One more time-Who's the Champ of the World?

Sad news as Muhammad Ali passed away at the age of 74.
Such a man and career deserves more than just a recap of his many victories,you can read those anywhere and I wanted to make this more than that.
I wanted to make this about how Ali was a part of my life and the memories that I had.

I'm too young to remember the supreme fighting machine that Ali was in his early incarnation.
That fighter was before I was born and that fighter was the purest and arguably greatest heavyweight of all time.
I missed out on the man that stopped the unbeatable Sonny Liston,tortured Floyd Patterson and Ernie Terrell for not acknowledging his conversion to the Islamic faith and dominated Cleveland Williams and Zora Folley in a manner that no one had ever done to the two veteran contenders.
That was Ali's peak as a boxer,but it was far from his peak as an icon.

I missed out on his stance on the Vietnam War,which cost him three and a half years of his peak and likely the first fight against Joe Frazier,which few can deny was the greatest athletic event of the 20th century,and that was more heroic than anything in the ring.
His decision to not join the armed forces and gave up the title and his career to not fight in the war,even though that assignment would not have resulted in combat duty.was courageous in a different way-doing what you felt was the right thing despite losing everything that had been worked for and gained.

I missed that Ali,but I was able to see even more.
My first memories were his win and loss against Ken Norton,the first fight and loss resulting in a broken jaw.
Ali in a hospital bed with Norton visiting him was a picture revisited often in the boxing magazines of the age.
I also remember,of course,his revenge win over Joe Frazier (in a non-title) fight,his title win over George Foreman and the Thrilla in Manila-the final chapter in the Ali-Frazier book and the bout that took so much out of Ali's tank...

However,Ali was the champion as I moved through elementary school and we were able to see many of his defenses live on network television!
Some against top contenders such as powerhitting Earnie Shavers on NBC and others against overmatched Europeans like Belgium's Jean-Pierre Coopman on CBS and England's Richard Dunn on NBC grew great ratings the like which no boxer today or then could touch.
Ali was also a icon to kids as well as not only the heavyweight champion,he was a comic book star in DC Comics 1978 Superman vs Muhammad Ali (in one of those oversized DC's specials of the time) and a toy star with Mego's 1976 release of an action figure (in a time when those things didn't exist of real people for boys) complete with a ring and an opponent called "the contender" that looked suspiciously like Ken Norton!
The set that included a ring was the centerpiece of a young Shawn's 1976 Christmas and to this day,Ali (minus a hand covered with a boxing glove) resides in my attic and on occasion,I bump into the champ on archive excursions.
Perhaps the champ is headed for a more prominent home on the next occasion that we meet.



As Ali stayed busy in the ring with defenses against lesser contenders as a way to make money and stay sharp for his defenses against the better contenders,he accepted a bout against Olympic gold medalist Leon Spinks on CBS.
Back then,the network would put a full card of top fights on air in prime time and as a nine year old Shawn watched with my grandfather,got tired and woke the next morning to be stunned with the news of Leon Spinks had won the decision and taken the belt away.

It would be seven months of Leon Spinks as kids of the generation that lost their two front teeth would be dubbed "Leon" for years after for the missing bridge of Spinks,who would never make a defense of the WBC title as it was stripped for Spinks accepting a lucrative rematch vs Ali rather than a lighter check against Larry Holmes (who would be the next great heavyweight) and would be more noted for his bizarre outside the ring behavior than anything else before the rematch.
Seven months to the day,ABC televised the Ali-Spinks rematch for the WBA title (Only two sanctioning bodies back then) and with his memorable antagonist Howard Cosell behind the mike,quoting the lyrics of Bob Dylan's Forever Young,Ali won the title back to become the first three time heavyweight champion and entered retirement.

We also got socially acceptable Ali as he became more mainstream and how much more mainstream can you be than on Saturday morning cartoons?
"I am the greatest" featured Ali on NBC Saturday mornings and despite not being a hit,is still remembered by my age fans to this day.


I always remember this story from my dad,who was an Ali fan (although in hindsight,I find that very surprising).telling me the story of telling his father before the first Sonny Liston fight when few were picking Ali that Ali was going to win.
Ali always seemed to be the fighter for the young as I was a big fan and 25 years after his last fight,Ryan had a huge Ali poster on the wall in his room.
Ali was a prominent part of my sports Mount Rushmore with Sandy KoufaxJack Nicklaus,Bobby Orr and Pete Maravich (Yes,I know there is only four on Mount Rushmore) and his autograph is still a coveted one by me.

It didn't end well for Ali in the ring-Attempting to best Larry Holmes after two years off saw Ali take a pounding and even though he was never knocked down,he lost every round before the fight was stopped in the corner after round ten.
One final loss to Trevor Berbick and the end had come,although I'm not sure the damage wasn't already there,those beatings didn't help the eventual issues that would befell Ali.

Just a few memories of my favorite all time heavyweight and how he was important to me-hope you enjoyed it....

