Troutbum

January 30, 2021

Offense wins games, defense wins championships!

January 30, 2021

Remember when passing was something you only did on third-and-long? And offensive linemen that actually ran - Kramer and Thurston on the sweep?

January 10, 2021

Are ITZ bases with the round bumper added OK for the Postal League?

January 4, 2021

Well, since Al opened the door, here's my fishing story:

A Fishing Story, by Troutbum

Well, back during hurricanes Frances and Ivan in the Fall of 2004, it rained for forty days and forty nights. My little town of Canton, NC flooded when the Pigeon River left its banks. The water level rose above all of the bridges, and got as high as the fifth row of seats at Canton Memorial Stadium. The neighboring Haywood County town of Waynesville NC has a reservoir up in the mountains on Allens Creek, and the dam was in danger of bursting, threatening the town with great loss. Now the Waynesville Watershed has the best drinking water in the world, so they tell me. It is a pristine watershed, with several tributaries coming down the mountain to form Allens Creek. No fishing, hunting, or even hiking is allowed anywhere in the entire watershed, and all of the creeks are chock-full of speckled trout (Southern Appalachian Brook Trout). The mayor of Waynesville called the mayor of Canton asking for any help he could provide. The mayor of Canton replied with "I know a guy!"

Well ordinarily, Canton and Waynesville are at odds with each other, especially in the Fall, because there are only two high school football teams in the county - the Pisgah Black Bears in Canton and the Tuscola Mountaineers in Waynesville. These two teams have had one of the biggest rivalries in high school sports since they were established in 1966. When these two teams play each other, as many as 15,000 people show up. The person with the winning fifty-fifty ticket takes home anywhere from $5,000 to $20,000. It would be a great time to commit a crime anywhere in Haywood County because the entire police force of both towns and the county will be at the game! Just go to Google or YouTube and search "Pisgah-Tuscola rivalry" to see how big this thing really is. I grew up in western Buncombe County and went to Erwin High School (Go Warriors!) so I didn't have a dog in this fight. In 1990 I moved to Canton after I married a Pisgah girl, bought season tickets to Pisgah football games, and became a Black Bear fan. However, ten years later I got a job teaching history and coaching soccer at Tuscola, and I have been a Mountaineer ever since.

Well, when the Canton mayor called me up and explained the dire situation to me, I knew what I had to do. I told him to "meet me up at the reservoir with as many dump trucks as you can muster, filled with water", grabbed my fly rod and vest, and headed for the reservoir as fast as my little Sentra would go. There was one truck waiting for me when I got there. We drove up to where Allens Creek runs into the lake, and I started fishing. We put every trout I caught into the water in the dump truck’s bed. When that one was full, it was quickly replaced by another one. In two hours, I filled up twenty dump trucks with speckled trout and the water level in the lake dropped ten feet! Thus, using my knowledge of Archimedes’ Principle and my superior fly fishing skills, did I save the town of Waynesville from disaster.

What in the world did we do with twenty dump trucks full of speckled trout? I’m glad you asked! We have more speckled trout in Haywood County than we know what to do with, so we sent some trucks down to the mountains of South Carolina and Georgia to restore speckled trout populations there, and we sent some trucks clean over to the mountains of Kentucky to establish populations there. You can look it up!

January 3, 2021

Here is the idea for my team (my wife thinks it looks like a watermelon!). If you are curious as to where the "Troutbum" comes from, here you go - https://www.troutbum.site/blog.

January 1, 2021

I'm in

December 30, 2020

Do you have room for one more?

September 26, 2020

I haven't seen the move in 20 years, but if I watched it today it would move me the same way. Some sports movies are "based on actual events" but have been highly dramatized. Sayers-Pic was the real deal.

September 26, 2020

I cried when I found out Sayers had passed away.

September 10, 2020

Love Bryson City! I probably saw/heard you on main street at least once - I'm a Mast General Store regular.

September 5, 2020

I live in Haywood County, but my daughter is a senior at Western. I teach Southern Appalachian History at Tuscola (Cherokee for "digging in many places") High school, and I have my students do a Cherokee syllabary project. Although not Cherokee myself, I do "go to water" every chance I get!

August 28, 2020

WCU?

July 8, 2020

Thanks! All of these teams actually exist, or at least did in the last few years. Last year the Belfast Trojans defeated the South Dublin Panthers in the Shamrock Bowl.

July 8, 2020

Your collection belongs in Canton, Ohio! It always reminds me of the color page of teams in the old Tudor rule books - keep the pictures coming!

