Almost As If It Never Happened

I give up. Late last night I sort of promised to make mention today of the 13th anniversary of the Monday Night Football game on Halloween, 1994 in which the Packers blew past the Bears 33-6 in monsoon-like conditions at Soldier Field. And after days of searching, I can't find a single photo of the game online. As you know, a sports weather blog is useless without the visuals to drive it. I'm not sure this Internet thing is all it's cracked up to be. I do have the game on VHS tape, but it's probably still in my parents' basement. But you do remember the game, right? The weather, with gales up to 36 mph, seemed to affect the home team more than the visitors. The Bears had only 95 yards of offense through the first three quarters and didn't score until the fourth when the Packers, who had the wind at their backs for the first and third frames, had put the game out of reach. Green Bay and the driving rain also forced five turnovers out of the Bears, while the Pack had none. More than 19,000 fans who had tickets to the game opted to stay away from Soldier Field that Monday night and settle for watching from the dry cozy confines of the own living rooms – or man caves, right Ty? I wonder how many kids went trick-and-or-treating in the driving rain that night in Chicago.

Staying Alive

Wow, the clock on the wall says it’s about a half an hour from midnight, and I just realized I had not posted here today, jeopardizing my consecutive week days posting streak. It’s been a slow day, but there could be a few stories on the horizon worth keeping our weather-watching eyes open for. Tropical Storm Noel could cause some soggy conditions on college football games this weekend depending on which path she chooses to take. Also, tomorrow is Halloween and the 13th anniversary of a very soggy and windy Monday Night Football game at Soldier Field in which the Packers, wearing throwback unis, sloshed past the Bears, 33-6. I may write something about that tomorrow to commemorate the anniversary. But for today, well, this is it. I guess you could call this a throw-away post done for the sole purpose of keeping my streak live. This is the equivalent of putting Cal Ripken Jr. into a couple of innings so he could keep his games played record alive and kicking, right? Right! Good night America. You too, Istanbul (not Constantinople).

Snow Is A No Go

I'm going to be a way for a bit and I hate to leave a soccer story atop the blog. Nothing against soccer, but that last item (See below) was not the most exciting story ever posted here. With that said I'll leave you with the forecast for tonight's Monday Night Football game between the Broncos and Packers in the Mile High City. Alas, no snow… and no World Series Game 5. Skies will be partly cloudy when you tune in for kickoff tonight with low temperatures in the 50s. There's a 10 percent chance of precipitation. In other words, nothing's gonna fall from the sky except maybe a SkyCam. Oh, wait. That was NBC. Never mind.

Meanwhile, The Other Football Gets Rained Out

While we have our eyes and ears on the international beat today, take a look at this story from The Hindu, the online edition of India's national newspaper:

CHENNAI: Non-stop rain from Saturday evening meant there was little possibility of the India-Lebanon round one World Cup football qualifier match taking place at the Nehru Stadium here on Sunday. As things stand with rains continuing to pelt the city, the match is being shifted to Goa.

FIFA rules stipulate that the Referee inspect the turf an hour before the scheduled start and inform his decision to the Match Commissioner. As though to confirm that play was not possible, the Referee took a ball with him and kicked it to see it float on the sheet of water.

Match commissioner Rendeni Gamini of Sri Lanka later said, “bad weather and poor ground conditions have made us decide that play was not possible and the match has been postponed to Monday for a 4 p.m. kick off. On Monday the Referee will inspect the pitch one hour before the scheduled start and indicate when the match can be conducted,” he said.

Cheers

I promise this is the last post about the Giants victory over the Dolphins Sunday in London. (That is unless I come up with something really interesting.) I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the players were not the only ones affected by the rain and soggy field conditions. The Miami Dolphins Cheerleaders had to perform their well-choreographed routines while wearing short-shorts, boots that I sure were super slippery and far less protective clothing and gear than the players and fans at Wembley. The cheerleaders had no helmets, as did the players. They had no blankets, as did some of the spectators. Still, those girls were troopers and are worthy of our salutes. (I don't even know what that means.)

