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Eugene Church · 02-13-2009, 05:34 PM

The Islandian Times

Thursday, April 4, 2002

Around the Town in the IPA
The Islandian Times is beginning a series of articles covering all of the towns in the Islandian Pro Alliance. Our baseball writers that cover the league will go and get a first-hand view of what it like to attend a game in each town. Coverage will also include a brief history of the town, its people, culture and industry.

We will spend the next month highlighting the towns in the IPA. Two towns will be featured each day, beginning with the Ancona Red Elephants and the Arroyo Grande Suns.

ANCONA RED ELEPHANTS

Owner: Golden Hill Insurance Company

President of the Board: Dimitrios Vakros

GM: Nick Yakis

Manager: Manny Mickens

Ancona, a town of 68,000 is situated on the west coast of Valdar Island, on the banks of Valdar Bay in the nation of Ruthlandia. In terms of topography, it is an area of mostly flat land with rocky soil, coupled with occasional stony bluffs and hills. It is a chilly, rainy and foggy climate, especially in the winter. Founded by Greek settlers in the late 1870s, who set up the town as a supply port for whaling and cargo ships. They named the town Ancona, because the harbor was shaped like an elbow. "Ancona" is similar in meaning to the Greek word "ankon" for elbow, which translated to "elbow". Ancona still has a thriving Greek community and they make up about a fourth of the town's residents.

When whaling began to decline around 1910, the town sought other revenue streams. The Ancona Whaling Cooperative expanded into maritime insurance and started the Golden Hill Insurance Company. By the late 1940s it had become the largest insurance company in Ruthlandia. The company motto stated, "Golden Hill, the safe place for you and yours".

Today Ancona industry and business is centered on insurance, banking and seafood processing.

Golden Hill Insurance also owns a IPA baseball franchise, the Ancona Red Elephants, who have an interesting history of their own. Originally founded by Jay Loman, an American emigre stock trader during the Roaring '20s. He was an alumnus of the University of Alabama and was a big fan of the Red Elephants athletic teams. So he named his company team the Red Elephants. Loman spent a fortune on his expensive hobby, building a new ballpark and going to the mainland to sign up the best players he could get, illegally paying his "amateurs" exorbitant salaries. Valdar Island was bypassed by many early immigrants because of its inhospitable topography. No one wanted to live there. Big salaries were the only way he could get the best players to come and play in the Valdar Island league. The Ancona Red Elephants were a very dominant team for a decade and were huge fan favorites in the local industrial league. They won the coveted Silver Whale Cup nine years in a row, which is given annually to the Valdar Island League Champion. Like many speculators, Loman lost everything in the Black Monday crash of 1929, including the Red Elephants, who were sold at auction and purchased by the Golden Hill Insurance Company.

Jay Loman Park still stands today and is considered a timeless classic, with its high-arching bleachers in left and right field offering excellent sightlines. Out beyond center field, the immense gold building that houses Golden Hill can be seen, along with some of the old historical buildings of the town, many of which date back to Ancona's whaling days.

The chief food attraction at the stadium is the Catch of the Day Special, a succulent fish and chips meal whose seafood component is never the same thing for two home games in a row. A hot cup of delicious seafood chowder goes good on a chilly Anconan afternoon at Jay Loman Park. Traditional ballpark fare is also available. You will also be entertained by Eddie and Ellie Elephant, the team's mascots. They lead the fans in dances, songs and cheers at each game. You will hear "The Elephant Trumpet" regularly at Elephant games and especially whenever Ancona hits a home run or wins a game.

Ree Ree Ree!
Elephants on parade!
Elephants on parade!

You think you can beat the best
But you're just like the rest
When pachyderm power strikes!
When pachyderm power strikes!

So goodbye ball! (if a homer)
So goodbye (opponent name)! (if a win)
Three cheers for the Elephants!
Three cheers for the Elephants!

Ree! Ree! Ree!

After the game, fans often go to The Mudbath, the unofficial Red Elephants sports bar to talk about the game, knock back a cold brew or two and listen to live music from a local band.

Speaking of local bands, there's a thriving music scene in Ancona and none is more popular than the world-famous Manatees, a multi-platinum album musical group who sings sea chanties and other traditional songs that hearken back to the city's initial whaling days. They, along with the rest of the local groups, are often found playing in the town's equally popular taverns, especially on cold winter nights.

The Ancona Red Elephants GM is Nick Yakis. He has been a player and manager for over 30 years in the Valdar Island League. And keeping everything in the family, Yakis hired his son-in-law, Manny Mickens, as manager. Mickens was a 16-year old phenom in his playing days in the company league. He was a centerfielder who could do it all on the diamond. After retiring as a player, Mickens was quite successful running the baseball program at Ancona University.

