Fitzroy Fastball's Halloween etiquette guide

I've never been one that has had a love for Halloween. Even as a kid I wasn't really into it. Costumes seemed stupid, but I guess the candy was OK.

Mrs Fastball is on the other hand a big fan of Halloween, so she is the one that takes the lads out every year while I stay home and hand out the candy.

Given my years of experience as the candy giver-outer, here are some pro tips with respect to Halloween etiquette, all based on actual costumes tonight, several worn by kids that I have coached over the years in the local softball league. Assume four candies distributed as a baseline.

- Dressing up in your football or hockey uniform is NOT a costume. Even I though I am a big fan of fastball, dressing up in a ball uniform also is lame. RESULT: Minus 2 candies.

- Throwing on a bathrobe over your clothes and saying you are a "sleepwalker" is extra WEAK. RESULT: Minus 3 candies.

- Anyone older than 14 still trying to go door to door and collect candy is PITIFUL and bad parenting. RESULT: Minus 3 candies.

- White kid dressed as Buckwheat, complete with blackface make up. Sorry, not acceptable. (For more on this see Bruce Arthur's article today in the National Post.) RESULT: Minus 3 candies.

- Wearing and old sheet with eye holes and going as a "ghost" is better than the two above, but still a bit lame. RESULT: Minus 1 candy.

- Wearing camouflage hunting gear or farm overalls with matching John Deere ball cap is not a 'costume' in Fitzroy. If you or your dad regularly wears these same clothes to work or school or every weekend, that doesn't qualify. RESULT: Minus 1 candy.

- Sending out two brothers, both old enough to be playing ball with nine year old Fitzroy Junior, respectively as 1) a butterly and 2) a prom queen is a bit disconcerting. They have an older sister (hand me down costumes?) and not a lot of money. RESULT: Regular amount of candy and a whole lot of pity.

- Witches, monsters, goblins, zombies etc. that are actually truly scary Halloween outfits are best. RESULT: Plus 3 candies.

- Creative costumes like the neighbour's six year old kid dressed in full chef attire including hat, oven mitts, apron, etc. using a cooking pot to collect candy are acceptable. Not really scary, but at least some thought has been put into it. RESULT: Plus 2 candies.

- Extra polite kids that say "please", "thanks" and laugh at my jokes, as long as they have put a resonable level of effort into their outfits and are age appropriate get a small bonus. RESULT: Plus 1 candies.

- Little wee kids dressed up as hotdogs or butterflies or pumpkins are okay. (I'm not heartless!) RESULT: Plus 2 candies.

- Now if your dad happens to be a friend of mine and he gives ME a little treat (see below) then I don't care what you are wearing, you are good to go. RESULT: Grab the bowl and take as much as you want since I've been distracted.

Interview with Paul Algar

Bob Otto's website has an interesting interview with New Zealand native and US resident Paul "Alfie" Algar, who has pitched for some big teams in some big games - and has made several Elkland appearances, including a couple of matches vs West Carleton Electric. Alfie, at 47, indicates that he is looking to come back and play again in 2012.

Old time fastball - video from 1992

Check out this story from the Fastpitch West site - thanks to Dave Birnie (a Caveman fan!) for the info.

Vegas is going to Vegas!

Perhaps you have heard of the Ottawa radio station Live 88.5 contest for a trip to Vegas. Well guess who won? Jonny Vegas will be going to Vegas!

I'm thinking that Vegas will make the trip to Vegas worthwhile.

UOttawa finishes first in their pool at Provincials

from Scott Searle

The Gee-Gees women's fastball team beat Wilfrid Laurier 3-2 in extra innings to take the top seed and advance to the semi-final. Jean Cardona picked up the win and Andrea Nelson drove in the winning run in the 8th inning. The team is back in action Sunday at 1pm against the winner of Toronto and Wilfrid Laurier. Watch live at www.oiwfa.org

UOttawa softball wins first two games at Provincials

from Scott Searle

The Gee-Gees started the Provincial Championships 2-0 after a 4-2 victory over Brock on Friday night and an 8-1 victory over Waterloo earlier this morning.
Jean Cardona picked up the win vs Brock with veteran Jill Taylor getting the save. Jillian Taylor earned the win against Waterloo on the strength of a 4 RBI performance from Steph Miller. Jacqui Timperio hit her first homerun of the season in an excellent offensive performance from the red-hot Gee-Gees.

