Fairborn Sunday 4/29 results

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Rich

Thanks. Yeah, I know. I have never had an experience like this. Most tournaments are handled much better when it rains. I've seen a lot more rain affect fields a lot less than this past weekend.

 

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Everything that has been said to this point by everyone is the truth. That already being said the TD should not be allowed to run another tourney by us the teams, players, coaches parents and fans of softball anywhere because he is the responible person for every complaint filed. Along with the fact that no fields were touched until very late sunday morning, no calls were made to anyone, and the PAYING CUSTMERS were the only ones working the diamonds
1. We went to go warm up for a game and were yelled at because they had just planted grass in a very small area and did not want us to mess it up, OK where would you like us to warm up? and the staff member stated "not my problem." then pointed to a dirt strip that had bolders (not rocks) bolders and said you can throw over there if you have too.
2. Our team watched as several people wearing staff shirts arrive jerk around and then never touched a field until finally the umps showed up and said something needed to be done.
3. No coolers sign posted and enforced as they put up a tent to sell crap charging 5x's the regular price all while the fields are be worked on by thier PAYING CUSTMERS.
4. EVER HEAR OF QUICK DRY moving on!!
5. the bathrooms were digusting and the 3 portajons that they had were so full that the girls could not hardley stand to use them so the had to run all the way to the main building or hold it till the game was over.
6. They lined the fields one time and then did nothing else the rest of the day unless the PAYING CUSTMER did it for them.
7. The TD left the park. so when we finally are playing the Championship game at around 11:10 some guy comes up who worked for the complex and says this games time limit is up, the game is over the umpire tells the guy that there is no time limit on the Championship game they talk waisting more time (mind you that the game is in the bottom of the 6th and we only play 7) they finllay aree and let the kids who have worked this hard finish.
8. If the guy that was so worried about leaving would have brought the trophies down with him everybody could have been out af ther 15 mins faster but no he was not that smart.



That being said: i don't think that i have touched the surfuce of all of the stupid thing that happened this weekend.


congrats to everyone who played, coached or just watched the games this weekend.


TD you should be ashamed > > > > > > > > >

 

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im a coaches wife. i dont pretend to know everything about softball but Ive been involved in baseball and softball for 7 yrs and have
served on our rec ball board. when we held tourneys we were up at the crack of dawn getting things ready. when we had rain we had to scoop off water with cups we did whatever it took to get the fields ready before the first team showed up. the grounds at gateway were pathetic to say the least. there wasn't much room to warm up and what we didhave was not level and very rocky. some of our assistant coaches were getting ready to take our players on the grass of the baseball fields when the guy in charge of the grounds yelled at them and said im not having my grass messed up for you... he told us to warm up in the rocks when my husband ask who the dr should call for payment when 1 of our girls got hurt he said i don't care send the bill to me.

the bathrooms were a mess there was never tp after many requests and i know that doesn't have anything to do with softball but it just shows they did not really care how things were ran.

on sunday gateway decided they needed to put up some type of tent/shelter for the consession stand. i have to say it took them alot less time to do it than i thought. they got it done in about an hour. the first 1/2 hour provided those of us who were watching with shear entertainment as they walked in circles and scratched there heads. I have a suggestion.....try some easy ups(tent) and use the rest of the time working on the fields.

I am apart of 10u. we had delays(around 1 1/2 hrs) but nothing like the 12u. i know things get behind ....nothing is perfect but with just alittle effort it could have been so much better.

congrats to the winners especially the OHIOWAVE 12u!!!!!

dont ever forget TD and gateway, people talk about their bad expiriences alot more than they share their good.... it could be a long ball season... :'(

 

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I must add some more fuel to the fire. Mr. Sanders ( TD) , ARE WE GOING TO GET ANY MONEY BACK FOR THE GAME WE LOST? When I signed up for this tourney it was a five game guarantee. I would not say much, if anything, if the grounds crew were working and doing their jobs but unfortunately you or they never. I wish I could have left mid day like you but my team was still waiting to play their 10:00 game at 6:00pm. Just wondering who is embarrassed the most, lets take a poll - is it the TD or is it Gateway Sports Brick Chunks Complex? I may have to flip a coin on that one.

 

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Embarrsed???? ;D ;D ;D ;D. I don't think Gateway will be embarrased because I don't think they really care. After we were told to get off the baseball outfield grass because, quote, "they are not going to have the grass messed up just so we could pass the ball." AND after we were told to warm up in the rock quarry and send the doctor bill to them when one of the girls broke an ankle on one of the boulders. I turned to my wife and said, "make a mental note, we will not play here again!" What was Gateway's response?........ I was told QUOTE "Don't make a mental note of it, WRITE it down!!!" Wow, great business relations. Well I did write it down and it appears a lot of other teams will also. Gateway needs us a lot more than we need them. They may not realize it now, but they will.