The Red Elephants play in the Ruthlandian Union North Division.

Jay Loman Park (1922)

Capacity: 9,849

Dimensions:
LF Line 332
LF Line 352
LCF 375
CF 415
RCF 375
RF 352
RF Line 332

Arlon Champions

Owner: Kobeer Sport and Athletic Apparel

GM/Manager: Gary Louis

Arlon, a town of 87,000 in the Caledonia River delta in southwestern Tycobbia, is located 50 miles north of Turon, a seaport on the Kelnyck Ocean. Arlon’s basic economy is cotton and textile manufacturing, but it is also noted for thoroughbred horse racing at Derby Downs, a magnificent racetrack that features the million-dollar derby each April and the Kobeer Marathon each July, both sponsored by Kobeer Sport and Athletic Apparel Company. Rich alluvial cotton fields stretch for miles outside the town and are the source of its prosperity.

Kobeer is also the proud owner of the Arlon Champions of the Islandian Pro Alliance and play in the Tycobbian Union West Division. The Champions were named after the tennis shoe, “The Champion”, that started the company on the way to being one of the premier sporting and athletic apparel corporations in the country. The Champs play at Derby Downs, the site of the $1,000,000 dollar Arlon Derby each April and one of the most splendid settings in all of baseball. Derby Downs ballpark dates from 1915 and is adjacent to Arlon Derby Downs, the beautiful racetrack, whose twin green towers can be seen out over the centerfield fence. Kobeer regularly has fan appreciation days with free jerseys, caps, sweat suits and shoes just for coming to a Champions game. And in keeping with that old south Tycobbian tradition, delicious mint juleps are served at the concession stands along with other southern delicacies like fried chicken, watermelon and sweet potato pie. Tycobbians of all types love to eat and imbibe almost as much as they love Champs baseball.

Arlon is managed by Gary "Iron Man" Louis, one of the finest gentlemen and most durable players to ever step on a baseball diamond. He was a first baseman for the Marston Nine during their glory years in company leagues and rarely missed a game in his playing career. He once played over 2,300 games in a row. Louis was a teammate of Herm "Baby" George, the most prolific home run hitter in the annals of Islandian baseball.

Derby Downs Park (1915)