Watch the team at 4:30pm online at www.oiwfa.org as they face off against the Laurier Golden Hawks for first place.

Article on Canada's Women's Team at the PanAm Games

An article in the National Post about the Women's National team at the PanAm Games.

Glory days reunion in the Northwest

Another glory days reunion for fastball players - this time in the Pacific Northwest of the US.

Hockey night in Fitzroy

Hockey update from Fitzroy

Fitzroy Junior

Fitzroy Junior, sponsored by Combat Sports is currently leading his Atom team in scoring. Note however that they have lost their first two games 7-1 and 9-0 and he has the only goal. But he's still leading scorer!

Tonight we were watching a bit of the Jets - Leafs game. Fitzroy Junior, as most nine year olds are, has been known to be a bit silly at times.
Mrs. Fastball asks him: "Who's that player for the Leafs?"
Fitzroy Junior says "Dion Phaneuf".
Mrs Fastball: "Stop making up silly names and tell me who he is!"

Caveman

The Caveman is playing Initiation hockey and loves it, can't wait for the next one. He loves watching hockey on TV, plays 'basement hockey' with his brother, road hockey with the neighbours, has the Stanley Cup history memorized .

Mrs. Fastball is putting him to bed tonight and she's tucking him in Caveman says:

"Mommy, you know what?"
"What, Caveman?"
"When you put me in bed, to fall asleep, I think of two NHL teams and they play a game in my head and then I get tired and fall asleep. Tonight it's Columbus and the Senators." Yeah that would put me to sleep too!

2011 OIWFA Championshipsto be Broadcast Live Online This Weekend

TORONTO, ON - The Ontario Intercollegiate Women’s Fastpitch Association (OIWFA) is proud to announce they have partnered with Air It Media to broadcast the 2011 OIWFA Championships live online. Hosted by the defending OIWFA Champions, the Western Mustangs, the top eight Ontario University softball teams will converge in London, Ontario this weekend for the 10th annual OIWFA Championship.

OIWFA will be broadcasting six round-robin games, featuring all eight teams, one quarter-final game, one semi-final game and the Championship game, to ensure that all fans, past and present, can help celebrate OIWFA’s 10th Anniversary. The live broadcasts will include multiple cameras, integrated social media with live chat, and full commentary. Commentary will be provided by a team of people including Kevin Gordon, Sportscaster for Rogers Cable, Kyle Smith from ballparkradio.com and Jennifer Lukas, former Western Mustang.

This venture is the first of its kind in Ontario softball and the historic first game will feature the Laurier Golden Hawks vs the Waterloo Warriors. To view this or any of the games, you simply need a computer or an iPhone with a high-speed internet connection. There are two ways you can connect;

www.oiwfa.org or www.ustream.tv/channel/oiwfachampionships

Air It Media is a new Toronto based production company, launching next month, that focuses on webcasting live events along with a variety of other commercial services. Air It Media is proud to be donating their services to OIWFA for their 10th Anniversary, to help further the sport in Ontario Universities.

For more information or for the Championship schedule please log onto www.oiwfa.org.

OIWFA was created on November 3, 2001 by representatives from York University, the
University of Toronto, McMaster University and the University of Ottawa. OIWFA is now
comprised of 12 university teams, and over 150 student-athletes from across the province.

-30-
For more information:
Brian Robertson
Ontario Intercollegiate Women’s Fastpitch Association
647.269.1114
coachrobertson@gmail.com

Mattamy Homes wins Glen Cairn Men's Fastball League crown

from Eric Rosenquist

Mattamy Homes defeated Don Cherry's 5-2 Monday night in a rainy and cold game #2 of the GCMFL final, taking the best of three series two games to none.

Despite having only eight players, Mattamy jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the 4th inning, with two of those runs coming from a two-out double by Darren Featherstone. Mattamy added a pair of insurance runs in the top of the 7th to make it 5-0.

Don Cherry's finally got on the board in the bottom of the seventh courtesy of a lead-off double by Jon Ferguson, a triple by Eric Kay, and a one-out infield hit by Eric Rosenquist that scored Kay. Darren Featherstone however struck out the next two Don Cherry batters to end the threat and the game, giving Mattamy Homes the 2011 GCMFL championship.

GOFL playoff poll result

Last week the GOFL Playoff Poll asked readers to provide their feedback on the GOFL's playoff format. Here are the responses based on the 81 people that took the poll. Thanks to all that participated.

