Mac McDonald has quit his gig as the radio announcer for the Cavaliers, effective yesterday, NBC 29 reports. It seems like it was just yesterday that he came back from last time he quit — he left the job in 1985, returning in 1996. The football and basketball announcer says he wants to “pursue other opportunities.” He’s long been billed as “the voice of the Cavaliers,” a clever form of job insurance that presumably leaves CBS Collegiate Sports Properties in a tight spot. For more information, see the company’s press release.
Archive for the 'Sports' Category
Mike Brown has been arrested for theft and selling stolen goods, Barney Breen-Portnoy and Jay Jenkins write in the Progress. The 21-year-old broke into a student’s car in the Newcomb parking garage stole $3,400 worth of A/V equipment, and then tried to sell it on eBay. The kid from whom the stuff was stolen bought the stuff on eBay, knowing it was his, but apparently Brown was running a scam, because he never sent anything. Police found the stuff in his apartment, along with marijuana. What a maroon.
In an effort to worsen traffic on Pantops (one assumes), a Pennsylvania businessman has proposed building an indoor sports complex there. Jeremy Borden writes in the Progress about the $9M, 125k ft.2 soccer, tennis and basketball facility, which would be built on land that the guy already owns. He’s looking to work with the guy who owns the land adjacent, too, for an even larger project.
Pantops is probably an appropriate place for this sort of a thing, but without doing something radically different with the transportation network there, things are only going to get worse.
An investor is in talks with the Red Sox and Waynesboro about establishing a minor league team there, Jimmy LaRoue reports for the News Virginian. Jim Morris is looking to plunk down $20M on a 4,000 seat stadium, but he’s looking for W’boro to chip in some money to make it happen. Though this island of Red Sox nation would certainly love it if the Sox did establish a team here, there’s more than enough cause to think that it ain’t gonna happen. But that doesn’t mean that an independent franchise couldn’t be persuaded to open up a location in our area.
It’s official: council voted last night to let the Young Men’s Christian Association establish a private fitness center on several acres of McIntire Park, Seth Rosen writes in today’s Progress. In exchange for a forty year lease on $2M in parkland and $1.25M in cash to build a lap pool, CHS’ swim team will be given priority in the swim lanes. The vote was 3-2, with Kendra Hamilton and Julian Taliaferro voting against it.
It was one year ago this month that 18-year-old runner Kelly Watt died from the effects of heat stroke after training in 100° heat. Now Runner’s World magazine has an extended feature about him, entitled “The Last Run.” Writer Amby Burfoot lays out the narrative of Kelly’s run, medical crisis, and what’s gone on in his family’s life since. Even if you think you already know the story, it’s well worth the read.
Thirty-four year old Billy Wagner owns a pair of farms just outside of town, on which he raises a few dozen alpacas. Wagner’s had to pick up a second job, though: pitcher. The Mets signed him yesterday in a four-year, $43M deal, the Asbury Park Press reports. The Virginia native was with the Phillies, but the hotshot pitcher became interesting to a number of teams recently, with the Mets winning the bidding war. I don’t have any love for the Mets, but if the enemy of my enemy is my friend, they’re cool by me.
Further evidence that Charlottesville is the center of the universe: 90% of the country’s clay tennis courts are made from igneous basalt mined at Luck Stone. As David Hendrick explains in today’s Daily Progress, their “Har-Tru” surface material is mined in Shadwell before making its way to courts across the nation. In the earliest days of the 30-year-old company, the U.S. Open was even played on Har-Tru for a few years, before the tournament moved away from clay. Today, every court from Farmington’s to Central Park’s are all made by Luck Stone. Small world.
Last week, 18-year-old Kelly Watt died of the effects of heat stroke, a result of going running on a recent 100° day in Free Union. The surprising death of a healthy, young individual has drawn attention to the dangers of training in such high temperatures. In Saturday’s Daily Progress, Jerry Miller wrote:
“Kelly’s death gave us all cause to consider, ‘Are we doing everything we can?’” Isaacs said. “You can tell area coaches are conscious about it. It’s not the olden days anymore. We’ve been fortunate that we haven’t had any deaths [in football locally], but that’s because we are all overly cautious about things.”Albemarle football coach Rick Vrhovac added, “It certainly changes your awareness without a doubt.”
Kelly was an intern at The Hook last summer and their sports columnist (”Sports Wrap”) for the past year. Here’s one of his last columns.
jamesw points out that Charlottesville’s Putt-Putt, down on Rio, is featured in this New York Times photoessay on professional miniature golf. Professional miniature golf? One of the stars is 10-year-old Olivia Prokopova, of the Czech Republic, who has an entourage that includes a coach. It turns out that our local miniature golf course is noteworthy because it was “designed to make competitive putting possible by taking chance out of the equation.” I guess that’s why I lose there every time — no windmills.
