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Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Gwinnett Braves groundhog’s name in play.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This is Beauregard. I’d never heard of him until yesterday, when I read the Gwinnett Braves mascot was inspired by him. His keepers in Lilburn hadn’t heard they’d inspired a mascot until yesterday, either.
I made a newcomer stumble yesterday when I read a fun story out of Gwinnett County.
The new Gwinnett Braves baseball team is running a contest to name its mascot. The team will accept nominations on its Web site through Aug. 27. A panel will narrow the nominees down to three and fans can vote for their favorite Sept. 1-5. The winner and the mascot will debut before the end of September; the team’s $45 million stadium won’t come till April 2009.
So what is this mascot? Something brave, yet kitschy and fun enough for minor league ball?
Oh yes. It’s a groundhog. But I still didn’t get it.
Why? Because it’s cute? It is. But why?
See, it’s not just any groundhog, it’s “a portly cartoon groundhog inspired by Gen. Beauregard Lee, star of the Yellow River Game Ranch in Lilburn,” my colleague Eileen Drennen wrote.
::stumble::
Wait. General…who?
If I’d moved here a few months earlier, I’d know. He’s Gwinnett County’s own weather prognosticator, Punxsutawney Phil with banana pudding and a drawl.
He lives at Yellow River Game Ranch, and is a distant relative of the ranch’s earlier groundhog, who went by the name Robert. (FYI: He called for an early spring on Feb. 2, 2008.)
In addition to inspiring a minor league mascot, Beau’s list of honors is quite impressive. It includes:
- recognition from four Georgia Governors.
- two commendations by the National Weather Service.
- honorary doctorates from The University of Georgia as a “Doctor of Weather Prognostication,” and Georgia State University as a “Doctor of Southern Groundology.”
- appearances on The Today Show in 1988 and Animal Planet in 2004.
- dozens of appearances in the AJC, including a 2005 story with the headline “Groundhog awakens in fighting, mating spirit.”
When I called Yellow River Game Ranch to get their pick for the name, they hadn’t even heard about Beau’s latest honor.
“This is news to us,” Yellow River Manager Codi Reeves said. “Of course, it’s good news.”
They’d love for them to meet, marmot-to-mascot, someday.
Their vote for a name, Reeves said, would be pretty clear: Beau or Beauregard.
What’s yours?
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