I prefer the 2011 format with the first round best-of-fives then a four team tournament early in September: 59 = 73%

I prefer the 2010 format with multiple rounds of series, including a final series that would end in late September or early October: 12 = 15%

I prefer to have all teams in a season ending tournament in September and have a longer regular season: 10 = 12%

I have another idea on how to stage the playoffs: 0

Mattamy's wins game one of Glen Cairn Finals

from Eric Rosenquist

Mattamy Homes 2 Don Cherry's 1 (8 innings)

The GCMFL finals got underway on Wednesday, pitting the top two teams from the regular season against each other. Both teams finished the regular season with 26 points in 16 games, but Mattamy Homes got the nod as home team in the finals by virtue of their 12-2-2 record compared to Don Cherry's 11-1-4 record. The squads were also the top two in the league in terms of runs scored (104 for Mattamy Homes, 91 for Don Cherry's) and fewest runs allowed (20 for Don Cherry's, 45 for Mattamy Homes). Both teams won their division by a margin of 9 points over the second place finishers.

As many had predicted, Wednesday's game #1 was a pitchers' duel, with Mattamy's Darren Featherstone and Don Cherry's Billy Gerber each reaching double digits in strikeouts and yielding very few baserunners. Don Cherry's jumped out to an early lead, scoring a run in the top of the second with a pair of two-out hits by Eric Kay and Hugh Murray, the latter leading to a throwing error that allowed Kay to score on the play. It looked like that lone run might be enough as the score remained the same until the bottom of the 7th. Scott Parsons began the Mattamy half of the 7th inning by reaching base as a hit batsman, then gave way to a pinch runner. After a passed ball that moved the runner into scoring position, Jason Cope hit a one-out single up the middle to tie the game and put the winning run on 1st. Gerber retired the rest of the side however, sending the game into extra innings.

With the last out of the previous inning starting at second base in extra innings, Featherstone struck out three consecutive Don Cherry's batters to end the half inning and strand the baserunner. In the bottom of the 8th, Mattamy hitter Derek Tysick executed a perfect sacrifice bunt to move baserunner Dan Gagne over to third. Shawn Mackenzie then stepped up to the plate and stroked an infield bouncer that was enough to bring Gagne home for the winning run.

Game #2 of the best-of-three series is Monday at 7PM at the A.Y. Jackson high school softball diamond in Kanata.

Glen Cairn League Finals feature Don Cherry's and Mattamy Homes

from their website

2011 GCMFL Playoff Finals

The 2011 finals will see Don Cherry's vs Mattamy Homes.

Game 1 Oct 12 7:00 pm
Game 2 Oct 17 7:00 pm
Game 3 Oct 18 7:00 pm
Rain date Oct 19 7:00 pm

2011 Semi-Finals results
Don Cherry's wins series 2-1 over Laurysen Kitchens
Mattamy Homes wins series 2-0 over D'Arcy McGee's

GOFL Playoff Poll

http://4044705.polldaddy.com/s/gofl-playoff-format

GOFL 2011 All Stars announced

The Greater Ottawa Fastball League All Stars have been announced for the 2011 season, based on voting by representatives of each team. Each club provided their "ranked" voting for each position and could not vote for their own team.

Congratulations to everyone on the list below.

1st Team
Pitcher: Drew Hathway, Quyon Combat Flyers
Catcher: Joe McCleary, Quyon Combat Flyers
First Base: Chad Hargrove, Barrhaven Broadway Blues
Second Base: Steve Edgerton, Barrhaven Broadway Blues
Third Base: Chad Milne, Kars Aces (unanimous selection)
Shortstop: Kristian Knapp, Kars Aces
Outfielders: Brad Pender, Kars Aces (unanimous selection); Cory Morrison, Kars Aces; Dan Jessiman, Stittsville 56ers
Designated Player: Joran Graham, Quyon Combat Flyers

2nd Team
Pitcher: Paul Ceppi, Barrhaven Broadway Blues
Catcher: Trevor Power, Barrhaven Broadway Blues
First Base: Dan Bradley, Stittsville 56ers
Second Base: Kurtis Summers, Kars Aces
Third Base (tie): Lindsay Medynski, Barrhaven Broadway Blues & Neil Murphy, Fitzroy Harbour West Carleton Electric
Shortstop: Scott Herriot, Stittsville 56ers
Outfielders: Don Cox, Barrhaven Broadway Blues; Derek Barber, Fitzroy Harbour West Carleton Electric; Jeff Barber, Fitzroy Harbour West Carleton Electric
Designated Player: Dave Tubman, Kars Aces

