Blaine Train Returns from Hiatus

By Blain Fentress
Senior Writer for lancewilkerson.com

All right, I have been slacking off the last couple of weeks.  Can you blame me, its summer.  Plus, Mr. Wilkerson and I haven't been in the same place due to vacations, DMB, and other things.  But, as we go along for the summer, it is time to step my game up.  So, along with my soon-to-be, award-winning column "The Train Stop", I will be doing another column at the end of each weekend called, 3 Yea, 3 Nay.

The weekends usually have enough going on that makes you want to look back and wonder what was good and what was bad.  So, that is where I come in.  I take away the part where you have to think back and I help to recap what has happen so you can go into your work week with your head up high and be able to tell people that they are wrong.  Something like that...

Anyway, here we go:

1 YEA --- SPAIN

I know, some of you cared about the World Cup right up to the point that the United States was kicked out by Ghana.  Some of you didn't care at all.  And, some of you are closet soccer fanatics that thought going in that this was an important World Cup Final between Spain and the Dutch.  So, relax, it's cool, Spain gets a nod here.  First time in the finals and they made a major statement by becoming champions.  Plus, they did it right before the overtime was done.  That's important because once it goes into Penalty Kicks, it is anybody's game.  Way to go, Spain.

2 YEA --- STEVE STRICKER AND PAUL GOYDOS

If you weren't paying attention to the John Deere Classic on the PGA Tour this weekend, you missed out on some really good golf.  I mean REALLY GOOD.  I mean, record breaking golf.  It started on Thursday when Goydos hit that number that all pro golfers stride for every round...59!!!  Only three other golfers hit that number on the Tour and Goydos was the fourth.  Think about this, out of the 18 holes, he only hit par 6 times, which means he birdied 12 times!!!  I can't do that, you can't do that...but Paul did. 

But, it was Stricker with the better rounds.  60, 66, 62, and 70 were the four round scores that scored Stricker his victory.  He broke the 54 hole Tour record and needed a 65 to break all four rounds.  But, Goydos came at him and Stricker was able to hold him off.  I know next weekend at the British Open, these scores will not exist at all.

3 YEA --- DONNA THE HIPPO

Among all the stories that I got to cover in the Tri-State this .weekend, the one that sticks out the most is Donna the Hippo.  If you don't live in Evansville, Donna lives at the Mesker Park Zoo and she turned 59 this weekend.  And, she continues to be the oldest living hippo in captivity in the world.  Usually, a hippo will live from 40 to 50 years old...Donna broke that hurdle.  So, how did she celebrate?  She got a large frozen popsicle, which is like birthday cake to her.  When I went to videotape Miss Donna, she just mostly stayed underwater, popping her head above once in a while.  Tell you what, if you are in the area and want something to do, go to the Mesker Park Zoo because they do a great job over there.

And now...

1 NAY --- MICHAEL VICK

Surprise, surprise...bet you didn't think you would see his name on this list.  Around 2 A.M. Sunday morning, Vick's representatives told people i charge of a sports camp that was to feature Vick that his probation officer wouldn't allow him to leave the state of Pennsylvania.  This still steams from the shooting at this birthday party a few weeks back.  Even though the police cleared him of having anything to do with it, he still might get into some legal trouble because he was within a few feet of Quanis Phillips, one of the other co-defendants in the dog fighting case. 

This will need to be an issue cleared up in the next couple of months because he will not be able to travel with the team.  And, I am sure that NFL offices in New York will continue to monitor and might have some grounds to suspend Vick again.

2 NAY --- THE PASSING OF BOB SHEPPARD

If you ever watched a Yankees game in the past 60 years on TV and those TV broadcasters stopped talking for a second or two, you heard this big booming voice introducing a player to bat.  Dark voice that people called "the voice of God."  That was Bob Sheppard's voice.

He passed away in Long Island over the weekend at the age of 99.  It is amazing to think that he has introduced players from Joe DiMaggio to Derek Jeter.  He worked from 1951 to 2007, think about all the Yankees that he welcomed to the plate.  Jeter still uses a recording of his voice introducing him to this day and he says that he will continue to do so.  A good P.A. announcer can put chills through your body at ball games and from what people have told me, Sheppard did that.

3 NAY --- LANCE ARMSTRONG

First off, did you know the Tour de France was going on?  Next, did you know that Lance was racing in his 13th tour?  Last, did you know that it was his last Tour de France of his career?  If you didn't, I don't blame you.  Nobody has been talking about this race or Lance at all in the past week.  But, after three crashes Sunday at a stage where he had to gain ground, forced him to fall backwards even more, he has stated that there is no chance for him to win.

"My Tour is finished," Lance told ESPN.  This is sad.  First off, I don't know why he came back.  He won the Tour and had nothing more to prove.  Plus, no matter how many times he has been proven to be clean, the country of France is still convinced that he was a dirty racer when he won.  He retired a few years ago but, like other athletes, he had that itch to race again and he did.  Hopefully, the next two weeks of racing for him, he will find that peace that will allow him to move on to other things in life. 

So, there you go.  Next weekend, baseball starts it's second half of the season and the British Open will crown a champion.  And, keep a look out this week as The Train Stop comes roaring back asking you, "Why do you care about this LeBron mess?"  Later on.