Field Report

Speaking of the rain and mud in jolly old England Sunday (See below), Paul Schwartz of the New York Post has a sidebar column today about the playing conditions during the Giants/Dolphins game at Wembley Stadium. You can read it here. An excerpt from Schwartz' column is below, and yes, I did fabricate this post simply to put up another pic from the game. Oh, and the N.Y. Post has an uber cool photo gallery from the contest here. Cheerio!

The sun did not shine even once during the Giants' four-day stay here and a steady and at times heavy rain began early yesterday and didn't stop all night. That turned an already-suspect field into a completely-inadequate field and made it a detrimental factor in the Giants' 13-10 victory over the Dolphins.

Any British fans expecting speed and agility instead saw trudging and immobility. The conditions were the same for both sides, of course, but the Giants have far more skilled players on offense and Eli Manning's passing attack was reduced to a soggy wing and no prayer.

Pigskins and Mudders

Brandon Jacobs could have been one of the mudders trotting through on a sloppy track at the Breeders' Cup over the weekend prior to helping the New York American Football Giants score a 13-10 win over the Dolphins Sunday on a mud-caked mess of a pitch at London's Wembley Stadium.

Jacobs took 23 handoffs from quarterback Eli Manning and ran for 131 yards, averaging nearly six yards per carry. A persistent rain fell throughout the game, which was perfect for the G-Men to crank up the running attack. Manning even ran for a TD, while passing for only, get this, 59 yards.

It appeared on TV that many of the fans endured the rain and stuck around through most of the match, wearing jerseys from numerous NFL teams. I even saw a Jets jersey near the end of the game.

Oh, and a lot of media folks are complaining today about the sloppy field conditions and the low scoring, saying the Londoners didn't get a true representation of American football. Just remember fellas, this game was played in England where they love soccer and are used to low scoring affairs.

Adding to that, here's an interesting fact for you to chew on over lunch: The Giants scored 13 points in the game; that's more points than seven English Premier League teams have scored all season. Stick that in your Arsenal.

Bloody Bad Weather Compared With Miami

I can’t believe I’m up late on a Friday night/early Saturday morning writing blog stuff, but I just had to bring to your attention the projected weather conditions for the NFL’s junket across the pond. The Rainout Blog World Headquarters reside in Virginia, but we’re pretty big in England. Anyway, the 0-7 Dolphins play the New York American Football Giants Sunday at London’s Wembley Stadium in what will be the first regular season game in the long history of the NFL to be played outside of North America. The game is listed on the schedule as a Dolphins home game, but the weather at Wembley will not remind anyone of Miami. Plus, and I’m assuming here, there will be no baseball diamond dirt in the middle of the pitch. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m., London time and the forecast calls for a 90 percent chance of light rain throughout the day and evening with low temperatures dipping to about 52 degrees Fahrenheit. Plus winds will be blowing up to 25 mph. The Giants play their home games in a stadium where winds swirl like crazy at times, so conditions in London may work to their advantage.

In this photo we see the best thing about the Dolphins: Cheerleaders. Here the cheer team poses Wednesday outside the Houses of Parliament in London. (AP Photo/Sang Tan)

Blog Author's Easy Grand

We’re all busy people, and when we get a few moments to visit our favorite blogs we ordinarily don’t have time to read long posts. We want to get into a blog, zip through it and get out. We don’t have time for a thousand words. However, a blog author can cheat a bit by compacting those thousand words into a picture. The thousand words above are from the soggy Friday races at the 2007 Breeders Cup where, in the Filly & Mare Sprint, jockey Elvis Trujillo rides Maryfield to victory at Monmouth Park in New Jersey.

(PHOTO: AFP/Timothy A Clary)

One More Shot And I'm Out

I'm still dealing with last night's Virginia Tech loss to Boston College. In case you missed it, Tech dominated the game, its defense got fatigued near the end and Matt Ryan tossed a couple of touchdown passes in the final two minutes to give the Eagles a win during a downpour at Lane Stadium. And all day long the media have been verbally stroking Ryan and have all but given him the Heisman Trophy. Blah, blah, blah! Call me a Hokie homer, but Ryan was not that impressive. And please, ESPN, we can do without the shots of Ryan hurling on the sideline after he threw the winning TD pass. Jebus! Despite the outcome, the game did provide some uber cool visuals, both on TV and in still photographs. The above is a great example.

