—Where the Weather Finally Behaved, But the Golfers Didn’t—
By Mike from Airport Aviation Stories (a.k.a. the guy who owns a clipboard but still slices off the tee)
This past May 26th, the legendary AC Rampies Bi-Annual Golf Reunion took over Granite Ridge in Milton, which is best known for being a golf course and a place where carts have more accidents than airplanes. The event was pulled off with military precision (if that military was run by baggage handlers) by General Bob Nelson, with recon support from Francine MacNeil and Debbie Burke, who patrolled the greens in a golf cart armed with a camera and enough sass to make a marshal weep.
The theme? Canada!
The uniform? Red and white!
The fashion? Questionable at best—one guy looked like a ketchup bottle mated with a snowbank.
But the real highlight?
“Elbows Up!” shirts handed out by Mike from Airport Aviation Stories, courtesy of Alphatech Automotive Appraisals—which, based on some of the swings we saw, may soon be called upon to appraise a few shattered golf carts.
The lucky recipients of the sacred cotton:
Tony Vassallo,
Nandy Palumbo,
Greg Orpen,
and Merv Ball—a man whose name literally sounds like a golf hazard.
And guess who showed up from far and wide?
Glen “The Prairie Slicer” Horney from the wild west,
and Dave “Haligonian Hook Shot” Ashcroft from Halifax—both proving that jet lag and double bogeys go hand in hand.
For once, the team that wins every year (you know who you are) was absent. Cue the heavenly chorus.
That opened the door for the rest of us mortals to have a chance at NOT being crushed on the scoreboard.
Even Don Leavers was spotted limbering up (or trying to) beside his usual golf buddy Michael Policelli, who wasn’t there—probably still trying to find a left-handed driver or his left sock.
The Muppet Show duo, Scott Kohen and Tony Angeloni (aka Frick and Fran, aka Statler and Waldorf), skipped this year’s hecklefest. Golf was eerily quieter without their play-by-play groans and rants.
We had present-day ramp rats, full-fledged retirees, and even union royalty in the house—Bill Shipman, the man whose voice could trigger a contract negotiation at 300 yards.
The Horney brothers, Glen and Al, were both there but didn’t play together—because apparently there’s only room for one Horney on the fairway at a time.
And of course, Larry and Andy Romanica, the sibling duo who showed up but didn’t share a cart because “it’s better for the family if we don’t talk about the score.”
Making surprise appearances were vintage legends like Johnny Glover and the mythic Web Jackson with his Cargonauts, who still claim they can load a 767 blindfolded… and drunk.
Some came just to mingle: Rick Levens, Rick Gemmill, and Uton Wilson—who wisely skipped golf and instead enjoyed 18 holes of people-watching and weather.
And hey, the weather actually cooperated this time!
A miracle!
Either that or someone sacrificed a Samsonite to the golf gods.
And so…
As we wrap up the shenanigans of another Rampie Reunion, remember:
Golf clubs will be swung, friendships rekindled, scores mysteriously improved, and legends—true or otherwise—retold.
If you missed it, fear not!
This September, the circus returns.
Whether you’re swinging a club, swinging a beer, or just swinging by—
Come out and join the ramp pack.
Because once a Rampie, always a Rampie…
Even if your handicap is your knees.
See you on the greens… or the patio.