Moving day with the Caveman

Monday was moving day for the parents of a friend of mine. They are in their late 60s, moving out of Fitzroy into a condo in the City. The mom is the person that coordinated the construction of the current ball diamonds in Fitzroy back in 1977. One of the things we packed up was one of her favourite momentos - the first softball ever hit out of the park for a home run at the diamond. The dad is "Bunting Bobby" who used to play in the local men's league and umpired in the area for many years.

I have my family over at their place, helping them pack up their stuff. Kind of a bit sad - boxing up the possessions of a lifetime, throwing out a bunch of stuff, looking at old pictures, and so on. We find an old bill of sale - Mrs. Fastball's grandpa built the house back in 1975 for a whopping $32,000.

The location happened also to be a popular post Harbour Days location for a wee bonfire and post-party pints back in the day. So to honour that tradition, we have one last bonfire and cook up a few weiner dogs for the kids.

As mentioned on the blog before, the Caveman loves his hotdogs. He doesn't get them too often but when he does, he eats his fill. There are several youngsters running around and at one point I notice the Caveman has disappeared into the house. I follow him inside to see what he is up to.

I find him, sitting on the toilet, half eaten hotdog still in hand, bathroom door wide open.

"There you are!", I say. "What are you doing?"

"Just finishing my hotdog Daddy. Want a bite, Daddy? And can you wipe my bum?"

Note: just doing some final "math" on the GOFL all-stars - the winners should be posted soon.

Roster announced for Team Canada at Pan-Am games

Softball Canada releases roster for Pan-Am Championship in November 2011

(Ottawa, ON) Softball Canada is very pleased to announce the Senior Men’s National Team roster which will compete at the VIII Pan American Softball Championship. The event will take place in Hermosillo, Mexico from November 18-26, 2011 and will serve as a qualifier for the ISF XIII Men’s World Championship, to be held in Auckland, New Zealand in 2013.

"Keeping with the National Team youth movement unveiled at the 2011 AAU Tournament in Florida, this team features four veterans from the 2009 ISF Worlds roster supported by a strong cast of young players’” stated Senior Men’s National Team Head Coach Don Bates. ‘With team captain Ryan Wolfe absent from this event, Jeff Ellsworth will act as team captain in Hermosillo.’

The athletes who have been selected by the coaching staff to represent Canada at the 2011 Pan American Championship in Hermosillo, Mexico from November 18-26 are:

Athletes
Ryan Boland (St. John’s, NL)
Sean Cleary (Harbour Main, NL)
Jeff Ellsworth (St. Lawrence, PEI)
Blair Ezekiel (Harbour Main, NL)
Brad Ezekiel (Harbour Main, NL)
Brandon Horn (Waterloo, ON)
Mark Johnson (Glencoe, ON)
Derek Mayson (North Vancouver, BC)
Mathieu Roy (St. Gervais, QC)
Jason Sanford (Durham, NS)
Kevin Schellenberg (Squamish, BC)
Andy Skelton (Newmarket, ON)
Jeremy Tracy (Waterville, NB)
Sean Whitten (Calgary, AB)
Ben Wideman (Elmira, ON)
Brady Woods (Stonewall, MB)

Coaching Staff
Head Coach: Don Bates (Saskatoon, SK)
Assistant Coach: Les Howey (Conception Bay South, NL)
Assistant Coach: John Stuart (Vancouver, BC)
Athletic Therapist: Adam Davies (Ottawa, ON)
Operations Manager: Harvey Stevenson (Saanichton, BC)

Softball Canada will also send umpire Andrew Gallant (Moncton, NB) to the event.

Softball Ontario offers $500 awards

News release from Softball Ontario

Deadline Announced for 2012 Softball Association Fundamental Excellence (SAFE) Award!

TORONTO, ONTARIO – Softball Ontario will provide twenty-four (24) Softball Associations with awards of $500 to help develop, Coaches, Umpires and Volunteers! With the help of the Ontario Trillium Foundation, Softball Ontario is pleased to provide Softball Associations with the opportunity to win a Softball Association Fundamental Excellence (SAFE) Award! The SAFE Awards will help Softball Associations across Ontario to improve their volunteer development efforts for 2012.