That's it for me. I'm outta here. Have a good weekend and enjoy all the good football that comes along with it. If you're looking for another rain game, check out the West Virginia at Rutgers game in Piscataway. There's a 100 percent chance of rain with temps dipping through the 40s.

Ummmmmm, Lemon

Hey, I want to give a brief shout out and thank you to my good friend Steve Czaban for posting three fine photos of milfilicious Tina Fey on his Web site today. (Ok, the Czabe is not my good friend, but he is my favorite sports talk radio host. Close enough, eh?) Anyway, you can click on Czabe.com to see the sensational pics of Tina, aka Liz Lemon, for yourself. How does this relate to sports/weather you ask? It doesn't. It's just another opportunity for me to post a pic of yummy Tina.

What's that? You came to this site to read something about sports weather? Ok, check out this new weekly feature on The Rainout Blog that focuses on sports teams with weather-related nicknames, mascots or logos. (Ok, I'm not going to do this once a week. Maybe once a millennium, and this is that one time, Spanky. So here goes.)

Let's start with the San Diego Super Chargers and their lightning bolt logo flashing (not literally) on the side of their helmets and pants. The Bolts have gotten off to a slow start this season, as you well know, and have gone through a tough week with wild fires spreading like, uh, wild fires in San Diego. Many of the players evacuated their homes, and the team was forced to move its practices to Arizona. As of this posting, there is no word where the Chargers will play their scheduled home game against Houston this week. It's looking more and more likely that the game will be played on the team's home field, Qualcomm Stadium, but there are still questions about playing the game on Sunday or moving it to Monday night. Update: The game will be played at 4:05 p.m., Sunday in San Diego as scheduled.

In the NHL, the Carolina Hurricanes are so far one of the top teams in the league and are looking very much like the team that won the Stanley Cup two seasons ago. The 'Canes lead the Southeast Division with 15 points, the second most in the NHL, and have a 6-1-3 record. Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Lightning is second to the Hurricanes with 10 points in the Southeast. The Colorado Avalanche haven't yet lived up to expectations, but the season is way too young to write off any team. The Avs have 10 points and are third in the Northwest division. (Wow, this is really lame.)

The NBA is still in preseason, so let's not get into that league right now, if ever.

Ok, that's it. You're caught up.

Oh, wait. That team with the snow-capped mountains featured on its logo is down 0-2 in the World Series. Have I mentioned that I'm so sick of Boston sports teams?

Good Mudders Needed For Breeders'

The 24th Breeders' Cup World Championships begin Friday at Oceanport, N.J., and forecasts for the two-day event call for an 80 percent chance or precipitation today and 100 percent on Saturday. Temperatures on both days will vary from the low to the high 60s. According to a story in Friday's New York Post, rain has fallen on the Breeders' Cup only once, and that was nearly 20 years ago (1988) at Churchill Downs. That's all I have to say about that. Enjoy the races.

Hold That Line

Just as forecasted, the heavens opened up tonight in Blacksburg and dropped huge amounts of rain on Lane Stadium. And in the last two minutes, Virginia Tech dropped its chance to upset No. 2 Boston College. The Eagles scored two late touchdowns for a 14-10 victory. Wow, Matt Ryan sure looked like a Heisman Trophy candidate, not for most of the game, but certainly in the end with his line holding, I mean tackling, I mean diving for the knees, uhhhhhhh, I mean blocking the Tech defense as the quarterback tossed the game-winning pass with just 11 seconds left in the game. Oh, well. At least we got a chance to see Erin Andrews wet and wearing a baseball cap.

By the way, I'm so sick of Boston's sports teams. I think I may concentrate only on hockey for a while since the Bruins suck.

Paradise Beyond Cumulonimbus Clouds

I've been thinking about this all wrong. For the past several weeks I've been complaining (not on this blog) about the absence of "football weather." You know what I mean, those crisp autumn temperatures and overcast skies that ordinarily accompany October football games.

It's been unseasonably warm thus far across most of the country.

Don't get me wrong, I love being able to still wear my short-sleeve polo shirts and khaki shorts about town. (I am a man about town, ya know!)

However, I still like some clouds and cool weather to go along with my football, whether at a game or watching on TV. Heck, I hope to have some hot chocolate at a game before the season ends.

