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I'm the WSHPA Publicity
Co-Chair?
During a cold winter
day in 1999 at
a tournament in Jackson, I was asked by WSHPA Regional Director
Steve Summerlin to share the Publicity duties with then Chairman
Bob Mullenhour. Not knowing much about the organization and wanting
to learn about the Sport, I said, "Yes, I'd give it a try."
I asked President Dave Loop, "What exactly are the responsibilities
of the Publicity Chair?" He said, "Just go ahead and
do what you think has to be done." The first thing I did
was to make up a WSHPA brochure so clubs would have something
to hand out to potential members. I also asked WSHPA Ringer Report
Editor Paula Summerlin if I could have some space to express
my views in our newsletter.
Here is my first article:
MY FIRST EXPERIENCE with the WSHPA was last year when I joined
the Association at the urging of Claude Shannahan and Ted Kolwalski.
Claude and Ted handed me the job as secretary/treasurer of the
St. Clair Shores Horseshoe Club when I joined a year ago. I started
pitching in a bar league in Mount Clemens in 1995. The first
WSHPA member I met was the late Dave Grambow while pitching at
the 299 North Bar league. Dave gave me part of his Ringer Report
when I asked him about the WSHPA. I didn't know much about state
horseshoe organizations, but was slightly aware of the NHPA.
When I was a kid growing up in Minnesota, it seems like everyone
knew and talked about Ted Allen, the world champion.
As a newcomer to this group, I think I have some different
views than the average long time pitcher. So I have asked Steve
and Paula to give me some space in the Ringer Report to air my
views. After all, as Publicity co-chair, no one has told me what
my job really is.
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I have learned much about horseshoe
pitching in my short two years in the WSHPA and have been passing
on whatever I can to members of the Riverside Bar & Grill
Horseshoe League, in Mount Clemens, of which I am the secretary.
I am also a member of the Southeastern Michigan Horseshoe Club,
a group that sponsors charity fund-raiser tournaments throughout
the year.
Talking with Claude and Ted, I also learned that there
is an offshoot group of the WSHPA called the M-46 Horseshoe Pitchers.
It is my understanding that this group was formed because of
objections to NHPA membership requirements. WSHPA members benefit
with some kind of an insurance policy in case someone gets injured
during a sanctioned tournament. And if your local club is sanctioned,
with all members belonging to the WSHPA, there are other benefits
besides insurance. Steve Summerlin has details about sanctioned
leagues. Anyway, the M-46 group does their scoring entirely different
from the WSHPA. The first three pitchers are assigned a court
when they arrive. They go on a handicap system, pitch their games,
and then are free to leave.
Publicity co-chair Bob Mullenhour and I have a lot of
work ahead of us to shore up our WSHPA membership. We need a
publicity budget for one thing and to discuss seriously what
we want publicity to do for the WSHPA. We need to organize local
membership campaigns. We need to get involved at the grass roots
level, (i.e. unorganized backyard pitchers, bar leagues), but
not necessarily pitching with those people. I estimate there
are more bar league pitchers in the Mount Clemens area than current
WSHPA members. I have talked with WSHPA veterans who have been
busy for years trying to get them into the WSHPA.
Can we increase our membership with good publicity? Or is the
WSHPA membership holding where we want it to be? Let's talk more
horseshoes in future Ringer Reports.
May 1999
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