What is a SAFE Award?
A Softball Association Fundamental Excellence Award is an award of $500 for Softball Associations to use in one of four (4) categories:
Volunteer Development
Community Coach Development
Competitive Coach Development
Umpire Development

The Awards will help Softball Associations to train volunteers for the 2012 softball season, thereby increasing their volunteer capacity and the quality of their programs. Softball Associations receiving a SAFE Award will receive a special presentation of a SAFE Award Plaque at one of their Softball Association’s events. In addition, the SAFE Award will help Softball Associations to work towards improving their SAFE STAR Rating!

How do I apply for a SAFE Award?
Applying for a SAFE Award is easy! Just follow these three (3) steps:

Step 1: Become a member of the Play Softball Network by 12:00 PM on December 23, 2011. It’s free and easy to join, with lots of benefits for your Softball Association! Download an application form here:
http://network.playsoftball.ca/modules/download_gallery/dlc.php?file=3

Step 2: Submit your SAFE STAR Rating Application by 12:00 PM on December 23, 2011
Download a copy of the SAFE STAR Rating Application Form here:
http://www.softballontario.ca/content/view/448

Step 3: Complete the SAFE Award Application Form and send it to the Softball Ontario Office by 12:00 PM on December 23, 2011
Download a copy of the SAFE STAR Rating Application Form here:
http://www.softballontario.ca/content/view/447

Softball Associations are encouraged to set up a telephone meeting with Participation Program Coordinator Lisa Crompton by email lcrompton@softballontario.ca or by phone at 416-426-7150 to review applications prior to submission.

Complete all three (3) Steps in the SAFE Award Application Process by 12:00 PM on December 23, 2011 to be eligible for a SAFE Award. To assist Softball Associations in their application, sample application materials are available in the SAFE STAR Section of Softball Ontario’s web site at www.softballontario.ca under Association Awards.

If you would like to find out more information about the Softball Association Fundamental Excellence (SAFE) Awards, the SAFE STAR Ratings Program, or if you have any questions please contact Lisa Crompton at lcrompton@softballontario.ca or call 416-426-7150.

Softball Ontario is the governing body for the sport of softball in Ontario. Our goal is to promote and develop the sport of softball for its athletes, officials and volunteers by providing programs and services at all levels of competitions.

The Ontario Trillium Foundation is an agency of the Government of Ontario. Their mission is to build healthy and vibrant communities throughout Ontario by strengthening the capacity of the voluntary sector, through investments in community-based initiatives.

GeeGees Women's fastball report Week 4

Saturday October 1, 2pm Toronto 3 Ottawa 0
Saturday October 1, 4pm Ottawa 7 Toronto 1
Sunday October 2, 12pm Ottawa 5 Guelph 4
Sunday October 2, 2pm Ottawa 8 Guelph 3
Season record to date: 13-7
Next week: Sunday vs. Queen's in Napanee

The first game of the weekend didn’t start so well for the Gee-Gees as their opponent, the U of Toronto Blues got an early lead in the game. Although the efforts of starting pitcher Jill Taylor were excellent, the Gee-Gees were not able to generate any significant offense leading to their loss to the Blues. The second game however the Gee-Gees began to look more like themselves and with the extraordinary pitching of Jean Cardona the ladies were able to take a significant lead over the Blues and took the win for the day.

Even with the adverse weather conditions on Sunday, the Gee-Gees showed up ready to play against the Guelph Gryphons and the day got off to an exciting start in the first game where both teams were generating great offense and were playing tight defence as well. The score was 4-4 going into the bottom of the 7th and with a fly ball out to the gap in right, Grace Lonergan scored the RBI the ladies needed to come out on top 5-4. In the second game the ladies really found their bats and kept at the Gryphons' pitcher the entire game, getting significant hits from the top to the bottom of the order. Together with another great game from pitcher Jill Taylor and excellent defence, the ladies pulled ahead from U of G by 6 runs and held it for a final score of 8-3. Yet another great display of ball from the Gee-Gees, showing some definite promise for the final stretch of the season.

GeeGees article

An article on the GeeGees season to date.

French immersion really paying off #2

Me: So, Caveman, how did your dictée go today at school?

Caveman: Didn't do that today, Daddy, just had some spelling test thing.