1970s and 1980s, the man who was as well known to O’s fans as Cal Ripken and Jim Palmer has given fans their last spelling lesson.  William “Wild Bill” Hagy has died at the age of 68. 
 
Hagy ruled Section 34 at the old Memorial Stadium – and with his long beard, beer belly and wearing his straw cowboy hat - led cheers spelling the Orioles team name – using his body to create the letters. 
 
In a statement on the Orioles website –

“The Orioles organization is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of “Wild Bill” Hagy. While leading cheers from “The Roar from 34″ at Memorial Stadium, Wild Bill became a Baltimore institution. He was one of the great characters of the Baltimore sports landscape and was a true die-hard Orioles fan, supporting the club year in and year out. He will be missed by everyone who knew him and by everyone for whom he led the “O-R-I-O-L-E-S” cheer. All of us in the Orioles organization extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends.”

 Hagy was a cab driver until his retirement a few years ago.  He was found dead Monday morning at his home in Arbutus by his roommate – and efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.
 
Hagy did make the transition to Camden Yard, but didn’t lead cheers any longer as he said he was not happy with the ‘new breed’ of O’s fans who talked on their cell phones through games.  However during the playoffs – he did bring his cheering back in the mid-1990s when the O’s were contenders for a few years. 
 
Like Max Patkin, the clown prince of baseball, Hagy was one of a kind and though he’s not been around Camden Yard much, preferring to watch the games on TV, he will be missed.
 
 
 Tribute to “Wild Bill’ Hagy

 

The Cape Henlopen football team’s quest to become Henlopen Conference Champions this season is now more difficult.  Last year the Cape Vikings football team posted a 2-3 record on the road, but they have to vastly improve to become successful this season.

The Cape Vikings will not play one home game at Legends Field in Lewes until at least October 26^th .  

The stadium’s sod is being ripped up and replaced with turf. The construction quickly began after Cape’s high school graduation was held on that field in June.

And Athletic Director George Glenn believes there was a need for the turf. Glenn says that playing on turf allows games to be played on the field regardless of the weather. And the turf will be used a lot as 80 games are expected to be played on that new surface.

Since that construction is still ongoing that is why the Indian River game, and Caesar Rodney game originally for Legends Fields will now be switched from home games to away games. That will give Cape two extra home games next season. And when the Cape Vikings battle the Milford Buccaneers September 21^st the home game will be played at Wesley College in Dover. On that neutral field the Vikings will be considered the home team.

Glenn says all of the scheduling changes has been easy even though building on one site is not logistically convenient. Glenn concludes that everybody on this year’s schedule has been willing to help and everyone is acting like one big happy family.
 
When the Cape Vikings step onto the playing field against those teams things will not be easy. And when the Vikings regain the home field advantage on Home Coming night in Lewes the 2006 Henlopen Northern Division Champion Sussex Central Golden Knights will be waiting.
 
 

Are the Skateboard restrictions in Rehoboth Beach too stringent? Another season starts.. another series of violations occurs.. (see photo :below: courtesy of the henney report, http://www.henney.com/)

So basically the city ordinance states “No skateboards anywhere in, around, or near the city or Rehoboth are to be ridden, viewed, stared at, or smelt.” So, the fine isn’t wallet busting..

[Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined for the first offense not less than $15 nor more than $25, and for a second or subsequent offense shall be fined not less than $25 and shall pay the costs of prosecution. [Amended 4-21-2003 by Ord. No. 0503-3]

But are they really that bad? Is it the danger? The Sound? The element? Do they scuff up the fancy Rehoboth sandscaping?

I think that it does make the city a little less family friendly.. but, I understand wanted to keep the city safe and sound… or safe from sound??

A. It shall be unlawful for any person to ride or operate any skateboard on and/or over any sidewalk adjoining any street, any street in the City of Rehoboth Beach from May 15 until September 15 of any year.

B. It shall be unlawful for any person to ride or operate any skateboard or scooter on and/or over the bandstand or any public structures throughout the entire year. The term “public structures” shall, in addition to its ordinary meaning, include but not be limited to the city’s benches, plaques, memorials and steps.

