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Strange/Unusual things at/near your stadium............

NNDman

VaPreps All District
May 29, 2001
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Posed his topic on the Class 1 board but didn't get as many responses as I thought I would. So, I come here hoping to discover these things at the larger schools.
 
At Luray, there used to be a residential house in the parking area by the football field. When Hurricane Fran hit, the water was so high, you could only see tips of uprights due to heavy flooding. When the water receded, the house had floated over the fence and landed on the football field. The school system had to pay to remove the house and buy the land from the homeowner. It did increase the parking capacity.
 
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In 2006 Westfield had a grass field and we got a lot of rain that fall. Of course, the field was trashed. I did not see it so I cannot verify 100% if this is true, but there was one game later in the season where they allegedly brought in a helicopter to try to dry out the field. It did not work that well, and after a complete mud bowl game against Chantilly in the playoffs a bit later the entire field was replaced with a new Bermuda field.
 
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GW Danville’s Current Practice field
Used to be the Drivers Ed course but the concrete was removed and Bermuda grass put in
 
We were beating the daylights out of Franklin County up there in 1974. We noticed there were a lot of couples going in out of some woods on the visitors side.
 
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I talked about Amelia in the Class 1 thread. They have a combo baseball-football field with a concession stand very very close to the endzone.
 
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GW Danville’s Current Practice field
Used to be the Drivers Ed course but the concrete was removed and Bermuda grass put in
I kind of learned to drive on that range with Coach Reed barking commands on the am radio.
 
I talked about Amelia in the Class 1 tread. They have a combo baseball-football field with a concession stand very very close to the endzone.
Before Amherst stadium they had a combo field to. Sounds like a similar set up. Football concessions was along left field fence. Home bleachers where along outfield fence.
 
From what I've been told Andrew Lewis, when it was the Salem HS, used to play their games at the minor league ballpark where the Salem Pirates played. (now Kiwanis Field) The baseball team built a field over at the CC 25 yrs ago & are now the Red Sox.
 
At Highland Springs HS in 2018. We had a small airplane crash on the Baseball field adjacent to the football stadium! Crazy! HSHS is 1.5 miles away from Rich. International Airport. Apparently, it ran out of gas...
 
From what I've been told Andrew Lewis, when it was the Salem HS, used to play their games at the minor league ballpark where the Salem Pirates played. (now Kiwanis Field) The baseball team built a field over at the CC 25 yrs ago & are now the Red Sox.
Watched quite a few football games at the baseball stadium. We would park at my grandmothers house a few blocks away and walk to the field.
 
Interesting topic. I do have a question that is a little bit different. I heard that Tabb and Jamestown don't have their own stadiums and that they share a stadium with other schools. Does anyone know if and when they will get their own stadiums?
 
Interesting topic. I do have a question that is a little bit different. I heard that Tabb and Jamestown don't have their own stadiums and that they share a stadium with other schools. Does anyone know if and when they will get their own stadiums?
I am not sure about Tabb and Jamdstown, but I do know that Hampton HS and Phoebus HS don't have football fields at their schools either, the play their games at Darling Stadium. There is Todd Stadium where other teams play too. Some of those Tidewater teams use the VA Beach Sportsplex too.
 
Interesting topic. I do have a question that is a little bit different. I heard that Tabb and Jamestown don't have their own stadiums and that they share a stadium with other schools. Does anyone know if and when they will get their own stadiums?

Wanner Stadium in Williamsburg hosts Warhill, Lafayette & Jamestown.
Bailey Field in Yorktown hosts Tabb & York
Bogle Field in Roanoke hosts Cave Spring & Hidden Valley.

Why would they need their own stadium?
 
I am not sure about Tabb and Jamdstown, but I do know that Hampton HS and Phoebus HS don't have football fields at their schools either, the play their games at Darling Stadium. There is Todd Stadium where other teams play too. Some of those Tidewater teams use the VA Beach Sportsplex too.
Kecoughtan and Bethel are Hampton schools as well and they share Darling Stadium with Phoebus and Hampton. I think the 5 NN schools all share Todd Stadium.
 
Wanner Stadium in Williamsburg hosts Warhill, Lafayette & Jamestown.
Bailey Field in Yorktown hosts Tabb & York
Bogle Field in Roanoke hosts Cave Spring & Hidden Valley.

Why would they need their own stadium?
For home field advantage and to save travel.
 
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spend, what, 5 mil.??? - to not travel a mile or two???
and they HAVE home field advantage.
 
Instead of having York and Laffeyette play 5 games at home they have 6 or 7 games at home while Tabb and Jamestown have to visit York and Laffeyette every year.
 
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Way back in 1969, I took a girl that I had recently met to a football game for our first date. We went to Historic Cameron Field to see a Petersburg game.

We were sitting in the stands, and my date leaned over and whispered in my ear, "did you see how short the skirt is, that the girl sitting behind us is wearing?"

I carefully looked behind me, as to not be too obvious. Then, I turned to my date and told her to turn around and let me introduce her to my sister.

Needless to say, she was mortified. But, I thought it was hilarious. I'm proud to say, that girl and myself celebrated our 48th wedding anniversary yesterday. Irronically, yesterday was exactly 52 years since we first met. Needless to say, high school football has a special place in my heart.
 
Way back in 1969, I took a girl that I had recently met to a football game for our first date. We went to Historic Cameron Field to see a Petersburg game.

We were sitting in the stands, and my date leaned over and whispered in my ear, "did you see how short the skirt is, that the girl sitting behind us is wearing?"