Circuit Judge J. Michael Gamble (what’s with area judges named “J. Michael”?) ruled yesterday that the Nelson County BOS was not in violation of the state’s constitutional right to hunt when they refused to grant a special-use permit to Orion Estate for a clay-pigeon-shooting facility. Orion claimed that the constitutional right to hunt protected their right to maintain a practice shooting facility. Nelson claimed that shooting clay discs is not, in fact, hunting. Gamble sided with Nelson, writing: “Shooting sporting clays is not the pursuit of game. It is essentially shooting at an inanimate object.” The year-long case was one of more talked-about matters in Nelson in quite some time.
Braxton Williams has the story in today’s Progress.
After a 34-day-long search, UVa has announced their hiring of Dave Leitao as the new basketball coach to replace Pete Gillen. He’s signed onto a five-year contract, at $925k/year. Andrew Joyner had the story in yesterday’s Progress.
Tuesday, the Daily Progress carried a letter by the president of the Central Virginia chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, in which he encouraged people to avoid driving on Sunday, when Foxfield will be held, because of the “alcohol consumption at the races and the distressed phone calls we receive annually.” Foxfield president J. Benjamin Dick was none too pleased about this, and tried to get the chapter of MADD shut down for the assertion. It’s well worth nothing that alcohol consumption at the races do make the roads quite unsafe (2001, 2002, 2003), though the problem isn’t in the fall, but in the spring, when college students from across the state descend on the track, oblivious to the presence of horses or, in fact, races. MADD and Dick appear to have worked out their differences — MADD has clarified (but not retracted) the point, and Dick has wisely realized that attacking MADD isn’t the best way to help with Foxfield’s image problem. Julie Stavitski has the story in today’s Progress
Charlottesville native and football legend Roosevelt Brown died yesterday at his New Jersey home, apparently suffering a heart attack. Brown played for the Giants for 12 years, contributing to their spectacular success in the late 50s and early 60s. His offensive line play earned him a spot in the Hall of Fame. Brown was 71 years old.
Astoundingly, the Cavaliers defeated Duke in men’s basketball last night, 87-84. UVa, who fell out of the top 25 this week, beat the #3 Blue Devils in a 12-point rally in the last 7 minutes of the game. The AP has the story.
The McIntire Skateboard Park will continue to be free to its users. The park, which was created after the city banned skating on the Downtown Mall in the mid-90s, is expensive to operate, and it had been speculated that user fees might be necessary. Now that won’t be necessary, thanks in part to a $20,000 donation from Dave Matthews Band, Charlottesville’s newest philanthropists. The remainder of the necessary funding will be covered by the city and Albemarle County. WVIR had the news on this evening’s broadcast.
It’s finally cold enough that Wintergreen can make snow, and this weekend things are opening up for the first time this year. They’ll be opening with beginner and intermediate slopes, and presumably opening the black diamonds as soon as they can. Just a reminder: lift tickets are $20, ski rentals are $11 and snowboards are $26. WINA has a brief story.
County Supervisor Charlotte Humphris (who recently announced her retirement) has described the spring Foxfield “a disaster,” logistically-speaking. The twice-annual horse races are a popular gathering spot for University students, inevitably resulting in a lot of drinking and disorderly conduct. This may be a first step towards making some changes to the event. WINA has the story.
Anonymous writes: The UVa men’s ice hockey team will be competing in the first annual Iceland Invitational Tournament in Reykjavik, Iceland this Thanksgiving. Coach Roger Voisinet, UVa players Scott Forrest and Garrett Smith and USA hockey official, Steve Malley, just returned from a planning trip courtesy of IcelandAir and the Icelandic Tourist Bureau.
IcelandAir has given the team two free round trip air passes to raffle off as a fund raiser. This would entitle the winner to travel anywhere IcelandAir flies to: London, Paris, Stockholm, Oslo, Copenhagen, Frankfurt or Rejkjavik. Raffle tickets will be sold on the Mall Friday May 25th at 6pm between Millers and Hamilton’s. They are $5 and only 2000 are available. They can also be purchased via email at hockey@cvilleproperties.com or 980-3357. For more tourney details see: http://www.icelandinvitational.com
The Foxfield Races are next Saturday out towards Free Union. Admission is $20, parking is $15. A tip for you UVa students: Don’t miss out on the horses. They’re the big furry animals running in circles.
This story was updated 04/19/01 at 1:49pm. It originally indicated that Foxfield was “this Saturday” instead of “next Saturday.”
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