Inside the NFL draft

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham Pete Williams is like the rest of us – he sees the glitz and glamor associated with what is basically picking names out of a hat and wonders what it is that makes the NFL draft the spectacle that it has become. “What I wanted to show is how this progress…

The Queen, Wrong Way and Me

Chris Graham

Stop the Presses column by Chris Graham OK, so I went to Richmond yesterday to be able to report on the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to the great Commonwealth – which put me in a not-exactly-exclusive class, all things considered. I say that because we were informed at the event that there were more…

Sayre takes no-tax pledge

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham It should be no surprise that Scott Sayre has made formal his pledge against raising taxes. Sayre, a Buena Vista businessman who is challenging incumbent Sen. Emmett Hanger, R-Mount Solon, for the Republican Party nomination in the 24th Senate District, made it official on Tuesday – announcing that he has signed…

So long, old boy

Chris Graham

Stop the Presses column by Chris Graham It was one of the harder things that I’ve ever had to do. “You’re going to need to cradle his head in your arms,” the veterinarian counseled me. My mom’s dog, Ted, was on the table. Approaching his 15th birthday, he had been struggling mightily the past several…

Smucker family faces wait and a weight, part two

Jim Bishop

Bishop’s Mantle column by Jim Bishop Dave and Shari Smucker were stymied. Nearly three years had passed, and it didn’t appear hopeful that Aaron, now 3 years old, would ever join their family in Harrisonburg. The couple had made several visits to the youngster’s home in Guatemala, and each time, some technicality prevented them from…

Sayre gets VCAP endorsement

Chris Graham

Column by Chris Graham Scott Sayre will need to get the backing of grassroots conservatives for his bid to unseat 24th District state senator Emmett Hanger to be successful. He picked up the endorsement of the cash- and member-rich Virginia Conservative Action PAC today – leading to the obvious question. Should Sen. Hanger be worried?

It’s Dickie V, baby!

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham Dick Vitale thinks the ACC got a “raw deal” only getting four teams into the Big Dance last March Madness. The ESPN analyst and 2007 Basketball Hall of Fame nominee thinks the conference is going to get seven or maybe eight teams into the NCAA Tournament this year.

I’ll pay my share

Chris Graham

Stop the Presses column by Chris Graham Beep, beep … The guy behind us in the white luxury car was obviously heading to a fire. Had to be – he was driving 85, 90, easy. My wife had been trying to pass a semi on the mountain on the way to Charlottesville – innocently as…