But Gregg Easterbrook, the fella who, among other things, pens Tuesday Morning Quarterback on ESPN.com, reminded me via his column this week that I'm missing something very important.

Sure, it's dry and about 75 degrees at nearly all NFL games, but those same conditions are allowing NFL cheerleaders to don skimpy warm-weather gear further into the season.

Wow, why didn't I think of that before? Thanks, Gregg. Thanks for clueing me in. I hope that, from now on, I'll do a better job of keeping abreast of what's truly important.

Let's Move On

Everything went pretty much as expected last night in the World Series opener, right? The red hot Red Sox blasted the previously hot, but recently laid off Rockies, Josh Beckett was his usual pain in the arse self to opposing batters and, as per the forecast, some rain fell on Game 1 at Fenway Park. Following the Rockies' nine-day layoff, you could see this 13-1 debacle coming down the highway 10 miles away with its high beams on. Now that the rusty Rockies have some game action under their belts, maybe they can strike back tonight in Game 2 and make this a series. We Yankees fans can only hope.

Rain Plan

Wow, look at those rain clouds hovering over Boston just hours before Josh Beckett tosses the first pitch of the World Series tonight in Fenway Park. That shot was taken from a WBZ-TV web cam about 4:25 p.m., Eastern time, by the way. Some pregame showers are expected in Beantown ahead of the Game 1 meeting between the Sox and Rocks, but forecasters say the skies should clear up. There is a 60 percent chance of intermittent light rain forecasted for Wednesday night with lows in the low 50s at game time. The cloud cover will keep the temperatures from dipping much as the game moves into the later innings. If there is more precipitation than expected and Game 1 is rained out, the opener will be rescheduled for Thursday with Game 2 Friday. If that's the case, there will be no off day between Game 2 and Game 3 Saturday in Denver. Commissioner Bud Selig has the final call on whether games are played.

The Rain In Lane Falls Mainly on the... Oh, Never Mind

Some much needed rain is expected to hit the Mid-Atlantic states beginning today, thus there is a very good possibility for precipitation Thursday night when No. 2 Boston College visits No. 8 Virginia Tech at Lane Stadium.

Tech already has home-field advantage with its raucous crowd, and wet field conditions should add to that advantage. We may get to see just how well Heisman Trophy candidate Matt Ryan can sling a wet ball against an always stout Hokies defense.

Chris Moore of CSTV said this morning on FOX Sports Radio that Tech should "man handle" Boston College. I don't know about that, but it should be a great game with some spectacular visuals with the rain and mud… and Erin Andrews patrolling the Worsham Field sidelines for the 7:45 p.m. ESPN broadcast. Yummy!

The Blacksburg forecast calls about a 70 percent chance of rain with a kickoff temperature hovering around 50 degrees – that's Fahrenheit for you international readers – with a low of 46 later in the game. Winds will be blowing East Northeast at approximately 11 mph.

The Scoop on Why the Game Wasn't Called

I've never knew the full story behind the Norman Rockwell painting and Saturday Evening Post cover "Game Called Because of Rain" until I did a little digging today. I found the below information on some Web site that offered no particulars about the author, so I don't know who to attribute following description to. Enjoy.

Bottom of the Sixth
April 23, 1949

A most unique feature of Rockwell's sport paintings,
is that they seldom focus on the excitement, struggle,
or emotions of the athletes. This baseball game maybe
called, due to rain, and the picture alone tells the
story. Yet Rockwell does not paint only a story, but
rather, a picture full of real people. Umpires (left
to right) Larry Gaetz, Beans Reardon and Lou Jorda are
about to call the game in 'the bottom of the sixth'.
Meanwhile, Brooklyn manager (and former catcher) Clyde
Sukeforth smiles at Pittsburgh manager Billy Meyer,
for he is delighted with the ceasing rain. (He points
at the sky, indicating that the game will continue and
so will his chance to make up for the one run deficit).
The Pittsburgh outfielders have already taken their
positions. (Dixie Walter is in the bottom left corner).
The picture now hangs in the Baseball Hall of Fame in
Cooperstown, New York.

UPDATE: I'm not satisfied with the information above, and I want to investigate further. It's not that I don't trust the source, it's just I put together that post fairly quickly without taking the time to learn more and examine other sources and avenues. Ok? Ok!

