The Fresno Bee from Fresno, California • 22

C2 Tuesday August 15 1989 THE FRESNO BEE xji Knocks on Candlestick are just a bunch of beeswax By DANNY EDWARDS Bee sports writer I hate to jump off the l-hate-Candlestick bandwagon but after hearing it for three decades time someone told the truth about this infamous whipping boy The harsh reality? There is nothing wrong with Candlestick Park merrily breeze out Now that the Giants are drawing 25000 a game (their highest in -history I might add) it takes a little longer Just like it does at every other sporting facility in the universe They say Art Agnos the mayor of San Francisco wants a new stadium Oh he does and in a big way He said so during a televised game at Dodger Stadium recently In fact he seemed quite infatuated with Dodger Stadium that marvelous place where it's an honor just to sit in the seats He gushed over that wonderful piece of architecture so superior to Candlestick that it should take its rightful place alongside the Statue of liberty and Mount Rushmore Yeah Agnos wants a stadium all right Especially if the taxpayers pay for ft They say the new stadium will be wondenul Oh I imagine ft will But only after taking twice as long to build and costing twice as' much as expected 1 It of course will not be cold there the Giants will never lose there there will be 4 million parking spots and parking attendants every 10 feet to ensure accessibility the food win be wonderful and Dwight Gooden will kiss home plate and beg to be traded to San Francisco be real If built the new stadium will be complete with its own problems real or -imaginary and I will smQe on the day 15 years from now when some columnist currently supporting the new stadium wistfully recalls those charming chilly days at oT Candlestick Danny Edwards is a Bee Sports copy editor Bulldoze it blast it bury it bum it blow it up Those are the nice suggestions for San CandlestkkPark a structure so horrid cold and unfriendly amazing those poor Giants and 49ers can endure the misery each year The build a new stadium is out as it has been for years And picking up steam Siberia West must go Let's build Siberia West II be so much better For years Fve heard the complaining Players call it the worst park in the world Fans say the oddest place in the world Get rid of it Move the team Nobody can win there Every season some Eastern wit writes a rank-the-stadiuins story with Candlestick lagging at the bottom of die pack because ofthat oh so horrible wind Hurricane Willie if you win Candlestick they say is death on a baseball player -Jack Clark Dave Kingman Bob 1 oh welcome back by the way a few blaming the park for their lack of 1 of Fame credentials WeD fans Fve had about enough myself Enough of the whining that is I hate to jump off the I-hate-Candlestick bandwagon but after hearing it for three decades time someone told the truth about this infamous whipping boy ibKnepper are just lack of Han torn down A new stadium should not be built Ah I see the lynch mob forming Wait before the violence spills into streets a moment to calmly dispel the vicious rumors surrounding Candlestick one of the finest ballparks in baseball So quickly here are a few reasons Candlestick Park should be left alone: They say too add at Candlestick Hah tell that to a Green Bay Packers fan in December come up with an odd invention those Milwaukeeans that apparently Californians have yet to discover Jackets Gloves Wool hats They are available whoa hold on legal Many a night game sat in the upper deck armed with these simple devices otherwise known as warm clothing (and perhaps a liquid refreshment or two) ana warmly enjoyed the game The "too add" rumor is the oldest and most-used complaint about Candlestick outdated and half the time untrue considering the Giants play half their games during the day And never been to a cold day game about 100 games at Candlestick And night time? Bundle up you know like millions do every year to go skiing or camping just not that hard to do They say the Giants players hate Candlestick Park This one I Ve never understood The Giants this season are 39-20 at home Last season they were 45-36 the year before 46-35 Hey wait a second These guys play great -at home Like it or not I wouldn't mess with a winning mark Besides if so bad for the Giants players it must be twice as bad for the visiting team which only plays there a few times a year Sounds like a great home-field advantage to me Just ask those 49ers You know the three-time Super Bowl champions who play home games at Candlestick One more thing Willie Mays and Willie McCovey seem to do so badly at Candlestick and that was before the park was enclosed (when the wind really blew) Odd I never once heard them complain their way into the Hall of Fame They say Candlestick Park doesn't have the charm of other parks What does that mean anyway? Does it mean someone forgot to trim the ivy off the outfield fence or built the left-field wall ridiculously high or accidentally planted a multimillion dollar sprinkler system that wows fans between innings? I know Candlestick has seats ft has a diamond or a football field ft has a scoreboard ft appears to be relatively dean the field is in good shape most of the seats havegood vantage points Well they did fire Tne Crab a personal favorite of mine as team mascot but that's forgivable Face it going to a sporting event If you want domes go to Yosemite and see half of one If you want dancing girls go to Vegas If you want a water show well you can go to Royals Stadium but that place is so antiseptic I was afraid my seat might protest because I had on jeans Oh but Candlestick can't compare to the Astrodome To that I say thank goodness The so-called Eighth Wonder of tne World looks like a plant from the outside and an Egyptian tomb inside infested with bugs and the crowd sits silently until Big Brother the Scoreboard speaks They say Candlestick Park is not accessible I guess they' mean hard