But there is also something else that happens every time. Once those same folks watch some video clips (like this one or this one, both of which feature Mid Atlantic Wiffleball players) or even better, step into the box to take some hacks of their own, their laughter dissipates rather quickly. The beauty of the Wiffle® Ball is that it can be anything the user wants it to be. It can be used for a lighthearted backyard game of catch between father and son. When put in the hands of a former high caliber baseball player turned serious Wiffler, the ball becomes a serious pitching weapon.

(Discuss this at the BSL Board here.)

For more than thirty years, former baseball players and baseball fans have turned to the sport of Wiffle® Ball when baseball is no longer a reasonable option for them. Unlike Softball, competitive fast pitch Wiffle® Ball places a heavy and nearly equal emphasis on three of the four foundational elements of baseball – pitching, fielding and hitting. Mid Atlantic Wiffleball adopted the slogan “Pitch. Hit. Field.” because of the way that Wiffle® Ball allows players that full three-pronged baseball-like experience.

Pitch –The best Wiffle® pitchers – throwing from 45 feet away – can reach speeds of up to 90 MPH while making the ball dance and curve in physics-defying ways.

Hit – Hitters have to learn to deal with those pitches, work the count, and use the entire field rather than simply waffle home run after home run (although there are plenty of those as well).

Field –Fielding can be a difference maker just as it is in baseball. Solid defense can spell the difference between a contending team and a championship squad. On occasion, you will see a spectacular athletic play like this one that rivals of the greatest web gems seen in Major League Baseball.

You might have noticed that the one foundational baseball element missing is the running element. Batters do not run, but rather reach base and move up bases depending on where the ball is hit on the field. A hit leaving the infield without being fielded is a single. A ball that reaches the fence on the ground is a double. A ball hitting off of the outfield fence (usually somewhere between 75 and 110 feet away) is a triple. The lack of base running has several benefits. It allows for lower barriers of entry in terms of players needed to field a team. Four players (a pitcher and three fielders) are all that are needed. The setup allows players to concentrate on developing their hitting, pitching, and fielding skills without having to worry about being in top running shape. Lastly for us older guys, we can play a highly skilled baseball-like game without worrying about pulling a muscle while attempting to beat out an infield hit.

As competitive as the games are at Mid Atlantic Wiffleball tournaments, the tournaments are meant to be fun above all else. At the end of the day, Wiffle® Ball is still a game meant to be played and enjoyed by everyone. Players as young as 10 years old and or as old as 60 years old have participated in tournaments. Tournaments can be a wonderful way for three or four friends to spend a sunny spring or summer afternoon. We take Wiffle® Ball seriously, but never too seriously. The goal of everyone involved with MAW is to ensure a fun and enjoyable tournament and season experience.

So go ahead, giggle if you must. Everyone else does. But if you are looking for a fun and competitive way to play as close to a facsimile of baseball you can find without having to round up seventeen friends and find a vacant baseball diamond, then Mid Atlantic Wiffleball is for you!

Come join us April 29^th in York, Pennsylvania for our first tournament of the 2017 season! If you register now following these contest rules you could win a pair of tickets to TWO highly anticipated Baltimore Orioles games this summer! Register today for April 29^th and be sure to let us know that Baltimore Sports and Life sent you!

Mid Atlantic Whiffle Ball:
https://www.midatlanticwiffle.com/

@Midatlanticwiff ‏
facebook.com/Midatlanticwiffle/

The post Mid Atlantic Wiffleball: Hit. Pitch. Field. appeared first on Baltimore Sports and Life.

I’ve been to a bunch of these establishments, and promise to cross the others off my bucket list as soon as humanly possible. For the bars I haven’t been to, I relied on Yelp reviews and pictures for the respective blurb. Forgive me. Not all the stations are represented, due to the lack of bars within walking distance, or the safety of the neighborhoods themselves. But here it is. Behold, The Baltimore Light Rail Bar Crawl.

(You can discuss this article here on the BSL Board.)

Starting from the north…

Hunt Valley – Coal Fire Pizza (112 Shawan Road, Cockeysville)

We kick off the northern end of the Light Rail Bar Crawl with…a chain restaurant. But rest assured, Coal Fire is at least a local chain and they do have a bar. They also have awesome pizza and you need something in your stomach before you start drinking, and what is better at absorbing booze than pizza?

Warren Road – Towne Tavern & Spirits (10257 York Road, Cockeysville)

Towne Tavern & Spirits is a homey-sytle bar with drink specials, crabcakes, wings and (according to Yelp pics) a framed John Elway jersey? Didn’t he turn his back on Baltimore after being drafted by the Colts and start the landslide that ended with the Colts moving to Indy? I guess we won’t hold it against them…they are pretty much the only bar close by.

