This past week, I was on the road heading north to Carlisle, PA for a week of training sessions (ArcBest). It was a fairly straight course northwest, then mostly north from Virginia Beach, through Richmond, towards Washington DC, then into Maryland, and eventually Pennsylvania. And the route was absolutely jammed packed with baseball experiences, historic stadiums, and potential stops off highways for me to explore. My roughly 6 hour trip north and nearly 7 hour trip home produced a ton of great memories that I look forward to sharing with you in the coming days. And it all started Monday morning with a stop at Virginia Credit Union Stadium, home of the Fredericksburg Nationals.
Monday was a beautiful weather day – temps in the upper 80s, lots of sunshine, nice breeze, very summerlike feel approaching Memorial Day Weekend. Virginia Credit Union Stadium is located just off Route 95 in Fredericksburg, Virginia and about 150 miles from my home in Virginia Beach. The Fredericksburg Nationals are the Single A Affiliate of the Washington Nationals. Geographically speaking, Fredericksburg is about 55 miles to Washington DC, where the MLB Nationals reside.
The stadium was an easy spot to find, just passed a number of shopping centers, pretty much at the end of the road, and I found parking in the main lot just in front of the team’s pro store. Front gates were closed but the pro shop was open, so I was hopeful I would get a chance to view and perhaps photograph the inside of the stadium. I was able to get a few photos in the front gate area before entering the pro shop.
Inside the pro shop, I chatted with the front desk attendant and took a look around the store. And noticed, like many stadium’s pro stores, that the store led out onto the concourse area of Virginia Credit Union Stadium. So, I asked if I could hop out onto the concourse and take a photo or two. The attendant mentioned that a team of front office folks were setting up for a local high school graduation, and to be quick. So, I hustled out of the pro shop, onto the course, and snapped a few photos in about 2 minutes time.
When I returned to the pro shop, I found an awesome Fredericksburg Frogs T-shirt in my size – XL. And thanked the pro shop attendant for allowing me 5 minutes to get onto the concourse and take a few photos. I mentioned my policy to her – “I don’t pick locks and I don’t hop fences,” at which time she laughed. Pretty sweet shirt, right?
As I was heading back to my rental car to continue my trip North, I spotted a van with a familiar name on it from a really funny baseball movie, “The Benchwarmers.” “Gus Bus” was a nickname given to Rob Schneider’s character in the movie. Pretty funny scene if you remember the movie and the exchange in the restaurant between Craig Kilborn and Rob Schneider.
After a very satisfying pit stop in Fredericksburg, VA to check out the Single A Nationals home ball park, I hopped in my rental car and went straight to Google Maps. My next stop – Hagerstown, MD and the Hagerstown Flying Boxcars home field, Meritus Park. And was psyched to see that, like Fredericksburg, Hagerstown was also on the way North to Carlisle. As for Virginia Credit Union Stadium, I was thrilled to get the opportunity to see the inside of the stadium, take a few photos, and chat it up with the pro shop attendant. And score a fantastic Fredericksburg Frogs jersey. The weather was amazing, the stadium looked incredible, and the stop was a great first stop on my journey north. Overall, it was an incredible Fredericksburg baseball experience visiting Virginia Credit Union Stadium, home of the Fredericksburg Nationals.
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