Pens

[Smallpotatoes]

The other night when I was covering a high school football game, I brought eight pens with me. I don't think anyone could accuse me of being under-prepared.
But sure enough, it was a little on the cold side and three plays into the game every single pen I had, all eight of them, was bone-dry. What are the odds of that?
I ended up borrowing a pencil from a trainer and was able to get through the game OK.
Obviously, the moral of the story is to use pencils, not pens, but I don't remember having these kinds of problems before with pens. Are pens just not as well-made as they were in the past? Are there any kinds of pens that are more likely to work in cold weather? These were Bic ballpoints, the cheap kind.

[sportschick]

I always used mechanical pencils when it was cold. I'd have prefered a pen (easier to read), but at least I always had a working writing utensil.

[BYH]

Eight pens? Holy shit. I usually only carry three on me (though I usually have an open package of pens in my bag).

Bics SUCK. I wouldn't use a Bic with a gun to my head. The pens always run dry quickly...and I cannot tell you how many pairs of jeans I ruined in high school because a Bic pen exploded in my back right pocket.

I have been an ardent fan of PaperMate for as long as I can remember. They just re-designed the pens and the first pack I bought was pretty shitty, but I've had good luck since then.

Taters, did you ever think of recording the PBP in your tape recorder? I did that during a particularly frigid football game because it was too goddamn cold to write and it worked out pretty well. I was so cold I didn't care if people were looking at me funny.

[Smallpotatoes]

Taters, did you ever think of recording the PBP in your tape recorder? I did that during a particularly frigid football game because it was too goddamn cold to write and it worked out pretty well. I was so cold I didn't care if people were looking at me funny.

Not a bad idea, but I like to have the written record when I do stats.

[Smasher_Sloan]

The new blue Papermates have a barrel that's the same shiny blue as the NY Giants helmets.

Doesn't hurt to have a Flair or two loaded in your pen stash. They write through anything. If you really want to be prepared, get a fine point Sharpie. They'll work if you have to take notes on McDonald's wrappers.

[MU_was_not_so_hard]

I used one of those Space Pens for years and loved it. Damn thing never froze up on me (although the metal could get a little warm in the summer).
It was advertised as a pen that would even work under water. Problem was, I never found paper that did the same.

[Gutter]

Try the fine-point Sharpies ... those will do you good in cold weather.

[slappy4428]

I used one of those Space Pens for years and loved it. Damn thing never froze up on me (although the metal could get a little warm in the summer).
It was advertised as a pen that would even work under water. Problem was, I never found paper that did the same.

And yet, I can picture you underwater, trying...

[Huggy]

I swear by the blue Papermate medium points and probably have eight in my bag. I hold the pen pretty tight and have snapped the odd one but I've never had one go on me and I work in some pretty cold rinks.

[imjustagirl2]

I've never had a pen freeze on me. I'm glad, now. I never have pencils.

I prefer fine point. At all times.

[Bubbler]

I buy one of those 24-pack fine-point Sharpie's things once a year and comp that bitch to the company. I use the shit out of Sharpie's.

I use four different-colored pens per game. I color code by quarter to make the stats easier to decipher if I need to break them down by quarter for some reason. Helps with prep basketball gamers more than football, though I rarely do prep basketball anymore.

I started using that color-code concept for baseball a year or two ago too. Dark color for no-out at-bats, medium color for one-out at-bats, light color for two-out at-bats (that sounds gayish anal, but if you mix that combination up, it doesn't work because a dark color would blot out a no-out light color).

Amazing how much clearer that system makes your baseball scorebook, especially good for deadline gamers where you don't have a box score/play-by-play to consult.

The only drawback? Sharpie's bleed through the paper. A lot of old-schoolers also use a color system, but use one of those four-color, four-ball-point mechanical pens.

However, my gayness is so vast I can't limit myself to red, blue, black and green. I need to jazz it up! Light purple! Gold! Olive green! Tangerine!

[JayFarrar]

You can actually buy reporter's pads that are water-proof.
A photog I know swears by them.
Put one of those four-in-one pens in you stash. They can be hard to find, but they are outstanding, especially if you color-code. The upside is that even if one color runs out, you still have three more to choose from.

[slappy4428]

However, my gayness is so vast I can't limit myself to red, blue, black and green. I need to jazz it up! Light purple! Gold! Olive green! Tangerine!

Not that    there's     anything       wrong          with             that... [/backing away slowly, looking for a way out]

[Dan Hickling]

I usually keep a coupla golf pencils in my bag, and stick one in my pocket when I know I might need one, either because of rain, or for when I find myself in one of New England's  very cold rinks...I think every one of my jackets has a stray pencil floating in a pocket (what's a washing machine?)

[Michael_ Gee]

        Dan is right. Always carry a pencil in New England.
        As for pens, my oldest son was 10 before he learned Marriott was a hotel chain and not a pen company.

[Boobie Miles]

I can't carry pens in my pocket. I'm afraid it'll puncture my scrotum. [/costanza]

[Mystery_Meat]

Like Smasher, I'm a fan of the PaperMate Flairs (whooo!). Like Bubbler, I color code the fuck out of them. Usually I only have to do it for football, trying to coordinate the pen color with the team color (uniform, not race, so don't even). One for the home team, one for the visiting team, and if I'm feeling particularly jaunty, red for penalties (unless one of the teams is wearing red, then I pick out a third color).

I can get Flairs at work in the main four colors (black, red, blue, green) but I also bought a 12-pack on sale from Staples that had oddball colors. Already lost the orange one. Most of the others are too pastel to work, though if anyone feels the need to wear magenta, I've got you covered. There's a first-year school that has, I shit you not, silver and Honolulu Blue as its colors. EH-EH. You're getting black and you're liking it.

[Hank_Scorpio]

I usually use the Bic Ultra, which is a little better than the cheap old Bics.


Try getting a couple of those hand warmers that you break open in the cold weather. You can get usually get them at any sporting good stores and I see CVS and Walgreens are carrying them now.

5-10 minutes before game time, open the package, let the cold air hit it to activate it and it will warm right up. Put them in your pocket with your pens. Switch your pens up every so often to keep the ink from freezing.


Were yours medium or fine point, taters?
I always use medium. Maybe the fine points freeze up quicker (that's just a guess, don't actually know that).

[MU_was_not_so_hard]

I used one of those Space Pens for years and loved it. Damn thing never froze up on me (although the metal could get a little warm in the summer).
It was advertised as a pen that would even work under water. Problem was, I never found paper that did the same.

And yet, I can picture you underwater, trying...

I'll try anything 14 times.

[Mira]

There is no pen finer than the medium PaperMate blue instrument.

They manufacture waterproof Reporter's notebooks? Wow, I never heard of that.

[Ace]

Smallpotatoes reporting for duty.

[KP]

I can't carry pens in my pocket. I'm afraid it'll puncture my scrotum. [/costanza]

That one was on the local FOX affiliate last night.

[Appgrad05]

I am all about the Jetstreams. Black or blue. Last year it got about as cold as it ever will in these parts and it didn't even hesitate. They're about 5 bucks for a pack of two, but it goes back to the company.

[write then drink]

the Uniball Impact RT rocks

[Barsuk]

Pilot G2 gel ink. But I always keep a fine-tip felt pen, too, just in case.