C. It shall be unlawful for any person to ride or operate any skateboard on, under and/or over the Boardwalk or any of the Boardwalk pavilions throughout the entire year.

Is there no way skaters and regular folk can get along? I’ve seen plenty of worse things in Rehoboth than a dirty skater kid. Although, they’re a little too full of themselves for me. (that last statement has nothing to do with the fact that I’ve never been coordinated enough to shred the pavement.)

All the BLOGS are heavy laden with the serious news of the day so I guess it’s time for me to come in and lighten things up a little.

The other day Dan was joking about having Evel Knievel jump the future bridge site at the Indian River Inlet. At some point, the bridge is said to look like this:

But right now it looks more like a pair of ramps set up for a motorcycle jump. Then I came across a little advertisement featuring Evel Knievel and decided he is no longer in the ramp-jumping business.

So I guess that’s out of the question.

Next we have a photo which best describes the subtle differences between men and women and sheds some light on why there almost always seems to be a communication gap between them.

Yeah, that about says it all.

Next up, weather on Delmarva. Let’s see, shall I go out with the suntan lotion or a parka? Whaddya think? Drive the convertable or take the Hummer? Umbrella or sunglasses?

and finally…

A golf course I can sink my skills into. Why hasn’t someone come up with this sooner?

Well, That’s all for now folks. Keep on smiling and I will try in the meantime to come up with a serious BLOG.

I watched young David Walter (NCCo. Teen) win the Jeopardy Teen Tournament this evening, rooting for him all the way. He didn’t win last night’s game but came through, magnificently, tonight, to take $75,000 home with him.

While I was watching it was difficult not to reflect upon the news of earlier today where the Cape and Central game last night caused such a disgusting ruckus. Causing a pregnant woman to be taken to hospital and police called out from all over. Maybe worse is the result of the poll results on this home page. Why in the name of all that’s holy are so many calling for additional police to be on duty and a children’s sporting event?? For some reason I suppose I hoped the majority would choose the last option…”Get rid of all HS sporting events” but only 16% of the voters did. Meanwhile, a shocking 32% called for “allowing the fans to watch but bring in more cops”. Have we, as a society, gone mad?? How many times has some disturbance…or worse…been reported as happening in or around our schools and their events? How many times has violence been the end result of such disruptions followed by ensuing arguments “this…or that…didn’t happen”. Strikes me that with the increasing frequency of such reports it’s as the old adage says…no smoke without fire. And it makes little difference that the four who were arrested were obviously not HS students. (At least I hope they weren’t, given their ages…!)

I’d like to know what is hoped to be accomplished by increasing police presence at something as inconsequential as a kid’s sporting event. And wouldn’t it be much more effective to ban sports events, at least for a year? In the grand scheme of things, how important does anyone deem sports to be, anyway? Yes, it’s healthy…but not when spectators or pregnant women get hurt or leave in fear. It’s not educational. It may be seen as a means by which some kid gets scouted for better but what about that if he/she doesn’t have the academic ability to graduate college with a real education and purpose for life instead of, at a minimum, a few years of pseudo-fame as the best player on a team and, at best, go on to play pro-sports…few and far between.

A referendum has just been approved to bring a middle-school campus and a new elementary school to the Milford district at an increase to the tax-payer. No…it’s not huge increase but as a tax-payer I’m absolutely fed-up hearing we need new schools, bigger and better, more modern buildings in order for kids to get a better education. Since when has an edifice dictated the quality of education? We need improvement, yes…in the quality of our educators, better compensation for excellence in that area; for parents to stop making excuses for their ill-behaved children and/or suing school boards when they take a stance against an unruly child. Perhaps we are more in need of schools where the unruly and undisciplined may be sent so that children who want to learn may do so. Maybe then we would have more kids like David Walters, who can be admired and emulated by his peers for his academic ability rather than by how well he plays or how good he looks in on the field. Where the investment his family made in his upbringing and education will benefit him throughout his life and not only for a few bragging rights at the Friday night post-games.

Congratulations, David!! On a day when there is some disgust at a few of your generation for their behavior, you did make some of us very proud for the manner in which you conducted yourself throughout…even though you had not won.