Baseball in Fort Wayne

Note: This is the first in a series of posts that cover my interview with Travis Weaver, who performed as Wayne the Wizard in Fort Wayne while employed with the Fort Wayne Wizards. Photo courtesy of the Fort Wayne Wizards.

His first appearance as Wayne the Wizard wasn’t on a ball diamond. It was a two-hour gig at a skating rink. Travis Weaver, who performed as the now semi-retired, venerable sorcerer-mascot of the Fort Wayne Wizards from April 1996 to August 1998, struggled with a “large zip-up barrel type contraption that made me look like I was around 100 lbs heavier.” It was one of the first times he had donned the gear and “it took me a long, long time to get it on at the rink.”

“I had no idea what to do for the 2 hours,” says Weaver. “I pretty much gave out high fives and dodged out-of-control skaters the whole time.”

Travis recently answered several questions about his experiences as “the dancing” Wayne the Wizard. Among his most memorable moments, Travis opened up about interacting with players and coaches, season ticket holders who “cheered every time I did Cotton Eyed Joe even though they had seen it 200 times before,” fans who may have had one too many and the verbal poundings he took from players for never (well, almost never) being able to win the mascot race despite the head start.

He also commented on the Harrison Square project: “I didn’t know there was anything really wrong with Memorial Stadium, but I totally get what they are trying to do.”

Weaver now lives and works in Texas about as far from being a mascot as one could get and he hasn’t made it back to the Memorial Stadium since leaving his post, but does hope to do so during a future visit to Fort Wayne if his schedule allows.

Visit Tomorrow for Part 2!

[tags]Wayne the Wizard, Baseball in Fort Wayne, Fort Wayne Wizards, Travis Weaver, Mascots, Minor League Baseball[/tags]