June 30, 2020

THE RULES:

I will be using a tweaked version of Beenutt's solitaire tournament rules. For reference, I have attached a copy of his 2013 Solitaire Tournament Rules. Like his college tournament, my European leagues tournament will involve over 100 teams, so first round games are one possession each starting on the 25. If both teams score, the rest of the game will be similar to a college overtime, with each team getting a possession in each round. League Championship and later round games will consist of two 15-play halves. Now here are my tweaks to his rule set:

No kickoffs, even in later rounds. Each possession starts on the 25, unless there is an interception.
No extra points - I am playing games on a model 500 field, so there is not much room in the end zone.
No field goals
No stacking - there must be 5 yards space between two players lined up vertically.
Defensive backs may not jam wide receivers. After contact, the board is stopped and the DBs are pivoted to move downfield with the WRs. This rule does not apply to tight ends and slot receivers.
No passing sticks - I will be using two six-sided dice. The quarterbacks on many of the real European teams are less than 50% on passing accuracy, so I have different levels of passing. For instance, some of the less-skilled QBs can only complete a pass with a roll of 6 or 8. If the intended receiver has a defender less than 10 yards away, a roll of boxcars is an interception. A roll of snake eyes is always an interception, going to the closest unengaged defender.
Magnets - the offense can put magnets under the bases of the QB and a RB, and the defense can put put magnets under two players, usually safeties or inside linebackers. The magnets may be removed during one of the stops, and must be removed if another player of either team contacts them.

beenutt solitaire rules 2013.pdf

June 30, 2020

Irish Electric Football League

This solitaire tournament is based on the real life Irish American Football League. The IEFL will consist of two four-team divisions. The North includes the Carrickfergus Knights, the Craigavon Cowboys, the Dublin Rebels, and the Belfast Trojans. The South includes the North Kildare Reapers, the Limerick Vikings, the Cork Admirals, and the South Dublin Panthers. Because the IAFL is not known as one of the stronger leagues in Europe, all players will be using un-tweaked, un-weighted regular rookie bases. Each team's offense will be based on what the actual team runs, or ran, in the case of defunct teams. I will post the league rules later (same set as my Portuguese league, the LPFE), but they are designed for quick games.

The North Division:

Carrickfergus Knights

Craigavon Cowboys

Dublin Rebels

Belfast Trojans

The South Division:

North Kildare Reapers

Limerick Vikings

Cork Admirals

South Dublin Panthers

June 28, 2020

My first game was Super Bowl IV with the Vikings and Chiefs, but I was too young and most of the players ended up broken. I started watching pro football during the 1971 season, and I was much more excited when I got my Super Bowl VI set with the Cowboys and Dolphins. That came on Christmas Day, 1972, during the Dolphins undefeated season.

May 21, 2020

LPFE Championship Game - Porto Mutts vs Cascais Crusaders

The final consisted of two 15-play halves, no extra points or field goals. If the game was tied at the end of regulation, the overtime format would be just like the early round games of the tournament. Instead of onside kicks, if a team scores and is still trailing with five or fewer plays left, they can take the ball 4th-and-25 on their own 25 yard line. The Mutts won the coin toss for first possession.

Mutts QB#10 gets outside for 19 yards, but is then sacked for 10 yards by Crusaders #56.

Mutts #85 catches a pass in the open, but is forced out at the two for a 59 yard gain.

Mutts QB #10 finds #85 in the end zone for a 7-0 Mutts lead.

It only takes the Crusaders one play to tie the score, as #24 gets outside for a 75 yard TD run, 7-7.

Although held to -3 yards rushing in the first half, Mutts #33 catches a pass for 27 yards.

On the last play of the first half, the Mutts come up short.

On the first play of the second half, the Crusaders score on another 75 yard play, this time a pass to #85, who gets a great block from #23. Crusaders 14, Mutts 7.

Crusaders #75 fights off a block to stop the run.

Mutts #10 overshoots his receiver and is intercepted by Crusaders #85.

The Crusaders strike quickly again, this time on a 49 yard TD pass. Crusaders #18 jukes two Mutts defenders for a 21-7 lead.

Mutts #45 catches a swing pass out of the backfield for 22 yards.

Mutts #33 finally gets a decent run - a 27 yard TD that cuts the score to 21-14 with only two plays left.

Trailing 21-14 with only two plays left, the Mutts choose to take the ball, 4th-and-25 from their own 25, but #10 passes incomplete for the turnover-on-downs. The Crusaders end the game in victory formation.

The 2020 LPFE CHAMPION Cascais Crusaders!

May 20, 2020

The old sets that had a control arm that let you control one of your players sounded like a great idea, but reality was crap. They just plain didn't work for multiple reasons.

May 16, 2020

Semi-Final #2 - Cascais Crusaders defeat Lisboa Devils 14-7

Devils #15 catches a pass over the middle for 25 yards.

After two incomplete passes, Devils QB #16 goes back to #15 for 25 more.

Devils #15 catches his third 25 yard pass, this time for a 7-0 lead.

Crusaders #24 gets outside at the 30 and picks up a great downfield block from #85 to go 70 yards to tie the score.

The Crusaders have the first possession of the second period, and #24 follows #85 for 25 yards.

#24 gets outside again and goes 50 yards to give the Crusaders a 14-7 lead. If you are keeping score at home, that's 3 carries for 145 yards and 2 TDs!

Devils QB #16 is pressured by Crusaders #50 and throws long into good coverage. Crusaders #18 intercepts for the win.

May 13, 2020

Semi-Final #1 - Porto Mutts defeat Braga Warriors 7-0

The Warriors won the toss for first possession, and #49 carries for a short gain.

Warriors #19 catches a pass over the middle for 34 yards, but the Warriors QB went back to the well one too many times. The pass to #19 in the end zone is intercepted by Mutts #84.