I think that's it for me today. It's Tuesday, and there's no football on TV tonight and the World Series doesn’t get cranked up for another 27 hours or so. However, there is hockey on Versus. The Rangers visit Sid the Kid and the Penguins. I hope there's at least one good fight. I haven't watched much hockey so far this season, and I've yet to see one fight. I guess I need to check out hockeyfights.com and catch up on all the action I've missed so far. Good night, everybody.

No. 42 With a Bullet

As I mentioned the other day, I got a renewed energy and enthusiasm for this sports weather blog at the beginning of the month and have been going nuts writing junk ever since. It's been a hectic but fun three weeks. The cool thing is I could have written more if there were 27 or 28 hours in a day. Alas, I'll have to continue to cram all I can into 24. Anyway, my pal Chad in Tennessee pointed out to me last week that April was my busiest month when I lit up the blog scoreboard for 41 posts. I was on fire! Dare I say, En fuego? (Geez, that's horribly inappropriate given what I wrote about earlier today.) Well, I'm happy to say this post – this one right here that no one is reading – is my 42nd post for October! Wow, I broke my old monthly record with eight days left in the 10th month of 2007. This mark in no way reaches Neil Best proportions, but I'm proud of it none the less.

(I know what you're thinking. It's really cheesy to post an item that has nothing to do with the subject of the blog for the sole purpose of breaking some sort of asinine personal record. You're right. But I did it anyway, and darn it, I'll do it again.)

Fires Threaten Bolts

I've been debating with myself all day whether to mention here the fires burning in San Diego County.

You follow the news. You know the story. However, there are a few side stories from the fires that relate to sports.

Among those who have been forced to leave their homes are members of the sporting world, LaDainian Tomlinson, Phillip Rivers and approximately 40 other San Diego Chargers players. Others forced out of their residences are current San Diego Padres pitcher Trevor Hoffman and former Padre Tony Gwynn, according to an Associated Press story.

Flames consumed hundreds homes across the Southern California region Tuesday and hundreds of thousands of residents were forced to leave the area. Qualcomm Stadium, the home of San Diego's NFL team, is being used as an evacuation center.

Poor air quality forced the Chargers to cancel practice Monday, and the team will spend the remainder of the week in Arizona.

There is talk the Chargers scheduled home game Sunday with Houston could be played in the Cardinals Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.. The Cards have a bye week. Some are speculating the game could be moved to Sunday night or Monday night, but there has been no official word from the NFL about whether the game location or time will be changed. (Didn't I just say the other day I wasn't going to rewrite news stories?)

By the way, USA Today's The Weather Guys (Yes, I'm mentioning them again.) explained Santa Ana season on their blog yesterday. The season begins in October and can be a culprit in these autumn California wildfires.

(Qualcomm Stadium Photo: Stan Liu/Reuters)

I'll Let Others Do The Work Today

I wanted to delve a bit into the forecast for the upcoming World Series, which begins Wednesday night in Boston, but I'm really super busy today. So, rather than take time I don't have to do the necessary research, I'll send you, my faithful readers, to The Weather Guys blog on the USA Today Web site. You ever read The Weather Guys blog? They write about all things weather, not just sports. Plus, they are real "weather guys," meaning they are trained in meteorology and know the subject in and out, unlike the affable but ignorant writer of this sports weather blog. Anyway, their post today gives us insight into the World Series forecast and reveals that temperatures may be cooler in Boston than in Denver. That's surprising given the snow storm that hit Colorado this weekend and forced the Rockies to cancel outdoor practice Sunday. The Weather Guys, however, tell us why the forecast should not be all that surprising. Those guys are so cool. I think I feel a man crush developing.

(In the photo above are The Weather Guys, Bob Swanson and Doyle Rice.)

Ice Bowl Movie Melted In A Flash

While we’re on the topic of the Ice Bowl (See Below), what happened to the ESPN movie about the 1967 NFL title game that was due to air on the network a few years back? When the announcement was made, there was a bit of a buzz about the made-for-TV flick, but that quickly dissipated and talk about the movie simply melted away. You may remember Joe Eszterhas, the writer of Basic Instinct and Flashdance, was hired to pen the script. An odd choice I thought, but what do I know?