Timonium Fairgrounds – Wits End Saloon (9603 Deereco Rad, Lutherville-Timonium)

A dimly-lit bar with an extensive whiskey list. Hey, go big or go home. They also have craft beer, cocktails and a small menu specializing in burgers and sammies. The N’awlins Style Creole Fish Tacos sound awesome.

Lutherville – Ocean Pride Seafood (1534 York Road, Lutherville-Timonium)

I keep hearing awesome things about this place. Apparently their crabs and crabcakes are out of this world and they were recently chosen as Maryland’s most iconic restaurant in Thrillist’s “Most Iconic Restaurant in Each State” list. So they must be doing something right.

Mt. Washington – The Nickel Taphouse (1604 Kelly Ave, Baltimore)

Extensive list of craft beer on tap. A couple white and red wines on tap, too. Cocktails, of which The Painkiller is gonna get ordered by me in the very near future.

Woodberry – Union Craft Brewing (1700 Union Ave, Baltimore)

Ah, Woodberry, you seemed to spring up from abandoned warehouses and mills overnight. Now home to what is probably Baltimore’s most famous restaurant, Woodberry Kitchen, and a kick-ass brewery, Union Craft Brewing. Take in a flight of their beer on their picnic tables outside.

North Avenue – WC Harlan (400 West 23rd Street, Baltimore)

This speakeasy-style bar may be a tad hard to find, but relax, it’s there. Just use the black door to the right. Inside, it’ll be packed and you’ll probably wait 15 minutes for a drink, but it’s well worth it.

Cultural Center — Mount Royal Tavern (1204 Mount Royal Ave, Baltimore)

I’m ashamed to admit that I’ve never been to this fine bar, AKA “The Dirt Church”. But that will change, and soon. And if the nickname for this dive bar doesn’t instantly make you want to go there as well, I don’t know what else to tell you.

Centre Street – The Local Oyster (520 Park Ave, Baltimore)

I’ve been obsessing over the Mount Vernon Marketplace a lot lately, so I might as well take the time to name drop since The Local Oyster is located inside the market. Slurp a dozen oysters, drink a beer and wander around the rest of the market before moving move on to…

Lexington Market – Faidley’s (203 North Paca Street, Baltimore)

Another market! But how can you not? Faidley’s is famous for their crabcakes, still hand-formed by the descendants of John W. Faidley, this place is the pride of Baltimore. They may not be the best crabcakes, but they’re easily top 3, and the most iconic. Make sure to get two beers when you order to avoid having to wait for another in that long ass line. Faidley’s also has more than just crabcakes, like oysters and fresh fish. Oh and muskrat, if it’s in season of course. The market closes at 6 PM and is closed on Sundays, so plan accordingly.

University Center/Baltimore Street – Alewife (21 North Eutaw Street, Baltimore)

The go-to before or after a show at the Hippodrome, Alewife has the bomb draft beer list and great burgers. And splurge for the duck fat fries.

Convention Center – Pratt Street Ale House (206 West Pratt Street, Baltimore)

The neighborhood bar of the Inner Harbor. Oliver beer on tap. Bottomless brunch on weekends. Not a bad place for a drink before or after an O’s game. Conveniently located close to the light rail station.

Camden Yards – Pickles (520 Washington Blvd, Baltimore)

What else needs to be said? So I won’t say anything.

Hamburg Street – Mums (1132 South Hanover Street, Baltimore)

Yeah, I know Federal Hill is teeming with bars but I said Mums. Why? Order a #1 special, which is a Natty Boh with a shot of Evil, and you’ll know why.

Baltimore Highlands – Shannon’s Pub & Grille (4401 Annapolis Road, Halethorpe)

I don’t always go to bars in Baltimore Highlands, but when I do, I go to Shannon’s.

Cromwell Station – Seaside Restaurant & Crab House (224 Crain Highway, Glen Burnie)

This is where the “choose your own adventure” begins since you’ll have to decide where you want to end this thing, and if you choose Cromwell, might as well celebrate your accomplishment by picking some crabs and drinking cold beer, because you need one more drink, or better yet, a pitcher.

BWI Airport – Obryki’s (BWI Airport)

If you choose BWI – and why wouldn’t you – you can go to the only remaining Obryki’s location in the area for a crabcake before you catch a flight to escape all the debauchery from this bar crawl. But seriously, I think you have to pass through security to reach Obryki’s, so maybe save that one for your next flight.

