Season #18 is rapidly approaching the end of the line this weekend as it’s the next to the final trip for the 2025 – 2026 season. Midway comes to town on April 24th & 25th with our annual Senior Day festivities taking place on that final Saturday.
18 years is a long time ⌛️and being life doesn’t come with any guarantees, one has to ask the question, is this the end of the journey ?
If it is, the campaign will go down as the one that stuck the closest to the original script. Playing baseball in the mountains of West Virginia in the month of February can get a little tricky at times, but after a rocky start, things settled down quite a bit.
The home opener was slated for February 21 and 22nd in Beckley but was moved over to Marshall University and eventually condensed to the ultra rare triple header ahead of a snow ❄️ storm. Three games in one day proved to be a challenge, and the 22nd was wiped from the calendar. The opportunity for this series with Lawrence Tech was made possible by the flight ✈️ back across the country for The Basketball 🏀 Classic, Take #3.
The only true add-on game took place three days later at Go-Mart Park in Charleston (25th vs. Pikeville) and later on March 19th replaced March 17th. That move made the original 16 home dates turn into 18. Three home stadiums 🏟, all top level and enjoyable to work in. Marshall University was a first-timer and pushed the number of parks that I’ve called a game up to 12.
The questions started when I drove under the welcome 🙏 to West Virginia sign back on Thursday afternoon. How many times had that moment taken place in 18 years ? How many hotels 🏨 were slept in ? The number of West Virginia Turnpike toll booths was there along the way ?
The difference between being a 44 year old living in Luray, Virginia, and a 62 year old living in Laurel Fork, Virginia, is as big as it sounds. The years spent out on Orcas Island 🏝 in the San Juans limited the trips to just Senior Day weekends.
How many assistant coaches have worn the Golden Bears uniform over the span ? How many miles had been driven and in how many different vehicles ? We moved the campus from Montgomery to Beckley during the run, not something that happens every day, and don’t forget the part where our engineering school was gobbled up by West Virginia University.
The game on Friday afternoon flirted with taking four hours to finish, but it will go down as one of the most exciting ones along the way for sure. Today will run right at eight hours ( 1 nine inning game, followed by 1 seven inning game ) from start to finish, and then there’s the drive back home.
If this is the end of the journey, I was thrilled to hang out at Hawks Nest Lodge one more time because it has been part of my life forever and a day. While it’s just a dot on the map to many, The Nest 🪹🪺 is my favorite place to ponder life, and it’s been that way for 40+ years.
The hotel 🏨 breakfast is now open, so it’s a good time to head downstairs. How many times have I thought that over the past 18 years ?
Baseball ⚾️ is just a game to many, but it’s bigger than that to those on the inside. It becomes part of you, but hey, it is time to go make a waffle 🧇.
Let’s play two today !
A.S.P.N on The Hill 