We received the fun write-up below on the 17th Annual “Rich-Mich Softball Game”—a summary noting specifically that, despite plenty of action, it was an “injury-free contest.”
Started about 20 years ago (they’ve skipped a year here and there due to rain) as a matchup between the local Exchange and Rotary clubs, the game today features friends of New Canaan’s Keith Richey (an Exchange Club member) and Tim Michno, who is not a member.
The Michno Marauders and Richey Recidivists gather at St. Luke’s on Sept. 7 for a fun annual softball game. None of these guys suffered injuries this year, and Kilbride even cranked a home run. Contributed photo
Though Rotary stopped participating in the matchup, the game itself continued with Richey and Michno leading the way (hence the team names you see below).
“We play once a year, no one plays during the year, we practice a few minutes before the game and then we play,” Richey told NewCanaanite.com in responding to some of our questions about the game’s history.
Teams are picked randomly from among the longtime group of friends.
Here’s the write-up, team photo above:
The 17th Annual Rich-Mich Softball Game was held at St. Lukes School on Sunday, September 7th. Playing were: Kent Atherton, George Benington, Brandon Blaylock, Roger Bolton, Peter Daniel, Rick deNey, Hans Dijs, Doug Dooley, Will Fornshell, Rick Kilbride, John Knight, Steve McCardell, James O’Hora, Jim Petrus, Mark Smith, Chip Steppacher, Luke Tashjian, Chas Timberlake, Peter Trager, Kevin Wilder, and Captains Tim Michno and Keith Richey.
The Michno Marauders 11-8 prevailed over the Richey Recidivists in a well-played, injury-free contest on a beautiful Sunday afternoon. The Recidivists were leading 6-3 going into the bottom of the sixth inning when the Marauders put together a string of line drives, scoring 8 runs, and taking an 11 to 6 lead. The Recidivists scored 2 runs in the top of the seventh inning in a valiant come-back attempt.
Along the way, there were home runs by Rick Kilbride and Peter Trager. This once-a-year men’s softball game has become a New Canaan tradition. The teams are picked at random from those weekend (also weakened) warriors who show up to see if they still have the right stuff, generally local men in their 40s to 60s.