One Fan's View: The View From The Tracks
By GARRETT SEARIGHT
I hadn’t been to a regular season high school football game since 2012.
Until last week.
My duties here at 419Sports.com had prohibited me from going to regular season games for the past few years.
But last week, I finagled some things around so I could go to Skip Baughman Stadium to watch St. Marys and Wapak.
I guess, technically, I didn’t go to Skip Baughman Stadium.
If you’ve never been to a game at St. Marys, there are train tracks that run along the south side of the stadium, about 20 feet above the playing field.
A buddy and I decided we were going to go to the game, and I gave him two options.
We could pay to get into the game, and sit in the bleachers/stand along the fence inside the stadium. Or we could go stand up on the tracks, and watch the game for free.
Since I forgot to stop at the ATM to get cash, that made the decision pretty easy.
We got to the train tracks about 40 minutes before game time, and there were already roughly 1,000 people looking for a spot.
Lawn chairs, coolers filled with Bud Light, Carhartt jackets, and “Make America Great Again” hats dotted the scenery along the tracks.
What was truly astonishing was how many Wapak fans were standing along the tracks, with St. Marys fans, and how few problems there were. I’ve always heard about how bitter the rivalry was, but for 2 and a half hours, Redskin fans stood right next to Roughrider fans with absolutely no issues.
The view from the tracks gives a perfect view of the stadium, with a little brush, and some power lines
in the way. Also, the sounds of the hard-hitting contest below was amplified by your position above.
I was able to listen to so many “back in my day” stories from former Roughriders, and heard what Skip “woulda did” in the last 90 seconds of the first half. I imagine Skip wouldn’t have called a halfback pass that saw St. Marys RB Julius Fisher throw a touchdown pass with 13 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
I heard a former QB tell the story of how he threw one pass in his entire career at St. Marys, that went for 41 yards and a touchdown.
I listened to a realtor, decked out in a 1992 State Champion sweatshirt, try to talk a perspective buyer into putting an offer in on a house just west of town.
But more than anything, I listened to two passionate fan bases cheer their teams. There was no criticism of officials, coaches, players, parents, or fans. Simply cheering. and it was incredibly refreshing.
I would compare watching a game from the tracks above Skip Baughman Stadium to Country Concert. Everyone is there to be entertained, enjoy a beer or six, and have a good time.
And those are my kind of people.