Well, guys - it was a fun time once again in Glen Head on Opening Day!

 

After meeting Mike Sorochen and Mike Geles in person on OD 2006, it was great to be introduced to Jim Sorochen (no Whitey!), Joel Kaplan and "the new guy", Bill Gamba!

 

Most of the day alternated between a steady and pouring rain. I left home (about 15 miles south of Phila.) between 10:15 AND 10:30 and encountered a bad traffic situation in South Jersey where I-295 and then Atlantic City Expressway meet. Managed to drive around that thanks to my knowledge of the back roads. Keeping my foot on the pedal in the puring rain most of the way at a 75 to 80 mph clip, I pulled into the RR station parking lot in Glen Head around 20 to 1. Not bad at all - matched the advertised time for "dry"conditions.

 

The line at Strat, down the street, looked pretty formidable! I headed for the Iron Horse, didn't recognize anybody, and decided to head out, when a guy in a SF Giants cap flagged me down - it was Joel! We went back to the booth that he had reserved and camped out in. Joel immediately impressed me, as  he had a bucket of Bud pony bottles on ice in front of him, ready for us - this is a man who knows how to prepare : )

 

After a few cell phone calls and text messages, the rest of the guys, who had driven in with Bill at the wheel (part of his hazing initiation?) arrived to join us, and the pre-pick-up party was on! Before long, people with large manilla envelopes were streaming in as they had received their treasure from Hal and the guys and were now settling in for a warm meal and a peek at their cards.

 

Around 3:00 we broke up into two groups to collect our stuff, first Jim and Mike Geles, while the rest of us held the seats at the bar. The rest of us headed over and were able to get into the tiny lobby, out of the rain. I recognized John LaManna selling his materials in the corner, and , I believe, Gary Altman (SOM World). After chatting briefly with Hal, Mike S., Bill and I got our materials, then headed outside, to give the new arrivals some room to breathe, while we waited for Joel.

 

Time ticked on: 5 minutes, 10 . . . the rain was picking up. We looked inside - Joel was nowhere to found. We realized then, that he had fallen into the black Strat-hole that led into Hal's inner circle, where the likes of Glen Guzzo, Steve Barkan, and Marcel lurked. We may never see him again, at least not for a long time. We retreated back to the Iron Horse.

 

At The Horse, we realized that we better had get a move on, as 4:00 was approaching. I coerced a few of the locals that we had talked with at the bar to take few group shots of us, minus Joel. The guy at the bar did a better job than the waitress in NJ did two years ago - we managed to get two decent shots out of five! A sea of patrons parted, and a bearded man entered, manuevering a clear plastic sack filled with manilla envelopes - it was Joel! The bag contained the sets that he had picked up for his league-mates. I saw a good photo opportunity so I blasted a quick pic of Joel and we settled in for one more beer before fleeing the city, while the locals cautioned us that we had "missed our window".

 

They were right. After escorting Joel to the train, we left a little before 4:00. By the time we made our way through traffic from Glen Head to North Jersey, with me NASCAR-drafting the back of the mini-van that the rest of the guys were in, plus Jim's van-dance and pit stop, it was after 6:00.

 

No problem - another hour or two at the micro brew pub and restaurant settled us down, but our group was breaking down slowly, as one person at a time broke off to attend to previous engagements. Baseball, Strat and Johan Santana talk wound down, and after a great day with my league-mates, I shook hands with The Two Mikes, and headed home, Part 3 of my drive.

 

I put the pedal to the metal, and hit two rest stops on the way back: hot food/coffee and bladder-relief, as my camel-like constitution has been tested to the limit. I rolled home some time between 9:30 and 10:00.

 

It was a long day, a bit challenging with all of the driving in the rain, but it was well worth it! I had a great time being in the same room with my league-mates for a couple of hours. You can't beat it! We hope to do this or something like it again. The Commish had a great idea about maybe next year, just showing up the Monday AFTER Opening Day, no crowds, no hoopla, at around 9 in the morning, and then just spend an easy time at the Iron Horse and /or in NJ before checking out in the mid-afternoon, before traffic lunacy kicks in.

 

I have attached two of the best photos, at a reduced file size, for everyone to check out. I have larger, better quality, larger file versions. The one shot is of Joel, with his "bag o' treasure" : ) The other is the league photo, minus Joel (it's OK, he was in with Pope Hal.) Cast of characters on the league photo, from left to right are: Mike Sorochen, me (in the back, Phillies hat), Bill Gamba, Jim Sorochen (keeping one eye on the TV for Johan news) and Mike Geles : )

 

Bill: welcome to the league! What a great way to start off - good luck with that middle infield you picked up in the auction yesterday! I knew Whitey would have something to say about Baroid's arrival in St. Louis (nice work) : )

 

Thanks for a great time, guys! Looking forward to another fun SPIBL season!

 

-Stan (NY)

 

(L to R) Mike S. (Baltimore), Stan K. (New York), Bill G. (Colorado), Jim S. (St. Louis), Mike G. (Florida)