Hitting the Road-Lake County

 After we left Akron,we drove roughly 45 minutes to Eastlake-home of the Lake County Captains.

The Captains were hosting the Fort Wayne Tincaps,who are an affiliate of the San Diego Padres,so that was a big deal for Doug Hopkins and myself because the Padres are one of just three teams (Also the Angels and Dodgers) that I have no access to between my travels and traders.
We arrived in the fourth inning because the game was high scoring (Lake County would eventually win 14-6) and were able to watch a bit.
After a quick stop in the Cargo Hold (gift shop) for a team set,we moved to the left field bleachers,where there were few people sitting,but there was a decent amount of children in a play area with bounce houses,inflatable slides,etc,so the noise was louder than one would expect for such a small amount of people in the area.

Classic Park is a park that I've seen games and visited before,but this time made me think of a park that might need a little TLC for a park that is just 13 years old.
It's hard to think sometimes that these parks that seem new are reaching their teenage years and need to be kept up.
Classic Park looked a little drearier than in past visits and I'd hate to see it fall into the trap of not being kept up.

Classic Park does earn points for selling Minute Maid frozen lemonades for three bucks,which for a ballpark is reasonable enough and Doug grabbed me one.
These are pretty sizable and are the same ones that you can buy at Dollar Tree.
I wish the Suns would buy a bunch of these for a dollar there and then sell them for three at their games!
After the end of a long game,the Captains put on a fireworks night and allow me a few lines on fireworks.
I have nothing against fireworks and they can be quite entertaining,but anymore for teams,it has become overkill.
Way too many fireworks nights doesn't make it special and as a result,fireworks aren't the draw that they once were.
If fireworks nights were fewer in number,the number of people showing up for them would improve.

We went to the back and graphed a bit,
Had the lighting been better (lights turned off for fireworks) and there been other graphers around (it was just us) we could have done both teams,but instead we concentrated on the Tin Caps and got a few prospects.
I was happiest to get Austin Smith to sign a Stars and Stripes insert card that were only made 25 of,but also got Michael Gettys and a few others..

After driving to our hotel and waiting behind an obnoxious woman,we finally were able to relax in the room when David Sloan called to talk to his friend Doug.
Always nice to see two guys chat that rarely are able to do so...
Finally,at one o'clcok,I was able to hit the bed with a long and fun day at its end...

Back later with some words on Muhammad Ali,so part three of this trip will be in a few days...

Boxing Challenge

The Boxing Challenge rolls on with three world title fights in which one could be one of the most exciting fights of the year and another could cure any sleep issues that you may have....

I lead the challenge 62-52 over Ramon Malpica

IBF Lightweight title.12 rds
Rances Barthelemy vs Mickey Bey
Both:Barthelemy unanimous decision

WBO Jr.Middleweight title.12 rds
Liam Smith vs Pedrag Radosevic
R.L:  Smith Unanimous Decision
TRS: Smith KO 8

WBC Junior Lightweight title 12rds
Francisco Vargas vs Orlando Salido
R.L:  Vargas Split Decision
TRS: Salido Split Decision

Light Heavyweights. 12 rds
Artur Beterbiev vs Ezequiel Maderna
Both:Beterbiev KO 3

Warriors pull away in game one

The Golden State Warriors used a huge kick from their bench early in the fourth quarter to blow by the Cleveland Cavaliers and win game one of the NBA Finals 104-89 in Oakland.
Kyrie Irving led Cleveland in scoring with 26 points,while LeBron James (23 and 12) and Kevin Love (17 and 13) each notched triple doubles in defeat.
Game two is back in Oakland Sunday night...

Swashbucklings

1) The Cavaliers made a big run in the third quarter to come back from nine down to take the lead for a few minutes,but it always felt to me that it was temporary.
Sometimes teams use up their gas to get back into the game and that is exactly how I felt when that run was going on...

2) The Warriors bench carried the day on a night that the Cavaliers shut down Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson,as the Golden State bench outscored Cleveland's 45-10.
Shaun Livingston was the star with 20 points.
Cleveland doesn't have to win that battle,but the margin has to be closer.

3) I remember when Shaun Livingston came out of college as a super talented player and began suffering knee injuries that turned him from a franchise level player to a role player.
Livingston showed last night how injuries had robbed him as he was the best player on the floor.
Every generation has a few players like Livingston,but even fewer make the transition to not being the focus of the team..

4) Kyrie Irving did score 26 points ,but did so on 7 of  22 shooting.
All too often,Irving would take the defender to the hoop on borderline out of control rushes and then be forced into a awkward position against the Warrior big men.
Irving is going to have to mix his offensive tactics or this could be a long series.

5) You have to look at this as a mixed opportunity.
Yes,you would like to think the Cavaliers could win when Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined for 20 points,but is it possible that the Cavaliers have seen a flaw and the defense could have discovered a way to slow them down?
If so,perhaps the Cavaliers can win this after all...