to drive into the park and hard to drive out of it On the first point Candlestick Park is about the easiest place to find just off Highway 101 one of the major thoroughfares in California Put your glasses on please As far as driving into the park that's never been too tough either You take the exit and five minutes later you're in Oh man what a hassle Now about driving out Bade in the old days when anywhere from 500 to 5000 people attended a Giants game one could The harsh reality? There is nothing wrong with Candlestick Park What? right Candlestick Park is 'basebanfootbaU facility It not be dance out of the woods National Football League officials give Shuffle a better deal Fresno needs a track Some time back The Fresno Bee ran an article on auto racing and the amount of drinking that goes on at these events But The Bee never talks about the large amount of drinking at Fresno State University football basketball or baseball games or about all the drinking at the Big Fresno Fair I have gone to all these events ami have seen a lot of drinking just as concerned as anyone else but talk about all events not just one also talk about not having enough events to see There are people all around this area who say there anything to do in Fresno We lost our pro baseball team We are about to lose our pro tennis 1 team And how long before we lose foe Fresno Falcons? Auto racing is one of the largest spectator sports in foe United States A race trade in our area would generate more income and would give out-of-town people the chance to see our beautiful valley and local towns So wake up Fresno Now is foe time for a race track here BYRON WATSON Clovis note The article mentioned appeared on July 19 and reported foot drinking was one of the reasons that Fresno County Supervisor Vernon Conrad gave for opposing plans for a race track west of Fresno Also the writer apparently missed a couple of columns last school year that dealt with drinking at FSU events Save Fresno State! I feel compelled to write about two interesting statements from your Aug 4 Sports pages The first was a quote in Andy Boogaard's article that State is school" The second was coach Jim comment in Bob column that we need to expand Bulldog Stadium Neither of these comments appears to be true be-j cause there has not been one letter to the editor or a statement out of Fresno State officials about the at- 1 tempt by a local developer to destroy Fresno State by trying to bring a University of California campus to tins area a Such a UC campus would in time wreck FSU By i law UC only has to take the top 23 percent and the state universities have to take roughly 33 percent To it differently UC will get the smart kids and Fres-' no State will get the dumb ones In time this will destroy FSU as we know it today 7 Fresno is not a big enough city to support two large universities All community support would have to be split and FSU could only suffer Why The Bee done stories about negative aspects of having a UC campus in town like sending a reporter to Santa Cruz and Davis to see what happened in those cities How about printing articles about surveys on how cities and towns all over ca have decided that a major university is not worth the trouble it causes espedally the high rise in property taxes required to provide the services needed for the problems that come with 20000 young adults What has happened to the Red Wave? Where are you guys when Fresno State really needs you? Where are those letters to the editor about keeping a UC campus out of Fresno and even Fresno County? If you want to do something about it write to The Bee and send a copy of your ikter to: The UC Board of Regents Office of the Secretary 300 Lakeside Drive Oakland CA 94612-3550 Come one Red Wavers save Fresno State! SAMUEL REID Fresno By DAN BARREIRO Scripps Howard News Service You have been waiting for this one for months Tossing and turning at night weighing the issue mulling the pros ana cons over and over in your mind Such a complex issue Such a volatile one so hot that even Geraldo and Sally Jessy refuse to touch ft It of course is the Ickey Shuffle Controversy Kids please leave the room The Ickey Shuffle is the festive dance Cincinnati Bengals running back Ickey Woods performed after each touchdown he scored last season During Super Bowl Week last January many papers in their never-ending quest to offer the best investigative journalism available published a How-to4o-the-Ickey-Shuffle dance-step diagram How foe Pulitzer Prize people failed to recognize them well never understand Anyway the Ickey Shuffle became so famous that an automobile company paid Ickey and his mother big buds to do foe Shuffle on a commercial But the question was would the National Football League continue -to allow this kind of brazen behavior on foe sidelines? Well foe wait is over The decision is in The NFL has put aside minor concerns such as naming a new commissioner and hit this one head-on After careful deliberation the NFL announced last week that the Ickey Shuffle is perfectly legaL demonstrations by players both on and off the field will not be announced NFL communications director Joe Browne the bench area would not be considered off the field "Off the field as I take ft would be an area such as beyond the bade line of foe end zone an area still in clear view of foe officials and foe other team Demonstrations in that area still would be considered as taunting if a player would want to do a two-step or a dance or even a shuffle while inside or behind his marvelous crowd-pleasing backflip On foe ensuing kickoff the Eagles were penalized five yards for an illegal demonstration Would somebody please ten these NFL guys to loosen their ties and lighten up? Why does individuality something celebrated in the National Basketball Association scare the NFL so? Why did the NFL seem so nervous when Jim (4 McMahon wore headbands with a and the Fridge took Did ft ever occur to the NFL ji