On the retirement of a legend

When Steve Mossburgh began his coaching career with the Alaska Road Warriors in 1998, the program was just the average Alaska American Legion baseball team.

Now, after 13 years of guidance by Mossburgh, the Road Warriors have been built into a powerful state contender. Under Mossburgh, the Road Warriors reached the Legion state title game for the first time in more than 20 years in 2010, narrowly falling to the Dimond Lynx in several close games.

It came as a surprise to everyone when Mossburgh announced his decision to vacate the head coaching position the following season in summer 2011. As head coach of the squad for six years, he finally felt that it was the right time for him to step down from the position to prepare for his upcoming retirement from his job at Anchorage Municipal Light and Power next year.

As head coach of the Road Warriors, Mossburgh’s duties not only involved his coaching of the team, but extended into the care of McManus Field, home field of the Road Warriors. Mossburgh sacrificed countless summer hours in the maintenance of the field, keeping it in pristine condition. His work included a constant mowing of the outfield and upkeep of the base paths, as well as many other needed tasks such as fundraising. His family also exhibited a strong devotion to the team as his wife, Tanya, and daughter, Cherrie, also committed themselves to the cause, helping Mossburgh in whatever ways they could.

In addition, Mossburgh was instrumental in the recent renovations of McManus Field, helping to rebuild the dugouts and install a new chain-link fence for the backstop. He also participated in the construction of a new storage shed to house the team’s equipment during the frigid Alaska winters. Furthermore, he also aided in the assembly of a new outfield wall, as well as coordinating in its new paint job during the summer. His enduring dedication to the legion program and countless hours sacrificed to work on the field shows just how much he enjoyed being a part of this Wasilla-based legion program.

When Mossburgh chose to retire, he promoted assistant coach Myrl Thompson to receive the head coaching position. Thompson, former head coach of the Wasilla Warrior baseball squad, led the Road Warriors for the rest of the 2011 season, guiding the team to the fourth-place finish in the Legion state tournament. He helped make a name for himself as a head coach by leading the team to a victory over the Service Cougars, hailed as one of the “Fabulous Four” Anchorage teams of the tournament.

All in all, the retirement of Steve Mossburgh from the head coaching position is a sad ending to a long chapter in the history of the Alaska Road Warriors. He served as the backbone of the organization for many years and helped to establish the Road Warriors as a prestigious Alaska legion baseball team. It will be interesting to see where the team heads in this upcoming season under the direction of new head coach Myrl Thompson.

Josh Grissom is a senior in Paula Wright’s Journalism class at Wasilla High

School.