I carefully looked behind me, as to not be too obvious. Then, I turned to my date and told her to turn around and let me introduce her to my sister.

Needless to say, she was mortified. But, I thought it was hilarious. I'm proud to say, that girl and myself celebrated our 48th wedding anniversary yesterday. Irronically, yesterday was exactly 52 years since we first met. Needless to say, high school football has a special place in my heart.
Happy Anniversary my friend!
 
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Was at the last game at Cameron Field when Petersburg was playing TD and gunfire broke
Out and PPD had to come in after that PHS
Started playing their home games at Va State for a while but that tunnel you had to walk through if you parked on the other side of I 85
Was pretty intimidating to walk through to get to the field the old days of AD Moon Mullins
 
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Instead of having York and Laffeyette play 5 games at home they have 6 or 7 games at home while Tabb and Jamestown have to visit York and Laffeyette every year.
uhhhh... hate to tell ya this.... but you get an 'F' this week.
York and Lafayette DON'T play 6 or 7 games at home... try 4 and 5 this year.
Tabb and Jamestown HOSTED York and Lafayette last season.
 
The games are either at York or Lafayette and not Jamestown or Tabb. So Lafayette and York get more home games while Jamestown and Tabb travel more.
 
The Courtland/Orange deluge game in I think 1983 at Porterfield Park! Look it up on you tube, classic mud bowl game, most fun ever slipping and sliding around. Never, ever saw it rain like that before.
 
The games are either at York or Lafayette and not Jamestown or Tabb. So Lafayette and York get more home games while Jamestown and Tabb travel more.
By "travel more"... you mean 500 yards per week?????
Because that's basically what Lafayette does compared to Warhill.


Looks like someone has no clue what a "home field" is.

If York isn't a Home game for Tabb, then Tabb has ZERO Home games per year.
And, again, York has FEWER home games than Tabb.
 
Wanner Stadium in Williamsburg hosts Warhill, Lafayette & Jamestown.
Bailey Field in Yorktown hosts Tabb & York
Bogle Field in Roanoke hosts Cave Spring & Hidden Valley.

Why would they need their own stadium?
Does Grafton play at Bailey Field as well?
 
Every time Tabb plays York the game is at York and not at Tabb so York gets home field advantage every year. Same situation with Jamestown and Lafayette.
 
It would be a lot cooler if it turned out a team had a haunted stadium/locker room that would intimidate other teams, fwiw. These are neat, fun facts but be a lot more fun if they involved an opposing team running out of a stadium in terror bc they all saw some ghosts
 
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It would be a lot cooler if it turned out a team had a haunted stadium/locker room that would intimidate other teams, fwiw. These are neat, fun facts but be a lot more fun if they involved an opposing team running out of a stadium in terror bc they all saw some ghosts

I've been expecting someone to start out with
"And this one time at band camp "......lol
 
Was at the last game at Cameron Field when Petersburg was playing TD and gunfire broke
Out and PPD had to come in after that PHS
Started playing their home games at Va State for a while but that tunnel you had to walk through if you parked on the other side of I 85
Was pretty intimidating to walk through to get to the field the old days of AD Moon Mullins
Yes sir, the environment had deteriated to the point that games could no longer be contested there. Several things worked against Cameron Field. Parking was almost non-existent. Pedestrian access was horrible. Attempting to provide adaquate security presence took double the number of security personnel simply because of the layout of the facility.
Incidently, the field lighting was so antiquated that it was honestly a safety hazard.

Sadly, time had rendered a once wonderful facility to a relic.
 
Yes sir, the environment had deteriated to the point that games could no longer be contested there. Several things worked against Cameron Field. Parking was almost non-existent. Pedestrian access was horrible. Attempting to provide adaquate security presence took double the number of security personnel simply because of the layout of the facility.
Incidently, the field lighting was so antiquated that it was honestly a safety hazard.

Sadly, time had rendered a once wonderful facility to a relic.
I’ve heard a lot about Cameron field, just wish I was old enough to see it actually looking new😂
 
Another Cameron Field story. My brother was a drummer in the marching band in the early 60's This was still the glory years of the school and the band. My brother remembers that there were 187 members in that band at that time. They were doing the halftime show at a big game. During one maneuver, as my brother tells it, the other 186 members of the band all turned the wrong way. He was the only one that turned the correct way. (That's his story, and he is sticking with it.)
 
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Bailey Field was constructed and ready for the 1972 football season. It was constructed for York High and Tabb High to share. Tabb has never played a home game any where else. Tabb and York alternate who is home or away when they play. And the several years that they played two regular season games they alternated which team was home and which team was away.
 
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And yet, one more Cameron Field story. About 15 years ago, the Petersburg Director of Parks and Recreation was trying to return some usability to Cameron Field. He organized a small college all star game called The East Coast All Star Bowl. It was to be played at Cameron Field, so the facility had to be patched up. A portion of the scoreboard did not work so we were tasked with fixing it. We determined a component had failed. We were in a near panic on where in the world we would find a repair part. We found a name somewhere in the scoreboard that said only FairPlay Industries. Google lead to a company in Roanoke. The first miracle was that the place was still in business. The second miracle was that a person answered the phone and said they could possibly help. The lady listened to me and said “just hush, and hold on!” A gentleman answered the phone and I started rambling about the problem and how we were in a serious time crunch. I started telling him everything I could and he kept interrupting by saying “I know.” I finally asked him how he knew so much about this scoreboard? He said, “ because I built it and installed it!”

That was at least 50 years ago then. Were we lucky or not? Needless to say, with his help and guidance we repaired the scoreboard and the game was a big success.
 
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