It looks like I might have survived my first summer at the Civic Center. It’s not over quite yet but things would have to go very bad in order for me to blow it now, knock on wood. I will say this for sure. Perhaps this is not the most weather-friendly time of the year.
I can remember watching a couple of games in a hoodie thinking: What in the world are we doing here? We are insane referring to me and everyone else in attendance on those early cool nights of spring and summer. Fast forward to this past week and wow, was it ever hot? Five o’clock is not much better than noon if you ask me temperature wise.
I cannot tell a lie. There were a few days in the last couple of weeks I did not want to be out there. And nothing is worse than walking up to the concession stand and asking for a bottle of water and then being told “We don’t have any.” How do you have no water when its 115 degrees outside? If it were me I would have jumped in my pickup and headed over to Foodland and bought enough water to get me by until my supplier showed up. It could have been worse and if that is my only complaint I guess it hasn’t been that bad.
As the games wind down, I hear people speaking about next year already, planning ahead is good, unless you’re planning on not returning. There seems to be a buzz around the Civic Center that several people are already voicing their opinion about not returning. Some of the rules have a little too much gray area and talks about how the postseason has been handled are swirling around.
Perhaps one of the largest talks I have heard about are bringing slow-pitch softball to town or a modified-pitch league. Well I know slow pitch softball fairly well. It’s what we grew up on when I was young and what our kids played in Centertown.
Now modified-pitch softball might need some explaining to me so I can’t really speak on it hardly as much. From what I have heard, it might not go over so well with most who are in the fast-pitch scene. After watching the high school and middle school fast-pitch teams, I’m hooked. Games are intense, quick, and it has a great tempo.
On the other hand, I can appreciate the slow pitch side of the game as well, as long as it is taken seriously. One thing I can never encourage enough is please swing the bat. It’s slow pitch, just make contact. The hardest games to watch are the games with no action involved. Right on.