Chelsea football traveled to Ann Arbor to take on the River Rats of Huron.
Category Archives: Photos
Vintage Base Ball in Flint: 6 September 2014
The Monitor Base Ball Club of Chelsea traveled to Flint to play the Lumber City Base Ball Club. The trip marked two firsts: it was the first time Chelsea had played in Flint, and it was the first time the Monitor roster included a thoroughly bearded gentleman who goes by the name Stagecoach.
The Monitors brought an enthusiastic crowd with them to Flint. One was both vocal and musical in her support.
The umpire had a megaphone so the crowd could hear him.
If you’re wondering why he’s not speaking into the megaphone…well, it’s not the megaphone that was important. They set up a loudspeaker, and the megaphone had a microphone in it. He used the system to call out the names of the strikers as they went up to bat and to explain the rules when they differed from modern baseball.
The Monitors struck first, and they put up three runs.
Here’s Stagecoach in his first action with the Monitors:
One of the best ways to look like you belong on a vintage base ball team is to have a beard like that!
Three runs seemed like a good start…until Flint put up 12 in the bottom of the first. It was a rough half inning!
Things didn’t look good for the Monitors after the first, but they kept hitting well. How well? They scored at least three runs in six of the first seven innings, including nine runs in the sixth! Not only that, but the defense recovered and held Flint to only one more run through five innings, at which point the Monitors had gained a lead they wouldn’t surrender.
As with most vintage base ball matches, there were some humorous moments. Here’s the aftermath of one:
They got tangled up on a play at first and ended up on the ground in a heap, accompanied by plenty of laughter. As I recall, the Monitor base runner — Caveman — was safe.
On one play, Stagecoach established himself on third just before the third baseman could corral the ball.
The Monitors ended up with a big 35-23 victory!
Huzzah!
When the teams were gathering for the postgame photo, Pepperbox tried to turn the tables on me. I was ready.
If you’re in the Chelsea area and you’d like to see just how much fun a Monitors match can be, you have one more chance this season! The Monitors will be playing their final home match of 2014 this Sunday, September 14 at 2pm at Timbertown. Join us for a fun afternoon of base ball!
Chelsea Football vs Belleville: 5 September 2014
Chelsea’s first home game of the 2014 football schedule brought Belleville to town. The weather forecast was insisting that the evening would be marred by storms that would potentially wipe Michigan’s lower peninsula off the map — well, you know how dramatic weather forecasts can be — but as game time approached and pregame began, the weather remained pleasant.
The cheerleaders were ready for the game.
So was the band.
The team was ready for the game, too.
Last week’s game didn’t start so well for the Bulldogs — Northview jumped out to an early 14-0 lead — but this week’s game started so very well.
In fact, the team started so well that Belleville’s first possession ended with an interception.
The team gets pretty excited about interceptions.
The good start got even better when, on third and short from the 17, Justice Staton tried a quarterback sneak and found a whole lot of open space.
Two Tigers caught up with him around the ten yard line…
…but Staton was not impressed…
…and he shrugged off their attempted tackle to give Chelsea an early lead.
As all this excitement was going on, the sky was becoming increasingly grumpy.
Play continued for a bit longer, but before anything else of consequence happened, this ominous scene ushered in weather that brought the game to a halt.
After waiting over an hour to see if the weather would allow the game to resume, it was decided that the best course of action would be to postpone the rest of the game until the next afternoon. Unfortunately, I already had plans for Saturday afternoon, so I wasn’t able to see the rest of the game. But here’s a summary:
Chelsea touchdown
Chelsea touchdown
Chelsea touchdown
Chelsea touchdown
Belleville touchdown
Game over
In other words, Chelsea carried its dominating start through the rest of the game and ended up with a resounding 35-7 victory.
Chelsea’s next football game is at Ann Arbor Huron on Friday at 7pm. Come on out and cheer on the Bulldogs!
Chelsea Fair: Tractor Pull: 22 August 2014
Friday night brought another popular Chelsea Fair event: the tractor pull. What happens at a tractor pull? Well, the name tells you what you need to know: tractors pull stuff. (If you’d like more specifics on tractor and truck pulls, the NTPA can answer all your questions.)
The first few tractors looked like tractors. They’re all modified to some degree, but they still look somewhat normal.
Next up were the mini modified tractors, which look nothing like tractors. They also look like a lot of fun.
