First Time Visitors

This blog was originally posted in April of 2009.

Well...I'm kind of stepping out from behind the curtain today. I've been so pleased with the small (but loyal) following that has evolved since this site's inception, but the time has come to introduce the site to the rest of Orrville. The best way I could think of to let as many people in my target audience (Red Rider fans) know about the site was to send a note to Orrviews. You'll see the formal site announcement in the current issue (April 24, 2009).

So, if you've found your way to my little corner of the world via the Orrviews newspaper, or any other way for that matter, first of all, let me say welcome. I hope you not only like what you see, but would be so kind as to bookmark this site in your list of favorites and visit often.

Second, allow me to direct you to some of what I would consider required reading on this site.

1. The Mo Tipton Retrospective. Maybe my favorite and most thorough post. Full of data, pictures and old new articles. Mo is maybe the brightest star in a sea of Red Rider characters.

2. The Orrville Football Uniform Project. So much data, it had to be broken into 2 parts. Part 1 here, and Part 2 here. Very proud of this post.

3. The Football Playoff History Series. My bread and butter. Basically, a rundown of every Red Rider football playoff game, separated by year. Give yourself plenty of time to wade through this. I'm through the 1987 playoffs currently.

4. Orrville Baseball. A look at the new field and a picture of former coach Jim Swaney. What's not to love?

5. Wooster Week Series. A full week of Orrville/Wooster history, pictures, articles and memories. A great synopsis of the rivalry, especially if you are a younger Red Rider (like me, at least I think I'm still young) who did not get to watch or play in some of these classics.

6. History. Several specific posts fall under this category. Everything from state championship rings, All-Time OHSAA Final Four Basketball Results, OHSAA Football Computer Points Archive and The 1994 Div. 4 State Football Final (Part 1 and Part 2).

7. Northeast Ohio Turf Stadiums. A little pet project of mine. I hope to add Orrville to this list someday.

8. The Purpose of the Site. Why I do this.

One other area of the site to mention is the Comments section at the end of every post. This site will never reach it's full potential without input from fellow Red Riders. If you ever have anything to add to one of my posts, please use the comment section. It should be pretty self-explanatory. If the comment doesn't show up right away, don't worry, all the comments do have to be approved by me, but unless it's something attacking or vulgar, it will get approved. You can leave your name, or do it anonymously, I truly do not care, so long as your contribute.

I put a lot of work into being thorough and try to post quality material to this site, but in no way will I ever consider myself anything more than a passionate fan, much like so many Rider alums. I have learned so much from those who have commented on this site, and the more information that is shared, the more complete this site will become. My point? Contributions to this site, whatever they may be (comments, pictures, news, etc.), are greatly appreciated, and improve the site immensely.

That's it really. The full archive is on the right hand margin, feel free to start at the beginning and work your way forward.

If you ever feel the need to drop me a line, please do. Here's a link to my email address. If you're from out of the area and visit this site to stay up to date on Red Rider news (and I know for a fact there are some out there), I'd love to hear from you especially.

If you have Red Rider news that you feel deserves coverage or attention, send it my way. I'd love to be a part of getting our town and our student-athletes all the recognition they deserve.

Enjoy your time here. I've got some neat things lined up for the very near future, so jump in, catch up and and stay tuned. Football and Basketball season tend to be my busy seasons, the next several months will be big on history and continuing the playoff history series.