Many posts to this bloggy-thing have fondly referenced Kingston Trio Fantasy Camp. But twenty-five years ago I was in Scottsdale AZ for a different fantasy camp. It was the first ever Chicago Cubs Fantasy Camp. I am reminded of this event because the baseball playoffs start today, and for me the post season is always a lot of fun to watch.
Two of my favorite things in life are folk music and baseball. And I'm the first to acknowledge that I wasn't terribly skilled in either endeavor. Fantasy camps filled the void to a degree however. It was 1983 and Time Magazine had an article about how former Cubs catcher Randy Hundley was putting together a camp in April of that year. Without hesitation I plopped down my $2,500 and hopped a plane to Arizona.
Most of the 1969 Chicago Cub players were there as coaches and as it turned out drinking buddies. We were put up at a fine resort and practiced every morning at the same stadium the Cubs had just finished spring training at. We rode the team bus back to the resort for free afternoons of swimming, beer drinking, and baseball talk. In the evening it wasn't uncommon to have the light on your phone blinking, with a message from Ferguson Jenkins or Joe Pepitone asking you to join them for dinner!
At the end of the week we (campers) played an entire game against the '69 Cubs in front of a crowd of about 5,000 cheering fans. Way cool! I gave up 3 runs on four hits in two-thirds of an inning in a 11-0 route. I blame my catcher, TV star Phil Donahue for calling a bad game. I did however get a single up the middle off Milt Pappas.
I guess it's all about "living your dreams".
1 comments:
Brings back memories for me of a certain 6'2" first baseman with a funny stride who used to love to say, "God I love baseball," and for whom a baseball cap hangs in the woods. - Eileen
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