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Training With a Friend is Always Better

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 02:12:36 +0000

Well, another week of training has gone by and I am really feeling good about things. I ran two full miles without stopping so I am well on my way to a 5k! My legs and feet were a little sore after the training so I stopped by the clubhouse and took a soak in the ice bath and then had Franky massage my feet. He really loved that! Ha ha. It takes good friends to get you through challenges and without Franky’s encouragement I don’t think I would have made it this far. The best part is that Franky is going to run the race too, so I know I am not in it alone. That’s what best friends are for. Speaking of best friends, Franky is calling now. He probably wants to eat and you know, that doesn’t sound like a bad idea. Gotta run, get it? Run? I am hilarious.

Finding Time to Train is Tough, But I’ll Do It.

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 13:29:54 +0000

Finding time to train this week has been tougher than I thought. Between all of the baseball games, visiting schools and, of course, trying to eat healthy – I’ll be glad when this week is over. Today I did the most I’ve ever done and my legs are sore. Looking forward to a long walk tomorrow and then I have to run 2 miles Saturday! Wish me luck.

River Bank Run Training Helps Prepare for Whitecaps Games

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:53:01 +0000

Well, after another week of training things are starting to look up. I am up to a half mile of running a day and then I am walking another half mile after that. The soreness has worn off in my legs, so I think I’ll be looking good for the Whitecaps Opening Day on Sunday, April 10! I really think training for the River Bank Run is going to make my game performance even better. I feel GREAT! Who knew a little exercise could make everything else in life easier. Those kids that I race around the bases better look out. Yeah, I have never won a race before, but I think this training is going to pay off. Also, the fans voted for a new food item here called Chicks with Sticks. This new delicacy features carrot and celery sticks with hummus to dip in. I can’t wait to try this new healthy treat as I get in shape. Well, back to training and to help get the ballpark ready for Opening Day. Hope to see you at a Whitecaps game and on race day!

Training for the River Bank Run has Begun!

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 18:07:55 +0000

Wow, I didn’t realize how out of shape I have gotten over the winter. You know, during our off season at the ballpark so I tend to take a lot of naps and eat as much of the leftover food before it goes bad. It’s kind of a mini hibernation I guess you could say. Anyway, I am ready to get back in shape for the baseball season and there is no better way than training for the Fifth Third River Bank Run. I am just getting started so I am mixing a little walking and running for now, but I plan on hitting the 5K hard in May as I run for the Helen DeVos Children’s Hostpital. I don’t have a goal yet. I am open to suggestions from any of you expert runners out there. Also, if you have any training tips for me send them my way. I’ll take any help I can get. Well, I guess I better lace up and hit the road! Check back to keep up with my training progress and let me know how your training is going as well.

CRASH #99

Whitecaps Holiday Art Contest

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 16:47:26 +0000

Now that snow is on the ground, I cannot help but think about the green grass in the summer. . .and baseball! In the winter I have more time to catch-up on reading, and sometimes I go through old mail. Sometimes kids draw pictures about the ballpark and they send them to me. They are awesome!

I love looking at the different pictures. Sometimes they draw me, the field, the players, or baseballs and bats. While I was looking at them, I started to get an idea. I love baseball, I love the holidays, I love food, I love reading, I love fans, I love fans’ artwork. . .so how could I put together all of these things?

With the help of the front office staff, we decided to create the Whitecaps Holiday Art Contest. Students enter as a classroom and they have to create a piece of art about the Whitecaps and the spirit of the holidays. Good thing the staff is helping judge the artwork, because I don’t think I could choose a winner!

Anyway, the winning classroom will have a visit from me. We will read “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” and I will bring popcorn for the class to eat while we read. You can go here to see how you can enter.

Happy holidays!

Thankful for the Holidays

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 19:07:25 +0000

How was your Thanksgiving? Did you eat a lot? What are you thankful for? I am thankful for baseball, friends, fans, books, and hot dogs!

Even though there are no games at the ballpark, I still stay a little busy in the off-season. Thursday I will be at the Rockford Meijer with Maranda helping families shop for the holidays. Saturday I will be in the Wyoming-Kentwood parade with some Whitecaps staff and then head to DeVos Children’s Hospital for a special event for the new hospital.

