Railcats Start the Season Off With a Bang

Fireworks over the Steel Yard after the game last night

Last night I attended Opening Night at the Steelyard. For some reason I was in no rush to get to the park. After seeing an exhibition game with around ten people earlier in the year I did not think I had to worry about a crowd. I arrived at the park about 20 minutes before the start of the game, and was shocked at the crowd. My normal parking lot was full as well as one of the first overflow lots. They were actually parking us down the street. A two block walk in most cities isn’t bad, but you could tell the fans did not like it in Gary. At the ticket window I was greeting with more long lines. I missed the pregame introductions as well as the first half inning. I found my seat on the first base line just as Gary was coming to bat.

Playing Like a Bunch of Wookies

Last night was Star Wars night in Gary. I had just gotten back from a long trip, but I had to see what kind of people this attracted. As I walked in I saw that the line to meet the man who wore the Chewbacca suit, Peter Mayhew, was not very long so I got in the line. I handed him a ball because I collect them, and he acted like it was a bomb. He is a very tall man, but it looks like his size is starting to catch up to him. He had a lot of trouble getting around. I even resisted the urge to tell him to ‘punch it Chewy’ when he took too long to sign the ball.