LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHER

When the SPORTS ILLUSTRATED family got together in and around Boston last weekend to celebrate the marriage of a son and daughter, some predictable rituals took place: the tailgate party, the softball game, the golf tournament—staples of any SI fete.

Steve Wulf, associate writer and groom, batted ninth for the Husbandry Animals in Saturday's softball action at Ouellet Field in Wellesley Hills. Though he usually swings a good stick—he had a .292 batting average for the UPI/SI team that won this summer's New York Press League championship—Wulf went 1 for 4. Jane E. Bachman, chief of reporters and bride, was the cleanup hitter and pitcher for the Veiled Threats. When she led her team to an 8-8 tie (the Wulfs will, in consequence, share the writing of thank-you notes), Wulf was unsurprised: "She's pitched some awfully good woo in the past." Said the erstwhile Ms. October: "The Animals were tough, but they're an older team. By this point in the season, that shows. We're young, and to us this is just one more weekend series."

The morning of the wedding Brae Burn's nine-hole course was clogged with Bachmans and SI staffers. Bob Sr., father of the bride, was director of the Jane Elizabeth (Bambi) Memorial Tournament. Son Bob finished first with a 36, while sons Jeb and Peter carded 39 and 55, respectively.

As for Wulf, perhaps because of prenuptial nerves, or maybe his shaky golf game, he struggled in with a 48. He spent the rest of the afternoon watching the Dolphins-Patriots game—except for the tux he was wearing, it could have been a typical autumn Sunday.

That evening, at the Old South Meeting House, the eminent attorney James St. Clair presided as Jane and Steve were united in a candle-lit civil ceremony, followed by the traditional kiss, followed by a non-traditional high five. Later, champagne flowed at the Brae Burn Country Club, dances were danced and glasses were raised. Then the newlyweds were off on a honeymoon that will take them all the way to Peking. "I'll get her there," said Wulf. "I've been working on my Ping-Pong."

PHOTO

JOHN IACONO

PITCHER BACHMAN AND INFIELDER WULF, TEAMMATES AT SI, TIED THE KNOT IN BOSTON