Then there were more tractory tractors…
…and tractors that weren’t even pretending to be normal tractors.
Not even the least little bit.
They’re as loud as they look, too. These tractors are the reason I take earplugs to the tractor pull.
Chelsea Football vs Grand Rapids Northview: 28 August 2014
To open the 2014 season, Chelsea football traveled over the river and through the woods to Grand Rapids Northview.
Chelsea Fair: Demolition Derby: 21 August 2014
Tuesday’s demolition derby had to be canceled due to severe weather, but to the delight of derby fans throughout the Chelsea area (and probably the fair board, too), Thursday’s derby had no such trouble.
As you may recall from the figure 8 demolition derby post, the goal of this non-numerical demolition derby is not to complete any number of laps, but to use your car to demolish your opponents’ cars until they can no longer move.
When this car was on the road, it had a trunk:
One of the more fragile and vulnerable parts of a car is the radiator. When something happens to the radiator, it’s often hard to miss.
Especially for the driver.
There are three reasons the officials will pause the derby: an injured driver, a fire, or a potentially dangerous car part lying on the ground. You know, like this one:
There was one round of trucks mixed into the Thursday derby:
This driver exhorted the crowd to make some noise before he resumed smashing into the 4570 truck:
When the trucks finished, the cars were back at it.
Remember what I said about the radiator?
Chelsea Fair: Horse Pull: 21 August 2014
One of the more fascinating events at the Chelsea fair is the horse pull.
There are a couple different types of horse pulls. This pull used a stone boat.
Each of those blocks weighs 1,000 pounds. Draft horses are POWERFUL.
One horse took a moment to smile for a photo.
They kept adding weight.
The winning team ended with a full pull at 9,000 pounds. Like I said, draft horses are POWERFUL.
When the horses are pulling, they’re kicking up plenty of dirt.
When they’re not pulling, they’re just hanging out.
It’s not the highest-profile event on the fair schedule, but it’s well worth the time. It’s fascinating to see what draft horses can do.
Have I mentioned that they’re POWERFUL?
Chelsea Fair: All Kinds of Fun: 20 August 2014
They might have been having fun:
Maybe a little bit:
But, you know, not TOO much:
Chelsea Fair: Figure 8 Derby: 20 August 2014
The demolition derbies are one of the Chelsea Fair’s big draws because everybody loves an evening of controlled vehicular violence. Tuesday’s derby was canceled due to heavy storms, but Wednesday’s weather was considerably more cooperative, so the figure 8 derby was good to go.
Before we begin, let’s go over the difference between a regular derby and a figure 8 derby:
• In the regular derby, the goal is to use your car to batter all the other cars until they can no longer move. In other words, the goal is to be like a typical Michigan road.
• In the figure 8 derby, the goal is to be the first to complete twelve laps. If in the process of completing twelve laps you have the opportunity to push other cars out of the way and/or into the wall, you can go right ahead and do it. In other words, the goal is to be like a typical east coast driver.
Okay, on to the action.
The Wolverine: 18 August 2014
For decades, the Wolverine has been a Chelsea institution and a familiar piece of the local landscape. That’s about to change: the Wolverine is about to close.
This Saturday (August 23) will be the last day for the Wolverine. Before long, the building with the distinctive paint job will be demolished — along with the neighboring gas station — to make way for a larger gas station.
On Monday I visited the Wolverine to get a few photos of the building and the paint job that helped make it a Chelsea landmark.
As you can see in the above pictures, most of the front of the building is brick. The rest of the building isn’t. That’s where the paint comes in.
There’s a touch of humor in the small sign painted next to the door:
“Please use front door,” says the sign. It’s good advice. Getting through that door would require patience, determination, and power tools.
The east side door has another sign:
“Please use back door.”
The front of the building now bears a banner breaking the news to all passersby.
There’s a marker clipped on the banner so loyal customers can bid the Wolverine farewell.
There are a lot of loyal customers.
Some of the messages are reminders of just how long the Wolverine has been a part of Chelsea.
Others reveal that the Wolverine has been a part of important moments in the lives of Chelsea residents.
When I was talking with someone about the closing of the Wolverine, she said, “Oh, my parents met there!” Every story like that — and I’m sure there are plenty — shows that the Wolverine has long served as a gathering place for Chelsea.
