On The Sly

This scrapbook is so fun! I have a few scrapbooks of my high school years (BCS - class of 1976) and inside you will find many Press Republican articles (all yellowed now). This publication does an awesome job covering the north country and the people in it. I am thankful that their on-line version is so good (the town I live in now has one newspaper and it is so incomplete! And their web version is even worse!). If you can keep this "scrapbook" column coming periodically. It is great! Thanks!

Foxy,

Miney sure brings back memories. We were playing for the Elks team at Bailey Ave. Carl Leahy was our coach. When Miney pitched, every so often that single sign indicating a fast ball was given with the wrong finger.

Miney would start laughing and the ump would get irritated wanting the game to continue. Of course I remained innocent behind the plate where the ump couldn't see what I was doing.

Thanks for the great memories Foxy!!!

Foxy. I too was a catcher all thru Little League and Babe Ruth played for Bakers and then later Connors. And when I wasn't catching I played first base. I used to love however, standing on the mound and was quite proud of the fact that I could throw strike after strike (when there wasn't a batter standing there). So.... we were playing at St Peters field and for reasons I can't seem to recall Dave Mayette calls me in to pitch. As you may well know things are a lot different when it's batter up...... We lost 28 to 3! I think he let me finish the game (because he had to) but, I never pitched again. Forever behind the plate. Randy

(Foxy's note: Ah, those Little League memories!)

Tom-A-Hawk: Juan was a catcher - he used to give me the finger in place of his index finger, signaling a fast ball (back before I ruined my arm throwing curve balls @ a young age). I used to crack up on the mound & wouldn't be able to pitch for a minute - I received many cautions from the ump. Bullet was a retriever.

(Foxy's note: Many Blogoteers have been worried-- we hadn't heard from Miney in a while. Glad all is well!)

Happy New Year, Foxy!
I'm not sure how many of the bloggers are aware of this but old copies of North Country newspapers have been made available online through a link on the PR site. For PR archives starting at 1959, this link will bring back many memories: http://news2.nnyln.net/plattsburgh-press-republican/search.html
There are also other North Country newspapers (Saranac Lake, Lake Placid, etc.) also now available online through the same project.
I spent at least 3 hours the other night searching by my family name here and was amazed at the articles I had totally forgotten about!
Have some fun searching here but be forewarned, you'd better have a few hours to spare.....even the old ads will capture fond memories of those special days growing up in the best little city around!
Happy Holidays!

(Foxy's note: Thanks for the tip, Woody. Happy New Year to you!)

HI FOXY - SKIP MADE IT HERE BUT HE'S NOT ONLINE YET. HE WILL BE ONLINE ON THE 1ST. WE DID PLAY GOLF AND HE GOT ME BY 5 BUT THAT WILL BE THE LAST TIME. HE IS ALREADY LOOKING FOR SEAFOOD. HE TOLD ME TO SAY HI TO EVERYONE.

(Foxy's note: Great to hear from you and Skip. Mmmm, seafood! Wish I was there!)

Foxy, Tom Eldridge was a true hero, a Marine pilot shot down, sadly with only a few missions left on his assignment. He was also a great athlete going on to play football at UVM without playing in high school. Also won the Cake-Walk at UVM as a member of Kappa Sig frat.
Sorry to hear of Al Ryan's passing in November, saw him in August and he looked great. A true lover of the North Country.

Hi Foxy,

The Mary Lou Slattery featured in Golf Digest now goes by the name Mary Lou Zaferakis, my mother! She graduated from St. John's in 1964 and was enrolled at the College of New Rochelle. She is still tearing up the links to this day... in fact we have a tee time in about an hour so I had better get moving! Keep up the great work on the blog!

(Foxy's note: Congrats, Lisa Z ... you win ... the first to identify Mary Lou Slattery! You win an autographed photo of Foxy Gagnon.)

Some great names you've all come up with,
But catchers, give me a break!.. most of em had to be catchers, too slow to play anywhere else!....A few names I add to your list of greats might include Tessier, King, Ladd, Finney, Cardany, I'd take that those five anywhere in any sport!
...Tom-a-hawk, to answer your question..without a doubt ..point guards,quarterbacks and center fielders.
One thing for sure, with Fox Hill closed
our luge and bobsled teams sure are gonna suffer! Maybe our city fathers could cut a deal ...Maybe those wanting the Federal Builiding for free could donate a few hours of their time and work towards the preservation of the Historic Fox Hill...or maybe we could dump all the snow the city crews have recently picked up on that beautiful parking lot at the old train station so the kids would have somewhere to slide...what the hell it's already lighted!

I am an expatriot Rouses Pointer - living in Buffalo (which is a contradiction in terms).
I share the name of my late father, who shared his father's name. We probably had relatives in the village that helped build the fort. Anyway, my father left behind enough scrapbooks, newspapers, and assorted "junk" to merit its own room in the National Archives. As part of the nationwide obsession with the "Greatest Generation" (it truly was), I have been sorting through them all, filing them, and am continuingly uploading photos, newspaper articles, etc. to a Rouses Point/family site, most circa 1912 - 1963, when my father passed away. I will send you a few examples in the next couple of days. I will see if I can impress or surprise you - I will bet you don't even know that Clark Gable and Carol Lombard once stopped by Armand's for a couple of 15 cent drafts ;-)

(Foxy's note: Charlie, thanks for the notes ... and I definitely never heard about Gable and Lombard in RP. Have you heard about Al Ryan's recent book about growing up in Rouses Point?)

