Steeplechase at Callaway Gardens

I haven't been to all 23 Steeplechase events. But I've been to a lot of them.

And I have to admit I was the first to report someone saying, "Oh, there are horses here?"

At that point, I think Steeplechase became a social event, instead of a sporting event.

Either way, it's always a lot of fun. The one year I went with my friends Oz Roberts and Tom McCafferty may have been the best one. It was freezing that day. Really, really cold. We must have spent more time sitting in the car than out.

That's the thing about Steeplechase. Some years, it's really chilly. Other years, it's almost summer-like. Hot, cold, rain, fog. I've seen it all. This year, it's supposed to be sunny and mild.

Another year, I was wandering around the Infield talking to people for a story and a handsome young man came up to me and introduced himself. It was Tom Ford and we've been really good friends ever since. He moved to California in 1995 and I miss him.

In 1996, Cameron Faucette and I went. In between races, we'd walk across the track to visit friends in the Terrace or check out what was going on in the Infield.

At one point, she yells, "Hockey players!" The Columbus Cottonmouths had just started playing and we were hooked. We went over to talk to the players, who were injured and couldn't play. There was an unfamiliar face and when we asked who he was, he told us his name and that he was the new goaltender.

When I got back to the newsroom, I told Mark Rice, who was our hockey writer at the time. And he reported it, after he confirmed it with the general manager, who was Phil Roberto. Phil started calling Mark "Scoop" after that.

Years later, I told Phil that story and he started laughing. He said he named the wrong writer "Scoop."

Saturday, I'll be at Steeplechase to judge the Galloping Gourmets competition and later the L-E's Best Terrace Box competition. And I'll be writing the goings-on.

So if you see me, stop me and tell me what you're doing at Steeplechase.