NHL Takes On Bowling

The NHL announced a little more than a month ago that it will stage an outdoor hockey game January 1 in Buffalo between the Sabres and the Pittsburgh Penguins. The game will be called the NHL Winter Classic, and will be played at Ralph Wilson Stadium, home of the Buffalo Bills. Good timing NHL – holding a special event such as an outdoor game on New Year’s Day when most sports fans in the U.S. are focused on college football bowl games. Poor NHL executives, they just can’t seem to get it right no matter how hard they try. (But I wish they would get it right because I love hockey.)

And one more thing: These outdoor hockey games in big stadiums, to me, just aren’t what they’re cracked up to be. The games may be great if you’re watching live at the stadium, but the weird camera placements create strange sightlines that often are obstructed by the outside of the boards. It’s a novel idea, but it’s tough to watch on the tube. NBC, TV home of the Penguins (Read that with sarcasm), will broadcast the game.

Anyway, Ralph Wilson Stadium seats more than 70,000 fans, and the game is expected to eclipse the old NHL attendance record set a few years back in 2003 by the Oilers and Montreal Canadiens at the Heritage Classic held in Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium. That game attracted a little more than 57,000 spectators in minus 22-degree wind-chilled temeratures. Brrrrrrrrrr!

Ralphie Warned Us About This

Everyone here knows about the Ice Bowl, so there's no reason to revisit the details. However, there is one bit of information about that 1967 NFL Championship game that I either did not know about or had just tucked into the far reaches of my brain. In other words: I forgot.

Anyway, I just learned a couple of nights ago about how the officials for the game did not use their whistles after the game's initial play. The reason being that official Joe Connell had his whistle freeze to his lips because of the freezing temperatures.

I heard about this while watching the NFL Network's Top 10 Bad Weather Games late Saturday night. One account of the event I read today quoted referee Norm Schachter saying about Connell, that "about half his lip came off" when he tried to remove the whistle. And then the blood froze on his mouth. Yuck! From that point, the refs kept their whistles far from their lips and simply shouted "hold up" or "he's down" to signify the end of plays.

While researching this nugget of Ice Bowl info, I found a few more things on the Packers Web site that you may or may not have known about the game.

- Bart Starr's touchdown play, "35 wedge," called for Chuck Mercein to get the ball. No one expected Starr to keep it.

- Officially, the field's $80,000 heating system failed due to cold. Unofficially, some say, Lombardi turned it off.

- The play before Starr's TD, Donny Anderson actually broke the plane, but Lee Roy Jordan knocked the ball from his hands, and Anderson had to retrieve it on the other side.

- The team canceled marching band performances after noticing blood on a few of the musician's faces.

- Packers fans several times during the contest leaned over the front row to unplug the Cowboys' heated benches.

- After the game, several fans passed out soon after warming up. Their thawed systems finally registered the alcohol they'd consumed to keep warm during the game.

- One fan, an elderly gentleman, died due to exposure.

Slippery When Wet

A friend of mine pointed out to me the other day that April was my busiest month this year with 41 posts. I'm well on my way to breaking that mark with my renewed enthusiasm for this blogging thing.

I've had plenty to write about this month, and some stuff I've just fabricated for the sake of posting something to keep my readers in the Czech Republic interested.

Lately, though, I've been wondering what I will write about when the cold-rainy baseball postseason wraps up and the NFL and college football seasons are complete and we're left with nothing but indoor sports. It's keeping me awake at night. (Not really. I have to blame on my 2-year old son.)

A couple of nights ago, I stumbled upon this story about an NBA preseason game between the Celtics and Nets in Worcester, Mass., in which the contest had to be canceled at halftime because of condensation on the DCU Center floor caused by the unseasonably warm temperatures outside and the ice, for the city's AHL Worcester Sharks, sitting underneath the hardwood.

If only this had happened in February, which I'm sure will be a slow sports weather month. Then, I wouldn't have to resort of writing about dogs getting lost in the Iditarod.

Actually, I think the Iditarod is in March, but I'm not sure because my fact checker is busy studying for her first grade spelling test.

