Worst 5

Last week we listed the top 5 broadcasting venues, this week the worst 5. This list was much easier to compile than the top 5.

1) Southern Maine (Old Orchard Beach - home of the Southern Maine Rebels in 2005) It had rained heavily in Maine just days before the game. The story we were told was that the main field that the teams were to use was not in good playing condition. The administrators of the high school had the teams play on an adjacent practice field which had no stands and no press box. This is probably the most extreme conditions we had to broadcast in. The weather was very cold and damp. To broadcast the game we had to borrow a player's mini-van to climb on top of so we can get a higher view of the field. Pat Brown and Dave Maxwell climbed on top of the van and stayed up there for the 2 1/2 hours to do the broadcast. There was no electrical outlets so we used a car battery.

2) Montreal - This game was played in a public park. A make-shift field was set-up on the grounds and there was no scoreboard, no stands, and no press box. There was also no van available to sit on top of and after the experience in Maine, I don't think that would have been a viable option. Instead our intrepid broadcast crew announced the game from a building next to the field. But it was not from inside the building, it was from a ledge on the second floor. This way they would get a better view of the action below. Again we had to use a car battery for electricity. At least the weather wasn't as bad as Maine, but to make matters more difficult, there was a big tree between the building and the playing field to block a clear view of the field.

3) Manchester (West Memorial Field, current home of the Manchester Freedom) - the field was just renovated but the new press box was quite small. We ended up broadcasting from the old press box on the other side of the field. The structure was a long wooden box that was waiting to be torn down. There was no lights and no electricity but there was plenty of room, splinters, and spiders.

4) Baltimore This was another al fresco game. There was no press box so the broadcast was done from the stands. Again we used a car battery for electricity. The weather was fine so this wasn't really that bad. During the broadcast Dave Maxwell would talk to some of the fans sitting next to us.

5) Southern Maine (Fitgerald Field, home of the Southern Maine Rebels in 2006) Fitgerald Field is a very old municipal field used by the high schools in Portland. The press box was a very long rickety wooden structure with many individual rooms. We were able to get our own space but it was kind of cramped and very splintery. From the inside it looked like a bunch of plywood boards nailed together.

Honorable Mention (Brooklyn Tech) Another game with no press box, another game done outside. This time it was done from the roof of the high school. The view was from the endzone looking down to the other endzone. There was a small portable scoreboard but it could not be seen from the roof. A cellular phone was used to contact a spotter to give us how much time was left in the game. We were about 4 stories up but this time we were able to get a very long extension cord to provide electricity. The crew did the broadcast behind classroom desks. Luckily the weather was very nice and there was a nice view of the Empire State Building in the distance.