On the positive side..The competition was great and the umpires were very good and proffesional.

 

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I agree wave 10u, the competition was great and the umps were good as well. You are also right, Gateway really does not care about anything or anyone, only money.

 

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Rich : Congrats on a fine tournament you have a great group of ballplayers and fine young ladies .

A job well done

 

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Hey Paul, if it's true that all Gateway cares about is the $$$, and it certainly seems that way, then they wont last long. The Ohio softball community is much too savey to be suckered more then once!!! There are too many great outdoor tournaments within a 2 hour drive from the Dayton area that are SOFTBALL FRIENDLY.

It's a shame because they were located an hour away from Cincy and Columbus and the market share for these 2 metros were huge. Also if they think they are going to corner the indoor market with there new Dome and get away with treating people like 3rd class citizens...I'm here to tell you there is nothing they can build that could out do the Ft. Wayne Dome in quality field condition and size. The Ft Wayne staff was very professional and softball friendly, and the TD and 2 of his staff sat behind the Right Field fence and watched the entire Championship game, while talking to the parents of both teams throughout the game!!!

It's a shame, especially for newer teams like the Outlaws that should be playing in competitive tournaments, where they might think this is the norm when they drive 2 hours north for a tourney. Coach this is not the norm, especially in the Columbus area where FASTPITCH is taken very seriously and tourny's like GAPSS, Stingrays, Pickerington Classic and Marysville Heart of Ohio are very well ran.

Tim and Rich, can you please explain again why tournament trophy's and tournament Championship shirts won by 2 differnt teams at 2 different events have been promised over and over for months and still not been sent??? Sounds like Gateway is running a sham...bottom line.

Anyways, on the one hand I don't feel so bad now missing this mess, on the other hand I heard that a lot of good softball friends were there with different teams and I missed out on some good softball conversation...lol.

 

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Congrats to the Wave 12u. You have a very solid team. Also to the outlaws who played very good this past weekend. Would just like to add that our Gateway experience was horrible. We will not be going back anytime soon and I recommend the same for anyone else thinking about participating in one of these tourneys. Cutting grass and fixing hotdogs while the fields are a mess is unacceptable.

Gerald Clifton
11u Cincy Doom

 

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You are right Bink44, they will not last long if it keeps going the way it is going. The only guy I talked to from there was Harlan and he seemed understanding and a decent person but from what was coming out of some of the staffs mouths and what the TD told the one girl coach was inappropriate. Just an all around bad experience and until they realize they need ground crews that are professional acting they are going to have a very tough time. I would like to thank Harlan for helping me out with my camper stay on getting out when I had to on the nights I was there, he seems nice like I said before but he is in for a long haul if he stays with Gateway. Thanks again Harlan and maybe we will cross paths again at another tournament, of course at different fields.

 

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To the Southern Ohio Outlaws, you guys played great and you have nice parents as well. I wish you luck in all tourneys this year.
To the Ohio Wave, Congratulations on another tourney win, you guys deserved it the way you were smacking the ball around and playing some great defense, especially at key times.
To my Ohio Heat young ladies, I am proud of the way you played after sitting 9hrs. for your first game and having to warm up 5 or 6 times makes it tough. Keep your heads high and we will try again at the next big weekend. Making the semi-finals was not easy under the circumstances and you all did a great job.
To the Doom, you guys are a great group and the rivalry is becoming our norm it seems like. You have great parents and coaches as well and we will be looking for you at the next one. Coaches just do me a favor and let your girls know they do not have to battle back ALL the time - LOL, it was fun and I look forward to playing you guys. Goodluck the rest of the year.
To the Ohio Danger, I knew it would be a fun game with you guys but knowing each other so well even makes it that much better. Keep up the hard work and you will be fine. Your fans are awesome and Kelly tell your 3rd baseman, Amy, to quit trying to be sly on stealing my signs, all she has to do is ask and I will tell her what we are going to do-LOL. Does'nt Outback Steakhouse sound good to you now, I'm one up. Would you like to go double or nothing? Goodluck the rest of the year and hopefully we will meet again, after all, two steaks sounds better than one-heehee.

Goodluck to all, I hope everybody wins a tournament this year. As much work as the kids put in they deserve it.

Coach Paul,
Ohio Heat Fury 12u

 

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Gerald and J.D. thanks for the compliments. The 4 games that we played on sunday were competitive and fun. We all have things to work on and I am sure as we see eachother thru-out the year we will each have a new wrinkle or two. Thats what makes this so much fun.