So there you have it. Did I miss anything? Do you have a favorite close to a light rail stop that you think I should have mentioned? If so, why? And when do you want to do this with me?

The post The Baltimore Light Rail Bar Crawl appeared first on Baltimore Sports and Life.

They range from people making wine in their garage to sprawling multi-acre vineyards that look like they’ve been dropped into Maryland and Virginia from the Napa Valley. Maryland wine has gotten a bad label in the past for subpar wines that are usually on the sweet side, but that has changed with upscale wineries such as Black Ankle, Boordy, and Bordeleau Vineyards making very solid wine in the Old Line State. Meanwhile, Linganore Winery has become a destination in and of itself with its several wine festivals throughout the year and the addition of Red Shedman Brewery on site.

(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)

But it’s northern Virginia that has really excelled in the last decade, producing wine that is on par with, and better than, much of the wine from California. Loudon County has an excellent wine trail consisting of 40 wineries. But to keep you from getting overwhelmed, here’s a four-winery tour to get you acclimated to local wine.

Breaux Vineyards

Breaux Vineyards, located minutes from Harpers Ferry, is perhaps the best place to start. It’s a beautiful 104-acre Tuscan inspired vineyard with a huge tasting room and grounds capable of handling large events, such as their Cajun Festival each June. Across the street is 868 Estate Vineyards, serving up delicious wines and food on grounds that include the upscale Grandale Restaurant, cornhole boards and live music. Further down the road is Hillsborough Vineyards, and while their wine is a step down from the first two, the view from their Adirondack chairs beneath a shaded trellis makes up for it. End this mini-tour at North Gate Vineyard, one of my favorites, with friendly service, great wines including a great Cabernet Franc, an outdoor fireplace and live music.

Sunset Hills Winery

If you’re not ready for the day to end yet there’s still plenty of wineries to explore from there. You’ll pass Two Twisted Posts on your way to Breaux, and even though it’s a new winery, their wine is already established as some of the best in Northern Virginia. Also close by are Sunset Hills, 8 Chains North, Corcoran and Creek’s Edge Winery. And just north of Leesburg, there’s Tarara, Hidden Brook, Lost Creek, Winery 32 and Fabbioli – and for the beer lovers out there, check out Vanish, a farm brewery that grows their own hops and serves awesome BBQ.

And really, this section of Loudon County is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Virginia wine. There’s more wine in Middleburg, Fauquier County and further south around Charlottesville. There’s barely a part of Virginia that doesn’t have a winery – and a good one at that.

So the next time the wife or girlfriend wants you to plan a day or weekend trip tell her, “Don’t worry babe. I’ve got this covered.”

The post Exploring Local Wineries appeared first on Baltimore Sports and Life.

Award-winning, Baltimore-based digital agency, Mindgrub, has just finished creating the city’s first “Holodeck.” The Holodeck, short for Holographic Environment Simulator, gets its name from Star Trek’s fictional virtual reality facility. In the Star Trek universe, the Holodeck is often used for recreational activities.

Mindgrub has transformed one of the rooms at its headquarters in Locust Point into a safe and controlled environment dedicated to testing virtual reality apps and games. Through Mindgrub’s expansive virtual reality capabilities utilizing tools such as the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive headsets and handheld controllers, users can interact with a variety of virtual environments.

Mindgrub has already created a virtual reality bike experience using Oculus Rift and demoed it at various local Baltimore events, including Smart CEO’s Corporate Culture Awards to raise awareness for the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults, and the Baltimore Light City Festival. Dedicated to pushing the limitations of virtual and augmented reality, Mindgrub is actively pursuing new and exciting possibilities for virtual reality in a range of industries, from gaming and entertainment, to healthcare and education.

For additional information, please contact:

Vincent Sharps
Mindgrub, Vice President
855-MINDGRB (855-646-3472)
vsharps@mindgrub.com

The post Mindgrub Creates First Virtual Reality Holodeck In Baltimore appeared first on Baltimore Sports and Life.

Based on my complete lack of coverage of the event, you might expect my answer to be no. The truth is that while I know absolutely nothing about racing, I have been looking forward to this weekend.

Make no mistake, this is a major event for the City of Baltimore. There has been lots of complaining about how traffic has been impacted, that trees were cut down (http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-08-03/features/bs-gr-race-trees-replant-20110803_1_tree-removal-new-trees-jay-davidson), the bottom-line is dollars and cents. Baltimore is one of the few Major cities in the Country that is not incorporated into the surrounding County. Due to that, generating revenue is always an issue for the City. This also leads to Chicken and Egg arguments that exist about the high property taxes within Baltimore. The idea being that because the City lacks the larger tax-base, the property taxes are inflated so that basic expenses can be paid. We understand that there is a line of logic that should those property taxes be reduced, there would be an in-flux of new ownership and revenue would increase.