Capacity: 10,983

Dimensions:
LF Line 330
LF 350
LCF 375
CF 402
RCF 375
RF 350
RF Line 330

02-13-2009, 05:34 PM	#685
Eugene Church Hall Of Famer Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 35,765 Blog Entries: 1	The Islandian Times Thursday, April 4, 2002 Around the Town in the IPA The Islandian Times is beginning a series of articles covering all of the towns in the Islandian Pro Alliance. Our baseball writers that cover the league will go and get a first-hand view of what it like to attend a game in each town. Coverage will also include a brief history of the town, its people, culture and industry. We will spend the next month highlighting the towns in the IPA. Two towns will be featured each day, beginning with the Ancona Red Elephants and the Arroyo Grande Suns. ANCONA RED ELEPHANTS Owner: Golden Hill Insurance Company President of the Board: Dimitrios Vakros GM: Nick Yakis Manager: Manny Mickens Ancona, a town of 68,000 is situated on the west coast of Valdar Island, on the banks of Valdar Bay in the nation of Ruthlandia. In terms of topography, it is an area of mostly flat land with rocky soil, coupled with occasional stony bluffs and hills. It is a chilly, rainy and foggy climate, especially in the winter. Founded by Greek settlers in the late 1870s, who set up the town as a supply port for whaling and cargo ships. They named the town Ancona, because the harbor was shaped like an elbow. "Ancona" is similar in meaning to the Greek word "ankon" for elbow, which translated to "elbow". Ancona still has a thriving Greek community and they make up about a fourth of the town's residents. When whaling began to decline around 1910, the town sought other revenue streams. The Ancona Whaling Cooperative expanded into maritime insurance and started the Golden Hill Insurance Company. By the late 1940s it had become the largest insurance company in Ruthlandia. The company motto stated, "Golden Hill, the safe place for you and yours". Today Ancona industry and business is centered on insurance, banking and seafood processing. Golden Hill Insurance also owns a IPA baseball franchise, the Ancona Red Elephants, who have an interesting history of their own. Originally founded by Jay Loman, an American emigre stock trader during the Roaring '20s. He was an alumnus of the University of Alabama and was a big fan of the Red Elephants athletic teams. So he named his company team the Red Elephants. Loman spent a fortune on his expensive hobby, building a new ballpark and going to the mainland to sign up the best players he could get, illegally paying his "amateurs" exorbitant salaries. Valdar Island was bypassed by many early immigrants because of its inhospitable topography. No one wanted to live there. Big salaries were the only way he could get the best players to come and play in the Valdar Island league. The Ancona Red Elephants were a very dominant team for a decade and were huge fan favorites in the local industrial league. They won the coveted Silver Whale Cup nine years in a row, which is given annually to the Valdar Island League Champion. Like many speculators, Loman lost everything in the Black Monday crash of 1929, including the Red Elephants, who were sold at auction and purchased by the Golden Hill Insurance Company. Jay Loman Park still stands today and is considered a timeless classic, with its high-arching bleachers in left and right field offering excellent sightlines. Out beyond center field, the immense gold building that houses Golden Hill can be seen, along with some of the old historical buildings of the town, many of which date back to Ancona's whaling days. The chief food attraction at the stadium is the Catch of the Day Special, a succulent fish and chips meal whose seafood component is never the same thing for two home games in a row. A hot cup of delicious seafood chowder goes good on a chilly Anconan afternoon at Jay Loman Park. Traditional ballpark fare is also available. You will also be entertained by Eddie and Ellie Elephant, the team's mascots. They lead the fans in dances, songs and cheers at each game. You will hear "The Elephant Trumpet" regularly at Elephant games and especially whenever Ancona hits a home run or wins a game. Ree Ree Ree! Elephants on parade! Elephants on parade! You think you can beat the best But you're just like the rest When pachyderm power strikes! When pachyderm power strikes! So goodbye ball! (if a homer) So goodbye (opponent name)! (if a win) Three cheers for the Elephants! Three cheers for the Elephants! Ree! Ree! Ree! After the game, fans often go to The Mudbath, the unofficial Red Elephants sports bar to talk about the game, knock back a cold brew or two and listen to live music from a local band. Speaking of local bands, there's a thriving music scene in Ancona and none is more popular than the world-famous Manatees, a multi-platinum album musical group who sings sea chanties and other traditional songs that hearken back to the city's initial whaling days. They, along with the rest of the local groups, are often found playing in the town's equally popular taverns, especially on cold winter nights. The Ancona Red Elephants GM is Nick Yakis. He has been a player and manager for over 30 years in the Valdar Island League. And keeping everything in the family, Yakis hired his son-in-law, Manny Mickens, as manager. Mickens was a 16-year old phenom in his playing days in the company league. He was a centerfielder who could do it all on the diamond. After retiring as a player, Mickens was quite successful running the baseball program at Ancona University. The Red Elephants play in the Ruthlandian Union North Division. Jay Loman Park (1922) Capacity: 9,849 Dimensions: LF Line 332 LF Line 352 LCF 375 CF 415 RCF 375 RF 352 RF Line 332 Arlon Champions Owner: Kobeer Sport and Athletic Apparel GM/Manager: Gary Louis Arlon, a town of 87,000 in the Caledonia River delta in southwestern Tycobbia, is located 50 miles north of Turon, a seaport on the Kelnyck Ocean. Arlon’s basic economy is cotton and textile manufacturing, but it is also noted for thoroughbred horse racing at Derby Downs, a magnificent racetrack that features the million-dollar derby each April and the Kobeer Marathon each July, both sponsored by Kobeer Sport and Athletic Apparel Company. Rich alluvial cotton fields stretch for miles outside the town and are the source of its prosperity. Kobeer is also the proud owner of the Arlon Champions of the Islandian Pro Alliance and play in the Tycobbian Union West Division. The Champions were named after the tennis shoe, “The Champion”, that started the company on the way to being one of the premier sporting and athletic apparel corporations in the country. The Champs play at Derby Downs, the site of the $1,000,000 dollar Arlon Derby each April and one of the most splendid settings in all of baseball. Derby Downs ballpark dates from 1915 and is adjacent to Arlon Derby Downs, the beautiful racetrack, whose twin green towers can be seen out over the centerfield fence. Kobeer regularly has fan appreciation days with free jerseys, caps, sweat suits and shoes just for coming to a Champions game. And in keeping with that old south Tycobbian tradition, delicious mint juleps are served at the concession stands along with other southern delicacies like fried chicken, watermelon and sweet potato pie. Tycobbians of all types love to eat and imbibe almost as much as they love Champs baseball. Arlon is managed by Gary "Iron Man" Louis, one of the finest gentlemen and most durable players to ever step on a baseball diamond. He was a first baseman for the Marston Nine during their glory years in company leagues and rarely missed a game in his playing career. He once played over 2,300 games in a row. Louis was a teammate of Herm "Baby" George, the most prolific home run hitter in the annals of Islandian baseball. Derby Downs Park (1915) Capacity: 10,983 Dimensions: LF Line 330 LF 350 LCF 375 CF 402 RCF 375 RF 350 RF Line 330 Last edited by Eugene Church; 02-24-2009 at 11:05 PM.