The new hospital will be awesome, I just know it! Sometimes, the players invite me to visit patients with them during the summer. Everyone is so nice at the hospital and I even get to play the Wii with the kids. They usually win though. Hopefully they will go easy on me this time.

Have fun over the holidays!

Another Season in The Books

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 13:56:16 +0000

First of all, sorry it has been a few months since I wrote to everyone. The season was a lot of fun. We had a lot of new guys join the team, but that also means I had to say good-bye to some of them. It is always sad, but I love being around baseball so I just keep on cheering!

Do any of you remember Cody Ross? He played for the Whitecaps in 2000. Do any of you remember Andrés Torres? He played for the Whitecaps in 1999. Both of them played for the San Francisco Giants this year, so they were part of the World Series Championship team. How cool!

Well, there is another off-season that has begun. I LOVE to read, so I am able to catch-up on some fun stories and read some of my favorites. Dr. Seuss is fun to read, probably because I like to use my imagination.

Today I am going to read outside. It feels like baseball weather!

A New Season

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 20:02:20 +0000

The season has started! Franky and I met the players at the airport when they flew in from Spring Training. Check us out in the video here. We have some new guys this year, but I made sure they know I am their number one fan. All of the players are used to warmer weather in Florida, and as much as I love summer, I have to admit the spring is much better weather for me.

We have a Tigers Top Prospect pitching for us this year. His name is Jacob Turner. I cannot wait until he pitches at home. It will be great! The promotions have already started too. This Saturday is Autism Awareness Day with ASK (Autism Support of Kent County) and the guys will be wearing special jerseys. Some of them are being auctioned off too.

You should also go to our Facebook Page. As a special thank-you to our friends, you can print a coupon that gets you a special ticket discount for Sunday or Monday’s games.

Can’t wait to see what this season has in store! I am hoping to win at least one Crash Dash this year, but my record sits at 0-3. Oh well!

Crash’s Five Favorites

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:43:58 +0000

My good friend Bill Steffen said Winter is over. I sure hope he is right. Almost all the snow on the field has melted. There is a little snow on the warning track, but if I have to stand there with a heater to melt it, I will.

The warmer weather and all of this talk about Spring can only mean one thing: BASEBALL IS ALMOST HERE!

A lot of people ask me what my favorite thing about the season is, but I love so much about the summer that it is hard for me to answer. I decided to make a Top 5 list of my favorite things about the baseball season. They are not in a certain order because it is too hard to choose my favorite. After reading my list, you should tell me yours!

Here is the list:

The promotions. Crash Dash is fun even though Franky always finds a way to distract me, and the dizzy bat races are so funny because the people never run straight. Plus, on the really hot days, sometimes the crew surprises me by spraying the hose!
The fans. The fans are the best. I love how loud they cheer and how excited they are.
The game. Sometimes the Whitecaps lose and sometimes they win. Either way, it is fun to hear the crack of the bat. It is such a cool sound.
The team. The players always make me feel part of the team. I know I am their number one fan, and it is fun to make special handshakes and high-five them when they do a good job.
The food. Our ballpark does a good job at feeding me. We have a new food item being revealed at the end of March, and I cannot wait to find out what it is. I am sure I will love it, and I cannot wait for my first hot dog of the season!

Crash Loves To Read

Crash for the West Michigan Whitecaps — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 21:33:09 +0000

Today I want to wish Dr. Seuss a happy birthday! Reading is one of my three favorite things. The other two things are food and baseball, but because the Whitecaps only play from April until September, I stay busy in the offseason by reading books.

Did you know March is National Reading month? I love March because I get to help with our Reading Club program and go to classrooms around town. Today I went to Coit Creative Arts and read to some kids. Actually, my friend read while I tried to act. Like I said before, today is Dr. Seuss’ birthday, so we read my favorite story by him “And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street.”

After the story the kids took an oath to keep reading. It was so cool. I learn so much when I read, and it is so much fun to see other people excited about reading. Happy March!