Gerald, your pitcher is going to be a good one. The work she is putting in right now will definately pay off next year and she will have the upper hand. We went thru it last year on our team as the 11 years olds threw every inning of every game. There is nothing to replace the mound experience. Keep it positive.


Bink, regarding the addition of a Dome at Gateway I am not sure they are ready for that. Instead of makng the 2 million dollar plus investment for that, I think they should invest in some the following:

1) Turface (diamond dry) I Pallet (80 bags) is only $500.00
2) Drain tile under each field.
3) Nail Drag (less then $500.00 for a new one)
4) Diamond Pro Calcinated Clay Conditioner
5) Drag Screen or simliar device
6) DVD for field maintenence 101 (priceless)


I heard from one of the staff there that they recently spent $50,000.00 to put the crushed brick on the fields. I think they did this in an attempt to allow the water to get away from the surface more efficently. The reality is, if there is nowhere for the water to go, then it does not matter what is on the surface. At 10:00 am on sunday they were adding more crushed brick material to the fields. All it did was make the situation worse. That material is not made to absorb the water and allow it to dry. It held the moisture and NEVER allowed it to dray all day long. Every diamond still had mud on it even at th end of sunday. Thats with 12 solid hours of bright sun light. I think that is a fundmental problem in that location. If they want to correct it they have to start over. By adding 4" or 6" drain tile approximittly 18" below the surface of the fields (every 10' on the infields, and every 20' in the outfields will do) then use the Diamond Pro because it is simply the best and it does not cut players up when they slide. Of course the Diamond pro is not just applied to the surface it must be properly worked into the top 4 inches of the skinned infield. When this is done correctly the water gets away from the surface and then you can nail drag the top one inch or so, allow it to sit in the sun for 15 minutes to a half hour or so and then drag it down with a screen or similar device. Amaziingly enough you will be playing ball in no time on safe dry well maintained fields. Sounds simple doesn't it. Actually it is. ?

If they can do this then they have a chance to put on a decent event. Until something like this is done, they have little chance to ever run an event in which a 15 minute rain storm happens within a 2 day window of the event. JMHO

 

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A big thank you to all who complimented our team (southern ohio outlaws). Wave, you have a great team, and we look forward to playing in your tournament this summer. We played in it last year, as a new team, and decided that it was the best tournament we had played in all last year. Why? Your staff was great, so was the facility. It was relaxing, it was fun, and very well run. So we will keep coming back. But, never to Gateway, ever again. Thank goodness Doom is not going back. I don't want my older daughter there either. Great ball this weekend, despite the mess. I will see most of you all this summer at some point.

 

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As a coach for the Outaws I would like to thank everyone for their comments. We worked hard to get into this tournament because of the competition. We can not afford to keep traveling south to play and this was the first on our list. Next year we will stay down south until later in our season. I would like to tell all teams that played this weekend how well they all did handling the conditions. I have been in this for a few years and can only compare to one other mess that we went through last year and a tournament that the outlaws will never go back to either.

 

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Congrats to the Ohio Wave and the Southern Ohio Outlaws!

 

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Can someone give me some info on the Scioto storm ? I thought I saw a pool play score in 12U with this teams name ---are they from portsmouth ? If so , anyone got more scores on them Thanks MD

 

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ManitouDan the Scito Storm is a very nice team. They were well coached and had some nice players.

We played them in pool play and unfortunately the game was shortened to just an hour. Their pitcher is going to be pretty good.

Other then that I do know that they played the Ohio Heat so maybe Paul has some 411 on them.

 

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Manitoudan,
As Rich had said, they are a nice team that is going to have a nice pitcher. They are from Portsmouth. We had our hands full with them and all of a sudden they had that dreaded coaches inning where things went South. If not for that inning it was a very nice team with nice coaches and parents.

 

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Thanks everyone from Scioto Storm! We knew we would have our hands full. We are a first year team and this was our very first tournament and in fact our first games. We hadn't even scrimmaged yet due to weather. We only got to play 3 games out of a 5 game guarantee. A money refund would be nice. Despite how the tournament was run, our girls had fun. All the teams were VERY good. We feel better about our score with the Ohio WAve knowing that they won the tournament. Congratulations Ohio Wave and Ohio Outlaws. Ohio Heat also very good team! Hope to see you all at other tournaments. We're headed to Milton, WV this weekend. I guess from reading all the posts, this wasn't the best tournament to start out in. But the girls did have fun at the pool in the hotel Saturday night!

 

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you guys/ladies had a Twilight Zone-like tourney experience. Everything from puddly fields, porta-smellies, no TD's, and not even allowed to bring in water. What did they do, have a gatorade sniffing dog at the entrance? These postings will surely keep everyone else's minor quibbles at other tourneys in perspective.