We played, naturally, at Champagne Park.
You've heard of the ivy-covered brick at Wrigley Field.
This is the bittersweet-covered fence at Champagne Park.
You're familiar with the Green Monster at Fenway Park.
This is the Green Monstrosity at Champagne.
I was up first. Pop!
Dang. Inches from being a home run. But an excellent shot, really. On the far edge of the warning track.
Bill was up next. Bill was feeling very smug because of his 3-homerun performance during the infamous Bishop of Champagne's visit, including one towering blast that hit halfway up the Green Monstrosity.
He got the wire off . . .
. . . he loosened the cork . . .
. . . and Pop!
Oh dear. That is not an excellent shot. That's not even close, really.
I declared I was winning since my cork went so much farther. Bill said, “Ellie, this is a Homerun Derby. It doesn't matter how far your cork goes. Only homeruns count.” (Yeah, but at least mine was a triple, buddy.)
Sigh. Score: 0-0.
Wait, what's this?? One of the corks that Bill thought had cleared the fence during his epic 3-for-3 feat the other day had actually landed on the fence. Make that 2-for-3, Mistah.
We had a snack to boost our energy -- physical and mental.Round 2. The problem with playing Champagne Homerun Derby when only 2 people are drinking Champagne is you really don't get that many tries. I mean, how many bottles of champers can 2 people drink, when there's a whole night still ahead?
So I decided to let Bill go for it with our last bottle, to try to redeem his dreary 0-1 day so far, and to prove that 3-for-3 2-for-3 was not an anomaly. Our friend Ron was with us for this one, so Bill had something extra to prove.
So I decided to let Bill go for it with our last bottle, to try to redeem his dreary 0-1 day so far, and to prove that .
He got set . . .
Wait a minute! He's calling it! The audacity! Mistah's calling the Homerun!
Hmmm. Baseball is not my game. Horseracing is not really my sport. But THIS is a game I could learn to play. Congratulations to one of you for extraordinary performance in the Champagne Homerun Derby!
ReplyDeleteC'mon, no round 4?
ReplyDeleteLooks like a great time, even it was a short game.
Beth
I so want to play this game! Given all the bottles of Champagne I've opened, I've *never* popped the cork like that. It seems that I have been missing out on one of the greater joys of life...
ReplyDeletePoor Bill. Just think of it as a good reason for another series match-up.
You guys always have something fun going on!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the one year!
As the self-proclaimed inventor of the sport, I think Champagne Homerun Derby may turn out to be my single biggest contribution to the advancement of human culture. Despite my debatable merits at the plate, the originality of concept -- opening the bubbly at the beginning of each game/season instead of waiting for elusive victory months later in the playoffs, deserves note. And instead of throwing players out for "corked" bats, we embrace them. RBIs become Runs Bubbled In. Slugging percentage becomes Slurping Percentage. Bring a bottle over and step up to the plate.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE THIS GAME!
Mistah
I think you need more players!
ReplyDeleteOh you guys -- you're always doing something fun!
ReplyDeleteI can't believe you can each drink a bottle plus change of champers and still functionally drink for the rest of the night. I would be nigh-night. But then, I'm just a pure and wholesome and innocent young flower.
ReplyDeleteMaybe we should buy a couple of cases of splits for the family reunion and have ourselves a real derby....
Fun post, El!
Jacquie