|
|
 |
|
Welcome to the
VANCOUVER METRO SENIOR SOFTBALL ASSOCIATION (VMSSA)
|
Season completed, post season mtg 9/15/09
2009 RULES OF PLAY
RULES OF PLAY 2009.rtf
Attached are the rules of Play for 2009. Any questions please contact the League President.
Slow-pitch softball is a way of life for many of the over-60 crowd who play in our league.
Every week around 120 seniors age 60 and older wrap aching joints, bandage cuts and bruises, and stretch those tired muscles to play in the Vancouver Metro Senior Softball Association.
Tired of getting walloped by younger teams in Portland’s slow-pitch softball league, Dick Berry and friends Gary Waite and Chris Demos decided to form their own league in 1994. The league became a reality when Clark College agreed to let it use an old baseball field on college property on the north side of McLoughlin Boulevard, across from the Marshall Community Center. As part of the bargain, the softball league agreed to continue upgrading and maintaining the field. The league began with four teams in 1995 and soon grew to our current eight teams..
Players are from both shores of the Columbia River with about 30% from Oregon. Some come from as far away as Toledo and Ocean Park in Washington, and from Dallas in Oregon. Many of our players are lifelong sportsmen. Some played baseball in high school or college, some played years of adult softball, and others are new to the game. All are welcome. Our oldest active player to-date is 86-year-old Merle Armstrong of Portland.
The founders decided that the VMSSA should be a recreational rather than competitive league, and that teams would be drafted from scratch at the beginning of each season. The goal is to have as evenly matched teams as possible throughout the league. “We would love to have every team end up with a record of 17-17 at the end of the season”, says past-president Joe Raabe.
Some of the more accomplished players are also members of other teams, not affiliated with the league, that travel to competitive tournaments. In past years, league members have formed traveling teams to compete in over-60, 65, 70, and 75 age divisions.
Generally, American Softball Association (ASA) rules apply for league games, with a few concessions to minimize the risk of injury. Sliding into a base, for example, is illegal. Overrunning all bases including second and third is allowed. Runners run to special bases placed outside the baseline at first base and home plate to reduce to possibility of collisions. In this league, safety is the number one concern. Injuries just don’t seem to heal as fast as they used to.
Not that the rules are soft. Every batter must run for himself, and courtesy runners may take over only after a hitter has reached base safely. Some of us have physical limitations, joint replacements, depth perception problems, or just about everything else you can think of. We still know what to do, but our bodies won’t always do it any more.
One player suffered a fatal heart attack during a game several seasons ago. That sobering event reminded Berry and others of the value of the game. His wife told us that "after he started playing softball, it was the happiest he’d been since he retired”.
It’s not all about softball; it really is a way of life for many in the league. Some are snowbirds and play year around. Some practice one or two days a week at an indoor facility in Vancouver, while others play basketball or volleyball to try and stay in some resemblance of shape. A few even go fishing, hunting, or play golf together.
If interested, contact us or just come out and observe us in action.
WHO: Players of any ability who will be 60 or older during the season.
WHAT: Doubleheaders every weeknight beginning at 6PM, May through August.
WHERE: The association’s field located on the Clark College campus just across McLoughlin Boulevard from the Marshall Community Center.
CONTACT:
John Aarhus, president at 360-574-3017, email: jtaarhus@comcast.net
-OR-
Bill Turlay, Secretary at 360-883-1361, email: billtur@comcast.net
|
|
