Long Beach Turns Out 30 Years of the Liberty Classic

Long Beach is serving up some Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness realness this 4th of July weekend as the Surf and Sun Softball League unveils it’s 30th Liberty Classic.

The longest running 4th of July NAGAAA affiliated tournament is ready to host a holiday weekend full of fun and competition in a truly beautiful setting in sunny Southern California.  The tournament was able to secure sponsorships from Miller/Coors and Scarlett Marketing along with the many other businesses holding events throughout the weekend.

A strong tournament team field will battle it out in the C & D divisions.  Currently there are 31 teams registered among the two divisions.  The Liberty Classic is also offering Women’s C & D divisions too pushing the overall number of teams competing to a stellar 45.

Nate Smith is the tournament director for this year’s Liberty Classic.  Mr. Smith has been involved with the tournament for six continuous years and he feels that the teams the tournament has attracted from all over the country will have no problem finding fun in So Cal.  “We have gorgeous Southern California summertime weather.  We also play most of the games at one complex in Huntington Beach/Surf City which allows players in different divisions to build camaraderie,” said Mr. Smith.

The Long Beach based tournament will feature an Opening Ceremonies/Registration Party at the Executive Suite nightclub on Friday, July 4th and for those players ready to celebrate the United States’ birthday in style, the party will move to The Silver Fox for the after party (btw, who doesn’t like a classy Silver Fox).  Folks looking for a good time after the Saturday games can take part in an Independence Day weekend pub crawl for players and Long Beach locals with stops including The Brit, Paradise Bar & Grill and The Mineshaft among others.

The Liberty Classic will have trophies for 1st through 3rd place in each division with a special gift of custom hoodies for each player on the 1st place teams in each division!  If your team gets to the championship game, but falls short, don’t worry as the Classic will be giving out custom t-shirts to the runners up in each division.  Hats will also be handed out to the top 4 placing teams in each division so that those teams can “crown” their own MVP of the tourney!  Competing teams will be treated to a four game guarantee and a two umpire crew for all championship games.

So, the DD has to get this gay…..beautiful weather, a great tournament field, a holiday weekend to make travel easier and wonderful trophies/prizes for the teams?  Looks like we’ll be seeing teams flock to Southern California for years to come to play in this 4th of July weekend tournament mainstay and don’t forget to follow the tourney on Twitter, @LibertyClassic .

*The DD would like to thank Liberty Classic tournament director Nate Smith for donating his information and time to this article.*