6) J.R.Smith disappeared three points and three shots in 36 minutes of play.
Going to have to get more than that from the mercurial Smith...

7) I was disappointed in the lack of ball movement by Cleveland.
Cleveland has to keep the ball moving or the Cavaliers are going to be caught in the trap of James and Irving in isolation,which results in a very one dimensional team...

8) Finally,the Cavaliers win game two.
If they don't they are in big trouble,but I think they will.
The media scrutiny of game one will certainly be pro-Warriors and I think LeBron James will feed off that and lift Cleveland to a win.
At least I hope....

Hitting the Road-Akron

My weekend trip with my good friend Doug Hopkins started with a trip to Akron and the Rubber Ducks.

I had worked all night, and I thought I might be tired, but I managed to get through the entire day without sleep and had a great time doing it.
Doug and I drove through most of the time before hitting Ohio for a quick bite at Arby's and then a stop at a tremendous antique market in Ravenna, Ohio.

This market always has great stuff, and this time didn't fail either, although I didn't buy anything.
Doug found some older Indians programs, and I took a picture of a classic vending machine from the 70's of a "Bozo the Clown" Balloon machine.
If only I were richer....

We then stopped at an Akron institution named Strickland's, which is the local standard for frozen custard, and had a personal connection for Doug, who used to have family members in the area who raved about it.

Sometimes places like Strickland's can be just as important for the memories that they make as they are for the food, and I certainly have had places like that in my life, too.
I ordered a small custard of the flavor of the day, which was grape on this day.
As a usual mark for grape offerings and never having seen grape ice cream/frozen custard before, I eagerly tried it.
It was good, but reminded me of the flavor that so many kids like-Party Cake, which is essentially vanilla with food coloring, so basically vanilla with purple coloring.
But it was pretty darn good vanilla!

As we stood in the parking lot of Strickland's waiting in line, you could see from a distance the Rubber Bowl, the crumbling former stadium of the Akron Zips.

The WPA project built during the Roosevelt administration has become an eyesore, and since the Zips built an on-campus stadium has been essentially left to rot, crumble, and be at the mercy of vandals.

After our custard, Doug drove us to an access road that we actually walked out into the upper deck and looked around.

It was both neat and sad at the same time, as I had never been to the Rubber Bowl before, despite all of those years spent driving through Akron and seeing the signs for the exit for the Rubber Bowl.
I have more pictures than just this, but I'm saving them for a future post on abandoned history.

We then headed to Canal Park, the urban home of the Rubber Ducks, for a trip to meet Christopher McDonald, who played "Shooter McGavin" in the film "Happy Gilmore" on a night dedicated to the film.
We had bought the VIP package to ensure meeting McDonald, getting the "Shooter" bobblehead, and having my stuff signed.

In addition, a great food spread that featured some awesome burgers was included with the VIP price.
The Rubber Ducks sure do know their customer service; I wish they could give some lessons to some of the Hagerstown Suns front office on that front.

After a wait, McDonald came out and was super gracious in signing our items.
The only issue was that just as Doug and I walked up to his table, the Ducks announced that due to time constraints, he would reduce from 2 items to one.
Doug was going to get a golf ball for me since he didn't have anything to get signed, but he changed his mind and added his bobblehead.

The announcement came just as McDonald grabbed the bobble, so he missed the golf ball.
I didn't feel right about adding a picture with McDonald to slow the line further, so I didn't take one.
It didn't stop others from taking one, and I get that, but I've been in the other slot of waiting for someone and not getting items signed because of pictures, so I passed, but I'd be back later.

We sat down and ate our meal, and the food was terrific-exactly what you would hope for in these situations from the Duck Club.
When you pay extra and the team goes the extra mile to make that worthwhile, you have to be thrilled, and Doug and I both were.

Anyway, as we ate, looked over to the field from the inside (with windows that opened up to enjoy good weather), or stepped out on a private deck and chatted along, the line continued to move.

Doug grabbed the ball and got into line to finish what he started.

McDonald stayed a little over time and signed for the entire line before leaving.

There have been many times (as noted) that a guest, who has been paid for, dropped the pen at the desired time and left, no matter how many people remained in line.
Classy move.

There was still one more inside joke-When Doug and I talked about the trip, one person said, "I'd much rather see 'the shooter' with a nice looking woman than 'you two guys".

With the line gone and as McDonald was talking to the staff, I remembered that statement and was able to have the beautiful Linda Borelli, who manages the restaurant and adds sales to her workload to snap a picture for us and our friend to complete an inside joke.
I'll keep the person's name between us, but so there!
Thanks to Linda for the help and great food!

We watched a little (so, it would count as a ballpark on Doug's list) and were off to Lake County for another game, some graphing of the Fort Wayne Tin Caps (Padres), and to finish the evening.
I was thrilled with my trip to Akron, and in another VIP situation, I wouldn't hesitate to pay the extra and go to the Duck Club..

Back soon with the next stop! 

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