(Photo: AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Sox Win, Helton Happy on Couch

Take a look at this picture. This could be your World Series. Snowy! Cold! Awesome! At least two games, and possibly three, will be played in frigid Colorado for this year's, um, Fall Classic. On Sunday, the Rockies were forced to practice indoors as they continued on their fall break while awaiting the winner of the American League Championship Series, which we now know is that team from Boston. The Rocks have been doing their best to stay focused by simulating game conditions, while the Red Sox have been playing meaningful games and building momentum while rallying from a 3-1 deficit to overcome Cleveland in seven games in the ALCS. According to a USA Today story on Monday, Todd Helton, isn't too concerned about the rest and relaxation the Rockies have been getting nor the fact that the team was snowed out of practice Sunday. "Good huntin' weather," said the Rockies first baseman. "It'll be a short day for us. Good day to sit on the couch, I know that." Sit on the couch? Holy cow, it's over. Red Sox in four.

Cougars Sled To Win, EWU Cashes The Check

This one almost got away. While searching for stories about the October snow in Denver Sunday that dropped hours ahead of the Broncos surprising win over the Steelers and earlier in the day forced the Colorado Rockies to practice indoors in preparation for their World Series matchup with the Red Sox, I bumped into this amazing photo from BYU's 42-7 trouncing of Eastern Washington in Provo, Utah Saturday night. It wasn't a full-blown snow storm, but rather some intense fourth quarter flurries that fell on Edwards Stadium. If you want to see more, check out this photo galley posted on The Salt Lake Tribune Web site. Most of the good stuff, and by that I mean the snow pictures, is near the end of the gallery.

One more thing: If you want to read an entertaining take likening BYU's money game with Eastern Washington to prostitution, check out this column by the Tribune's Gordon Monson.

(The above photo is from The Salt Lake Tribune Web site.)

We'll See Ya Tomorrow Night!

It looks bad at Fenway Park at the moment, but according to forecasts, skies will be clear with a low of 55 degrees at the ol' Beantown ballpark for Game 6 of the American League Championship Series Saturday night. That's knuckleballer Tim Wakefield (in the photo) strolling onto the soaked field for a throwing workout earlier today. (I love knuckleball pitchers, even if the play for the Red Sox.) The Sox are trying to dig themselves out of an early hole in the series. Cleveland leads 3-2 and can advance to the World Series with a victory Saturday. The Colorado Rockies, the team officially endorsed by The Rainout Blog (See below) are patiently awaiting the winner of the ALCS.

I'm Sports Weather Guy and I Approve This Message

Have you jumped on the Colorado Rockies bandwagon yet? Already begun celebrating Rocktober Fest, eh? Me too, but perhaps for a different reason than you. My Yankees got knocked out of the playoffs early. What's that? Oh, thanks for your sympathies. I know everyone hated to see the Yankees lose in the first round again. Anyway, as a dude who writes a blog dedicated to the effects of weather on sporting events, I felt I had to endorse a team with a weather reference in either its A) Name or B) Logo. The Rocks falls into the ladder category with that super cool logo featuring, what else: the snow-capped Colorado Rockies.

Touchdown Jesus Saves

I don't like to re-write the news. Plus, I don't have time… and it's tedious and boring. And it's just silly. Anyway, did you hear what happened to the jet carrying the USC football team on its way to South Bend? Well, if you've been out on the farm and away from technology, here's a link to the story on ESPN.com. If you haven't yet heard about this, here's a tease quote: "That was terrifying," fullback Stanley Havili said. "I thought I was going to die." By the way, the point spread hasn't changed after this incident. USC is still favored by 17.

Quick Flush

So, we learned earlier that Jacobs Field is capable of draining about 12 inches of rain water in an hour. (See below.) Fascinating! I bet you're now wondering how that's possible. Well, I was too. My curiosity led me to a blog on the MLB Web site written by Murray Cook, a former groundskeeper who began his career in Salem, Va., not far from The Rainout Blog World Headquarters. Anyway, Cook posted this item to his blog more than a year ago explaining the make-up of the four layers of a baseball field and the roles each play in rapid water drainage.

Not sports weather related, but: Joe Torre has given the proverbial middle finger to the Yankees organization after those louts have had him twisting in the wind (I knew I could relate this to weather somehow) for days. Good for you Joe!

