Taking a spill on the job

I can't remember any falling stories off the top of my head, but I've been hit by a baseball more than once and only narrowly missed being tackled this fall.

 

One time I was interviewing a position coach on the practice field of an NFL team I used to cover.

It was after practice, and the punter was getting off some kicks on his own, and I had my back to him. The coach was facing toward the punter while he was talking. At one point I notice the coach's eyes go up and then down right toward me, and I had the feeling a ball was headed right at me.

So I took a quick step to the left and the ball literally just whizzed past my head half a second later. The coach goes, 'That was a pretty athletic move right there,' with a laugh. I just played it off, but silently was happy I didn't get conked.

A few years earlier on that same field I challenged a fellow reporter to a 50-yard sprint after the place had emptied out and we were walking back to the parking lot. I smoked him at the start but then pulled my hamstring and had to quit. It hurt for about two weeks after.

 

I had all sorts of mishaps back in the day when I used to shoot sports for a weekly paper in the U.P. I've been struck by volleyballs, football players and basketball refs, and I had several close calls with hockey pucks and sticks shooting pics from the penalty box.

Most embarrassing incident actually happened to a colleague of mine. He was shooting a postseason prep b-ball game in a loud, packed gym. At one point he had to lunge out of the way while squatting by the basket, and the seam of his pants had a wardrobe malfunction.

In case the game got boring, the crowd was getting a great view of his colorful boxer shorts.

 

Yeah, never walk behind guys warming up.

 

oct. 2001. in st. louis for giants at rams. walking from hotel to the dome i took a spill 1/2 block from media entrance. long story short, broke my left ankle. invited by classy giants (maras, tisches) to fly back to jersey with them on their charter flight, carried up the stairs to the plane by two reserve o-linemen. gm accorsi also arranged for a car to pick me up at giants stadium to get me home to long island.

surgery four days later. ankle still hurts so much i'm on super painkillers and seeing another ankle doc tomorrow. yippee!! ;D

 

I fell outside the Superdome once but no one really around to see me and I was fine except for some scrapes. Also, stepped awkwardly off a curb and rolled my ankle the night before the NCAA men's championship game at the Final Four. Had a fine time trying to "run" around and get interviews on the floor with a giant swollen ankle. Got it X-rayed when I got home and found out it was a very bad sprain but not broken, thankfully.

 

did you file?

guess it would be tough, with team buses leaving for airport quickly after game ends

 

Mine is too awful to mention.

 

The guys in news knew I was a fan of Rusted Root, so they let me interview the drummer who was in town for a seminar for features. I got into a car accident on the way there, so he signed my drum "Keep hittin' it".

The funniest thing happened to Dr. J. When we first got married my prescription was changing and I couldn't drive at night, so he drove me to a district final. The scorer's table was too close to the field, so he was helping the refs move it before he went up in the bleachers.

Poor kid, didn't look behind him first and went ass-over-tea kettle into a trash can. And got stuck. I have never seen anything like that in my entire life -- it was right out of a cartoon. I was laughing so hard I couldn't pull him out, so the refs did. Our photographer got a great picture of it and it still hangs in the newsroom.

Other than that, I once took a field hockey ball to the knee cap. That hurt.

 

I took a nasty spill once in a parking lot.

I was reading a lawsuit while walking and got my left foot caught between two of those little concrete thingees at the end of the parking spaces. My foot went one way, my leg another and soon I was on the way to the hospital for x-rays.

I was stretched out in the x-ray room when the attractive tech walked in, handed me a lead glove and instructed me to cover my crotch with it.

When I asked her why, she said, "So you don't get any radiation down there."

To wit I retorted, "Excuse me, but I'm a guy. I have an it. I don't have a down there."

I don't think she appreciated my humor.

 

Got kicked in the head last night while sitting on the floor typing up a gamer on deadline. The area I was in was packed with kids. I get a size 4 sneaker to the right temple while I'm writing the nut graf.

Apparently not.

 

You must have forgotten the kid in the box score of a little league game last summer.