Cathy called for a brief meeting to start the tournament, and introduced Mark & myself. Hanover County has expressed interest in getting a local club running, and in support of that effort, I had been invited to explain the NHPA/VaHPA organizations. Brochures that I'd printed about the VaHPA were distributed, and pitchers were encouraged to contact Cathy, Mark or myself if they'd like to pitch on a regular basis. 

Mark Mater then announced that the KW club has been growing, and they will be leaving the courts at Poor Farm Park for the new courts they are building. The club has been searching for a "home" to build courts, and recently received the great news that the fire station would be willing to give them the space. As a matter of fact, within the next two weeks, 4 of the 12 planned courts will be in the ground, right in time for their 2003 league season. The other 8 courts will be constructed as time permits. Mark and the club members look forward to the day when they can hold their own events.

Because the KW club is moving, the courts at Poor Farm Park are available. Hanover County would love to have another club functioning there! If you know of anyone that would like to start a league, please contact Cathy, Mark or myself.

As the tournament got underway, it was surprizing to learn how far away some of the contestants lived. A gentleman from Fairfax, Va., the Williams family from Fayetteville, N.C. Gene and Tony Webb from Chesapeake (thanks for supporting KW) and Pat and myself from the Draft.

Teeshirts distributed by the County were greatly appreciated by the pitchers, especially those that pitched through a few downpours. Pat made it through five rounds, but was out of the competition when defeated by Randy Walker. Randy has won the event in the past and finished 2nd last year. Their game was neck and neck, but the final double that Randy threw was too much for Pat to cover. Having lost twice Pat was out of the game. 

Mark Mater later reported that they had 35 pitchers in the event. 1st place went to Jim Hill from Mechanicsville, 2nd to Chuck Overby of Ashland, and 3rd Raymond Hankins from Chesterfield.

While we were in Hanover, just down the road was another tournament - the Petersburg Open. By about 3:00 we headed out for Petersburg, to visit and perhaps get a few photos of our friends.

What we found when we arrived is that Mother Nature had toyed with the pitchers at both events. Fast moving rain clouds dumped sporadic showers, and in Petersburg, they faired worse than Hanover. The final downpour around five o'clock put an end to pitching for the day in Petersburg, because it was a deluge that absolutely flooded the courts. As things went, the rain stopped and the sun came out. By then it was too late. Cold and wet, the tournament directors decided to postpone the remaining games until Sunday April 20th. 

As we were driving away, right smack in front of us appeared the brightest rainbow I have every seen. It stretched from ground to ground, and was simply beautiful! Of course, my camera was already packed away, buried somewhere on the back seat.  But what a wonderful ending to a very long, busy day for Pat & I.