stuffed shirts that part of the reason the two Chicago Bears became son popular the last few years was not lust because they were good but because in a league hell-bent on homogenizing franchises and players they showed a little individuality maybe even a sense of humor? Could that also be part of the reason almost every dream is to play for A1 Davis and the Raiders? Once upon a time NFL referees paid little attention to on-field celebrating after a touchdown But then file NFL Competition Committee looked into the situation Tex Schramm then foe 1 president of the Dallas Cowboys was among those interested in stemming this show of anarchy Of course this had nothing to dip with the fact that Washington Redskins receivers known as the i "Smurfs" kept burning the Dallas secondary for touchdowns and then rubbing it in by dancing in the end zone As for Ickey the news is good As long as he does his dance on the sideline he will not get in trouble with the NFL Thought Police Ickey Woods is not a I criminal after all great" he said makes my And ours No more nightmares No more pacing the house at 4 ant The suspense is over The verdict is in S' Ickey Woods win be allowed tot dance The Ickey Shuffle is OK by the NFL 1 1 Associated Press ICKEY WOODS makes my own bench area this would be legal" The Supreme Court does not issue rulings with this kind of detail Then again the Supreme Court does not take itself as seriously as foe NFL Originally the Bengals were under foe impression that foe NFL was banning foe Shuffle for 1989 figured now the NFL has elected themselves the Supreme Court and taken out freedom of speech and said quarterback and underwear commercial king Boomer Esiason then they must have researched foe Bill of Rights" Not that foe NFL is going to let this civil libertarian ruling allow filings to get out of hand As Browne reminded everyone demonstrations in the end zone and on file field still will not be allowed God forbid that any player should be able to celebrate in plain view The only thing remotely interesting about the Eagles-Browns preseason game last week in Wembley England was a terrific diving catch in the end zone by Philadelphia receiver Henry Williams He celebrated by doing a Toughen FSU schedule I would like to congratulate Fresno State University for having one of the easiest non-conference football schedules in the nation for foe second year in a row Instead of following in the footsteps of San Jose State and helping the image by playing Tot 40 teams FSU scraped up any school that would (day ft at home 1 Fresno State might have the toughest conference schedule but then again it plays them at home Instead of helping to build a stronger team in nonconference play FSU would rather play Division fifth- and sixth-place teams at home 7 Come on Gary Cunningham give the fans their worth CRAIG MARTIN Clovis Just getting even? Certain members of the Fresno City Council seem determined to punish foe very people who have made Riverside Municipal Golf Course foe success it is These are the core of monthly-card purchasers who have for years paid to use the driving range rented electric carts and bought merchandise food and beverages Now Rod Anaforian and Tom MacMichael are hell bent on eliminating monthly cards at Riverside They contend that card holders get more than their fair share of play and deprive others of an opportunity to play These allegations are not true Every golfer has an equal opportunity to secure a tee time at Riverside Monthly-card holders get no preference The course is rarely filled during the week and nearly everyone who wants to play on weekends is accommodated The monthly-card holder plays in foe rain the fog and foe cold when fair-weather golfers are nowhere to be found ft is these monthly-aid holders who day-in and day-out support the golf course and provide a substantial amount of the revenue Every municipal golf course from Sacramento to Kern County provides monthly cards for its players All of them are profitable operations inducting Riverside In fact a recent column by Bruce Farris in The Fresno Bee chronided how successful Visalia has been with foe operation of Valley Oaks Golf Course with has reasonably priced monthly cards for alL Since it is obvious that and opposition to monthly cards cannot justifiably be attributed to a concern for foe ability of the course to generate revenue or because monthty card holders are enjoying special privileges what is the basis for their opposition? Is this simply an effort to get even because they were unsuccessful in pushing their selection for operator of Riverside down foe throats of the rest of the City Council and the public? HAROLD KELEHER Fresno oNEUWEVWliNE ONEMEWiMtt CNE AWE TANIRUNL What about parking? -w When Fresno State University needed a new football stadium the Red Wave came through But the Red Wavers like the Fresno city fathers thought only of themselves They built a stadium and a parking lot for themselves but forgot the people who were to fill the rest of the seats Five thousand parking spots for the Red Wave and nothing for foe other 25000 seats If they wanted to fill foe stadium why they get the lot that is empty on Ninth Street behind the church on Barstow Avenue north of the stadium? If they are going to add 20000 more seats just where are they going to get foe people to fill foe stadium if they have a place to park? I have been a Fresno State fan since 1930 but if I don't get a place to park my time might be running out WALLACE DAVIS Fresno LETTERS TO SPORTS appear Tuesdays and are welcomed from readers Opinions expressed are those of the writers and are not necessarily shared by The Bee Please sign your letter and include your address and phone number so that we can verify that you wrote it Unsigned letters cannot be considered for publication Ml letters are subject to editing and condensation 77iy should be addressed to Letters to 1 Sports The Fresno Bee Fresno CA 93786 Hecirl.