Smarter people than myself can have that discussion. The discussion I want to have is, that any event that points out the positive things Baltimore has to offer is a good thing. When this event was first announced last Summer, we saw estimations of the City generating $250M over 5 years. That would be tremendous. As the event begins, we are seeing estimates (http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-09-01/entertainment/bal-baltimore-grand-prix-numbers-behind-the-event-20110830_1_baltimore-grand-prix-approximate-number-car-burns) of Baltimore generating $70M in revenue this year, with 110 to 120,000 thousand spectators expected to attend.

This is a great opportunity for the City to show off a bit, and make an appeal Nationally for more Tourist dollars. Ask the hotels, restaurants, and shops downtown how important those 120k spectators are for their businesses.

I did not plan ahead and buy tickets. I’m sure on Sunday afternoon, I will be regretting that decision.  A Virtual Lap  of the race has been posted on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbDXDT7Ykzg&feature=share). You don’t have to know anything about racing, to recognize how awesome it will be to watch drivers going 180 mph throughout the City. You don’t have to love some of the inconveniences, to recognize what a boon this is overall for Baltimore.

The post The Baltimore Grand Prix appeared first on Baltimore Sports and Life.

With the news (http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bs-bz-downtown-plans-20110525,0,1434961.story) from last night that the proposed downtown arena has received a private financing commitment, perhaps the axiom that good things happen to those wait has been proven true for all of us in Baltimore. Make no mistake, the plan outlined here is the absolute dream scenario for our City.

I love everything about the proposal. First, the size (18,500 seats) is ideal. Luring a team from either the National Basketball Association (NBA) or the National Hockey League (NHL) is extremely unlikely in the near-term. Both leagues are currently talking about possible contraction. However, it would be illogical for Baltimore to build a new Arena and discount any chance of obtaining a team over the course of the next 30 years. The Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia has 126 Luxury Suites, the Verizon Center in D.C. has 106 Suites. With 18,500 seats, it is likely the new Arena would have a comparable amount of luxury boxes to be a suitable home for either league.

Secondly, while I had supported an earlier idea of building where the existing Arena is, this plan is better for the City as a whole. While the New Arena was under construction, 1st Mariner would stay open an allow the City to continue to receive some acts. As 1st Mariner has become profitable in recent years, this is a win.  Perhaps most importantly, is that built in the proposed space and in-conjunction with Convention Center expansion – Baltimore will be able to attract the largest Conventions in the Country. The Conventions that currently by-pass our City because the Convention Center as is (and the City’s existing hotel space) is deemed not large enough. When those larger Conventions come to the City, everyone (Hotels, Restaurants, etc. etc. ) will benefit by the dollars those people spend here. It will help a City that struggles to generate revenue.

The construction of Oriole Park at Camden Yards was a major turning-point for the City of Baltimore. The designers for OPACY originally suggested a stadium that would have resembled New Comiskey in Chicago. In-fact, initial proposals for the park had it being built in Lansdowne. Ms. Janet Marie Smith had the vision to build down-town, to refurbish the Warehouse and not tear that down.

That vision and the construction of OPACY is what ultimately allowed for Harbor East, and Harbor Point, along with the new construction in the Harbor, Canton, and Federal Hill. OPACY is what allowed for Art Model to envision moving his Browns from Cleveland, and the building of Ravens Stadium.

This New Arena / Convention Center Expansion / 25 Story Hotel can have a similar impact for Baltimore. While 1st Mariner has had better success in recent years, a New Arena will bring in a more regular level of National level concerts. Concerts that currently go to Washington, and skip Baltimore. A New Arena, will allow Baltimore to compete for NCAA Tournament games, along with conference tournaments (ACC, Big East, CAA, MEAC).

In addition to the link above, The Sun has an Op/Ed on the proposal you can find at: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/bs-ed-gbc-downtown-20110525,0,7328606.story

There will always be dissenting opinions and those that think ‘as is’ is good enough. I think bolder strokes are needed, and it will be terribly disappointing if the project does not come to fruition. News of private financing for the New Arena, and Hotel (with the City and State tasked to fund the more manageable expansion of the Convention Center) is really fantastic to hear. I’ll be even more excited when we hear when construction can begin.

The post Baltimore Receives Fantastic News appeared first on Baltimore Sports and Life.