Not The End of the World If Rains Fall in Cleveland

Game 5 of the American League Championship Series is tonight in Cleveland, and there is about a 40 percent chance of rain with a low of 65 degrees when C.C. Sabathia tosses out the first pitch at 8:21 p.m. If you're going to the game or watching at home and hoping not to have to sit through a long rain delay, remember this line from a story posted today on Cleveland's News Channel 5 Web site about Jacobs Field and its remarkable ability to not, uh, retain water:

"The drainage system under the field can whisk away 12 inches of water an hour."

That may be the stat of the day. Also, I don't think anyone doubts the ability of the Jacobs Field grounds crew. Remember what they did on Opening Day when a snow storm hit the ballpark? If not, watch this remarkable time-lapse video from Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer.

Judging from tonight's forecast, there shouldn't be much to worry about as far as the weather is concerned. I'm no meteorologist, but I don't expect a rain out. But if there is a rain out, it's not the end of the world. Right, Manny?

Hunter Checked Out Too Soon To Meet Wx Gal at Derby

Yesterday, my pal Chad in Tennessee said this sports weather blog thing may attract a larger readership if I posted photos of Stephanie Abrams of The Weather Channel. After all, Awful Announcing has picks of the weather chick all over its page with posts about the weather for the ALCS in Cleveland, Chad said. So, I took Chad's advice and posted a photo (see below) of Stephanie. That photo is probably the most popular shot of her for obvious reasons. Later, I wondered if Stephanie is a sports fan or has any background in athletics. Turns out, she has covered some significant sporting events for The Weather Channel. According to her TWC bio, Stephanie's assignments since joining the network in 2003 have included "on-the-scene weather reports from major sporting events in the country like The Daytona 500, The Kentucky Derby, The Chicago Marathon, and Major League Baseball spring training." Stephanie is a graduate of the University of Florida and received a bachelor's degree in meteorology from Florida State, or as she was quoted in a U. of Florida alumni magazine, "that other university in Florida." The screen capture above is of Stephanie at the 2005, I think, Kentucky Derby. There. That should increase my Web hits, and steal readers away from Awful Announcing and Deadspin and maybe even Profootballtalk.com.

You Are Not Looking Live

The possibility of rain and therefore rain delays existed last night in Cleveland for Game 4 of the ALCS, and I, a dude who operates a sports/weather blog, was all set to do my first ever live blog of the event. I was sitting on my couch with my laptop on my, uh, lap and eating popcorn left over from Sunday's Patriots at Cowboys game. However, before Paul Byrd could finish his warm-up pitches, my wife and two kids quickly reminded me that I sort of have a life and the words "live blogging" did not, and could not ever exists in my universe.

Speaking of blogs, my favorite blogger, sports media and business columnist Neil Best of Newsday in New York, has gotten into the sports weather spirit today with a post about the Rockies and Broncos possibly playing on the same night (Oct. 29) in Denver. The Broncos have a game that Monday night, and the Rockies are scheduled to play Game 5 of the World Series, if it goes that far, at Coors Field. Best is looking forward to the possibility of an October snow storm in the Mile High City that night, making for a "highly entertaining TV evening," he said.

Spawning Mud

The prevalence of artificial turf and superior field drainage systems these days have greatly diminished the sight of dirt and especially mud on NFL uniforms. But don’t tell that to Todd MacFarlane. His Spawn NFL figures almost always have at least a bit of dirt on them, creating a look on football uniforms that most of in our 30s and older became accustomed to seeing on TV during our youth. I don't know about you, but I hate the site of a clean football uniform. That's just another reason why it's tough being a Jets fan. I heard McFarlane on a sports radio program a few weeks ago talking about the research that goes into making his figures realistic. Sometimes I think there may be some embellishing in the mud department, but who cares? Check out the photo of the LaDainian Tomlinson figure. Awesome! Totally awesome!

Six and Done

I've posted five items here today – Oops, this one makes six – and I think I need to quit for a while and concentrate on a few other things. I have a couple other stories I could get to today, but I think I'll save those for later. Hey, I may post tonight if my wife leaves me alone long enough. Don't tell her I said that. That said, I'll leave you with this uber cool photo of the Bengals' kicker Shane Graham doing his thing in an intense fog. Good night sports/weather fans – both of you! Enjoy the cold, possibly rainy ALCS tonight, and Go Tribe!