Catchers- not the best of athletes, they don't even play on the field. Find a catcher with speed (aside from Bullet) and you will find HGH. A lot of people don't realize that the game of baseball was not originally played with a catcher. Originally the position was termed retriever. If the ball was missed by the batter then the retriever went and fetched it. Actually could be replaced by a good dog. Not a bad idea except for the teeth marks.
As for curling, no interest or experience on my part. Lacrosse, now there is a sport, eye hand coordination, speed, endurance, and violent impact. Sadly not much lacrosse in the area since Bob Hudak left Saranac and took his stick to NCCC in the 70's.

Foxy; I think being a Jockey has to be thrown into the mix of toughest and best athletes. I seem to recall a young man name Ross Minkler, a good catcher from Lyon Mountain I think! I always played Centerfield in high school and in fast pitch softball and later I played left center fielder in slow pitch softball. Larry Senecal from MAI was a left handed first basemen and a good one. The Sport of Boxing years ago was very popular and I often fought in front of thousands of Boxing Fans in several states in Golden Gloves and AAU Sanction Boxing Tourneys.
The Golden Days of Boxing are gone and so has the interest of the Boxing Fan! I do think it is a demanding Sport that requires Many Skills: Gymnasts are great athletes! Lenny

Going back in time, pre Tommy K. era, Pete Cronin, St. John's, played quarterback, point guard and catcher. Went to college as a football player and signed into the Red Sox organization. Played up to the Triple A level until injury forced retirement. MAI had a catcher (plus all around excellent athlete) by the name of Tiny LaChaunce. PHS had a catcher by the name of Bobby Parker, again an all around athlete. In that time period (late 1940's) LaChaunce, Parker and Dud Bullis of St. John's were considered the finest athletes in the county. Two of them were catchers. At the time PHS was the only local school to have a track team. They had many fine track and field people that also excelled at other sports. Being a small area with a small population did not give a wide number of opportunities to participate in a number of sports. However I would not have traded that era for the world. Most could play two or three sports and have the best of all worlds.

(Foxy's note: Glad The Old-Timer checked in on this one. I knew he'd have some good names to add.)

Tom-A-Hawk & Forest make creditable arguments, but don’t limit it to the North Country, go global. I think a gymnast, hands down, is the best athlete overall. The list from the North Country may be short, but the skill, strength, agility, and athleticism required for the sport is un-paralleled. There is no denying skill positions in other sports require great athletes, but all around there is no comparison. My vote goes to the gymnast; you pick the position: bars, rings, floor, etc. Besides, they have the neatest uniforms.
And what about broom-ballers? They don’t play that in high school, but who can argue against all the greats that played that sport. Should they be included? Aren’t cheerleading, bowling, and golf considered sports? I know Rubble was into curling for a time, hope he doesn’t bring that into the mix! Art V, what do you say? Step out of that quarry and voice an opinion. Surely all those years of coaching must have given you some thoughts. Old Timer-fighting doesn’t count, and Bullet-it’s not about how fast you get to first, it’s how pretty you look doing it. You guys in the $100 seats, click on my name,..this bud’s for you, ‘where everybody knows your name’……..I’m Thinkin Bout It…

OK, Tom-A-Hawk, I understand your logic, but not sure I agree with your conclusion. How about runners? Do they have to be sub-divided into distance, middle distance, or sprinters? You can’t deny the national success of the McDougal brothers (Liberty), Patty McCormick (Seton Hall), Kyle Watson and Jason Jabaut (Villanova), Kathy Champagne (UNH) and daughter Mary Kate (will attend Providence), Jeremy Stone (William & Mary), Andy Hastings and Mat Mederios (Plattsburgh), Art Graves (St.Lawrence), Sara Facteau, Kevin Champagne, Andy Guay, the list goes on. I bet if they hadn’t been runners, they’d have excelled as cheerleaders or golfers….or whatever sport they had decided to get into.
How many of those catchers had Tom-A-Hanks play them in a movie?…..you Think Bout It
Forest

Your scrapbook brings up some interesting thoughts with so many sports. One wonders which one produces the best athletes. In the North Country athletes have the luxury of being able to excel in several sports so I ask the question: What position attracts the best athletes? Point guard, quarterback, shortstop, goalie, sprinters, cheerleaders, golfers, et.al. My entry would be catchers.
As a group, catchers are often overlooked for the more glamorous skill positions, but their importance can’t be denied. A list of names speak for themselves: Barnie Woodward (Peru), Joe Proctor (Beekmantown), Jeff Burns & Jason Miller (PHS), Mike Dandrow & Greg Ducatte (MAI), Harry Canning (St. Johns), Arnie Miller (Saranac), and Joe Staves (OLVA).
I wonder what positions Carver, Forest, Bullet, Popcorn, Juan, Rubble, The Old Timer, Art V, and the rest of the counter-bloggers played?! I’ll bet there was a left-handed first baseman among them who has an opinion.
p.s. A blogateer is a person that responds to a blog; a counter-blogger is a person that responds to a blogateer. I’ll be introducing that into the dictionary once elected…..TBI

(Foxy's note: Yes, Tom-A-Hawk, that catcher point seems well-founded since many of those you mentioned went on to play college baseball or signed professional baseball contracts. I'll add an oldie, Tommy Kowalowski of Lyon Mountain to that mix, and a young guy, Todd Wilkinson of PHS. And I'm sure there are more. Did anyone know that Goose Gagnon was a catcher? He was one of the few who could handle my dreaded knuckle-curve ball that Hector Duquette hammered off the Bailey Avenue centerfield wall!)