CityView Magazine

in the marketplace Knocking Summer Out of the Park BY BRANDON PLOTNICK I a special place in my heart. So when it comes to summer time, the water isn't my first thought when it comes to cooling off. No, my cooling off during the summer actually comes 'm not much of a beach person. This isn't a sur- prise to anyone I know. I was a late-bloomer to the world of swimming, not learning how to do so until my junior high years. The sand and the sun don't hold from a little more direct exposure to the sweltering heat. I spend my time at the ballpark. For years now, baseball has been a key part of my life. ball a part of what I do each summer. And my journey to Fayetteville was no exception. What has always been interesting to me about Fayette- ville, though, is just how many people I run into who don't even know we have a baseball team. This is no fault of the people involved with the wonderfully operated Fayette- ville SwampDogs, of course. They do a marvelous job of sell- ing their family-first atmosphere to the community. No, this is more the product of a community with a lot of opportuni- ties for distraction elsewhere. I'm always amused when I find someone who says they've never had time to go to a game, but in the same conversation says something about how there's nothing to do in Fayetteville. My mission here in this column is to sell you on the idea Whether it was being involved during my years as a journal- ist, or here in the last five or six years as a fan. Nothing to me says perfect summer night like closing my eyes and hearing the hum of the stadium lights. Listening to the pop of the ball hitting a glove is about as therapeutic as any massage. The clean, crisp sound of the bat cracking aſter perfect impact on a home run ball. That's what cools me down each summer. No matter where I've lived, I've made base- "Baseball is too boring" and just pass it off as something you never really wanted to experience in person. But things are different at J.P. Riddle Stadium. Baseball really is more than just a game here. It really is...fun. A quick primer for those who don't already know: The base- ball played here in Fayetteville is NOT minor-league baseball. We're not an affiliate of anyone. We aren't a Single A, Dou- ble A or Triple A team. We don't play the Durham Bulls or anything like that. The SwampDogs are a collegiate summer- league team. These are college kids on their summer breaks from school, trying to get some experience playing baseball with wood bats. (For most, if not all their careers up to this point, they've used aluminum.) Many peo- ple have heard of the Cape Cod League. This is the same thing. A great opportunity for some talented players to get some great experience on the field. Players here are from all over the country. They aren't paid to play here. Their payment comes in on-field experience and that demands excellence. The staff is having fun around the park, because their job is to make sure you're having a good time. The kids around the stadium are always laughing and enjoying the on-field promotions. Parents aren't spending a fortune on tickets or food. It really is...fun. So when you're trying to find something to do every year exposure to scouts. So that gets me back to the "Where Base- ball is Fun" thing. If you come to a game, you'll notice that everyone is having fun. The players are having a great time on the field, with a coaching staff of cooling down by actually just sitting out in the heat and humidity some more. "Where Baseball is Fun" — that's the motto the SwampDogs use to sell their product. And sure, it's easy to roll your eyes at it if you've never been. It's easy to say 16 | July/August • 2012 between Memorial Day and the beginning of August, remem- ber that the best places to cool down don't necessarily have a thing to do with air conditioning or water. Give baseball a chance. I promise you won't regret it. CV Brandon Plotnick is the manager of communications and technology for the Fayetteville-Cumberland County Chamber of Commerce. He can be reached at 910.433.6766 or bplotnick@ fayettevillencchamber.org.

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