A future hall of famer and a hall-of-fame ballgame player were among the local businesspeople whose out-of-office pursuits were featured in our Downtime series this year.
From a local brewer and former Major League pitcher returning to the mound for this year’s Hall of Fame Classic game, to a law firm president and ultradistance swimmer who’s set to be inducted into the International Marathon Swimmer Hall of Fame, this year’s edition of our ongoing series was one for the record books.
But they weren’t the only ones who shared how they keep their work lives balanced in 2023.
Such stories will continue to be told in 2024, so if you or someone you know fits the bill for our Downtime series about local businesspeople’s hobbies or interests outside of work, drop a line to reporter Jonathan Spiers at [email protected]. For previous installments in the series, click here.
Hunter Leemon – Sportable cyclist
Hunter Leemon training on a stationary bike ahead of this year’s RAGBRAI.
The executive director of nonprofit Sportable rode in this year’s RAGBRAI, a 500-mile, eight-day ride across Iowa that draws thousands of riders from around the world and is celebrating its 50th year.
An avid cyclist, the 45-year-old raised more than $35,000 – nearly doubling his $20,000 goal – to benefit Sportable’s mission to make sports accessible and inclusive.
“Cycling is the best. It’s a good community,” Hunter Leemon told us over the summer.
“The great thing about sports is it builds community, it builds peer relationships. The cycling community is awesome. That’s why I’m so excited about RAGBRAI: It’s 10,000 people!”
Bill Barnett – Land lover
Bill Barnett makes his home in Mathews County, where he fishes the East River and Chesapeake Bay.
The senior vice president and partner at Commonwealth Commercial spends much of his free time on the 175 or so acres he owns along the Chickahominy River in Charles City County. Bill Barnett said his personal love of land and of experiencing nature has carried over into his profession brokering real estate deals.
“I have a passion for the outdoors where I can walk the walk, not just talk the talk, and help people who enjoy that kind of property,” Barnett said in February. “Whether it’s for development or somebody who wants a place to just have a personal retreat or a family retreat, if you have experienced that, you have a lot more empathy with what their goal is.”
Chris Ray – Baseball ‘draught’ pick
Chris Ray pitching with the Orioles.
The owner of Center of the Universe Brewing Co. in Ashland put down his brewer’s cap for a day and returned to the mound for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s annual Hall of Fame Classic game in Cooperstown, New York.
A Major League pitcher for seven seasons, mostly with the Baltimore Orioles and also on the 2010 World Series champion San Francisco Giants, Chris Ray retired in 2011. Ray’s baseball comeback started with an email this spring from the Orioles’ alumni relations department asking if he’d be interested in representing the O’s in the annual game.
“It’s for fun but once these guys get up there, it’s second nature. They’re playing to win,” Ray told us this spring. “I don’t need to go and put on a show anymore, but this is to show my kids, ‘Before you knew me, this is what I was doing.’”
Courtney Paulk – Ultradistance swimmer
Hirschler President Courtney Paulk on one of her ultradistance open water swims.
The president and longtime attorney of Richmond law firm Hirschler has been recognized as the first person in history to complete a Double Triple: double crossings of what’s known as the Triple Crown of open swimming: the English Channel, the “Catalina Channel” and a route around New York’s Manhattan Island.
Such feats led the selection of Courtney Paulk, 53, to be inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame as a member of the 2024 class. The induction ceremony will be held in Cancun, Mexico, in May.
“If I have a difficult issue come up or have a difficult judge when I’m in court, I can always say, ‘That is not as hard as swimming for 33 hours,’” Paulk told us this summer. “It gives you huge perspective, that if I’ve been able to do these hugely massive events and cross channels and ocean water of my own doing, then I can get through this meeting. It will be OK.”
A future hall of famer and a hall-of-fame ballgame player were among the local businesspeople whose out-of-office pursuits were featured in our Downtime series this year.
From a local brewer and former Major League pitcher returning to the mound for this year’s Hall of Fame Classic game, to a law firm president and ultradistance swimmer who’s set to be inducted into the International Marathon Swimmer Hall of Fame, this year’s edition of our ongoing series was one for the record books.
But they weren’t the only ones who shared how they keep their work lives balanced in 2023.
Such stories will continue to be told in 2024, so if you or someone you know fits the bill for our Downtime series about local businesspeople’s hobbies or interests outside of work, drop a line to reporter Jonathan Spiers at [email protected]. For previous installments in the series, click here.
Hunter Leemon – Sportable cyclist
Hunter Leemon training on a stationary bike ahead of this year’s RAGBRAI.
The executive director of nonprofit Sportable rode in this year’s RAGBRAI, a 500-mile, eight-day ride across Iowa that draws thousands of riders from around the world and is celebrating its 50th year.
An avid cyclist, the 45-year-old raised more than $35,000 – nearly doubling his $20,000 goal – to benefit Sportable’s mission to make sports accessible and inclusive.
“Cycling is the best. It’s a good community,” Hunter Leemon told us over the summer.
“The great thing about sports is it builds community, it builds peer relationships. The cycling community is awesome. That’s why I’m so excited about RAGBRAI: It’s 10,000 people!”
Bill Barnett – Land lover
Bill Barnett makes his home in Mathews County, where he fishes the East River and Chesapeake Bay.
The senior vice president and partner at Commonwealth Commercial spends much of his free time on the 175 or so acres he owns along the Chickahominy River in Charles City County. Bill Barnett said his personal love of land and of experiencing nature has carried over into his profession brokering real estate deals.
“I have a passion for the outdoors where I can walk the walk, not just talk the talk, and help people who enjoy that kind of property,” Barnett said in February. “Whether it’s for development or somebody who wants a place to just have a personal retreat or a family retreat, if you have experienced that, you have a lot more empathy with what their goal is.”
Chris Ray – Baseball ‘draught’ pick
Chris Ray pitching with the Orioles.
The owner of Center of the Universe Brewing Co. in Ashland put down his brewer’s cap for a day and returned to the mound for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s annual Hall of Fame Classic game in Cooperstown, New York.
A Major League pitcher for seven seasons, mostly with the Baltimore Orioles and also on the 2010 World Series champion San Francisco Giants, Chris Ray retired in 2011. Ray’s baseball comeback started with an email this spring from the Orioles’ alumni relations department asking if he’d be interested in representing the O’s in the annual game.
“It’s for fun but once these guys get up there, it’s second nature. They’re playing to win,” Ray told us this spring. “I don’t need to go and put on a show anymore, but this is to show my kids, ‘Before you knew me, this is what I was doing.’”
Courtney Paulk – Ultradistance swimmer
Hirschler President Courtney Paulk on one of her ultradistance open water swims.
The president and longtime attorney of Richmond law firm Hirschler has been recognized as the first person in history to complete a Double Triple: double crossings of what’s known as the Triple Crown of open swimming: the English Channel, the “Catalina Channel” and a route around New York’s Manhattan Island.
Such feats led the selection of Courtney Paulk, 53, to be inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame as a member of the 2024 class. The induction ceremony will be held in Cancun, Mexico, in May.
“If I have a difficult issue come up or have a difficult judge when I’m in court, I can always say, ‘That is not as hard as swimming for 33 hours,’” Paulk told us this summer. “It gives you huge perspective, that if I’ve been able to do these hugely massive events and cross channels and ocean water of my own doing, then I can get through this meeting. It will be OK.”