by Zane Moses
The only value the current scoreboard installed at Guv Fuller Field, home of the Falmouth Commodores, might be as is if it were for sale at an antique store. The scoreboard, which is over 30 years old, is close to retirement as plans to replace it with a state of the art scoreboard are well underway.
It took 21 pages in the form of a grant proposal to illustrate the need for a new scoreboard. Falmouth Road Race, Inc. accepted the proposal and 43 thousand dollars later a low-energy electronic baseball scoreboard will be ready for installation in six to eight weeks, according to Bob Curtis, the chairman of the fundraising committee for the Commodores.
The current scoreboard, which was installed in 1988, “not only contributes to providing inaccurate game information, but it does not reflect the positive image that we believe the Town of Falmouth… should… portray,” according to the proposal.
Curtis, who called the current scoreboard decrepit, noted that the board is so old that parts are simply not being made anymore, and it is impossible to repair. He joked that the board is actually extinct. The vintage sign also was an eyesore, and drew negative reactions from attendees and athletes alike.
“Fans have complained, players, coaches have complained,” Curtis said, “When the bulbs blow it becomes visually inaccurate and it displays false information to the crowd.”
Karen Bissonnette a board member for Falmouth Road Race and a part of the decision to fund the score board, as well as an active member of the Commodore family, agrees with Curtis, calling the current scoreboard dismal. It is obvious that the new scoreboard will be a well needed upgrade for the field and the teams that play there.
“It was really great to be able to help the community in this way because it is not only going to be used for the Commodores, it will be used for the high school teams as well as from Babe Ruth teams,” Bissonnette said.
The decision to grant the money to the Commodores was not a hard one to make for the decision board. The scoreboard will go a long way to improve not only the baseball watching experience, but the community as a whole.
“The need was great and we have a bunch of very community minded people who sit on the board,” Bissonette said, “and we are always looking for a good project for the community and that can help the youth of the community.”
Curtis stipulated that the new scoreboard will show ten innings in addition to all of the information any fan will need while watching a ball game. The scoreboard will be energy efficient as well, using solar power to power the electric batteries. The solar panels can sustain the light bulbs for four hours a day, seven days a week, the proposal states.
“The LED lights require very little energy, are very conducive to this type of power source, and this represents an environmentally friendly means of energy,” according to the proposal.
The days of going to enjoy a Commodore baseball game and having to squint to decode a defunct scoreboard are over. The new scoreboard will provide ample information, an aesthetically pleasing landscape and a more enjoyable game watching experience.
The Commodores Corner 