Monday
Park visited: Council Bluffs Recreation Complex
City: Council Bluffs, IA
Food of the day: Loaded Potato Bites @ Arby's
iPhone song of the day: "I'm Alright" by Terri Clark
Miles traveled: 20
Monday featured some ideal timing and good fortune for Matt and I. Due to the fact that our job responsibilities were not until the evening and the Nates were not getting back to Omaha until later in the afternoon, we were able to watch the historic U.S. Open playoff between Tiger "14 going on 19" Woods and Rocco Mediate in its entirety....and what an event it was.
Not to focus on golf too much, but Tiger is on a level that none have us have ever seen. He will without a doubt pass Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 career major tournament wins, and probably every other significant golf milestone that exists. It's so much fun watching history in front of our eyes, knowing that we will be able to give first-hand accounts of a person who is rewriting the books to our grandkids. On the flip side, it was a true pleasure to see someone like Mediate get a shot at the spotlight. The guy is as down to Earth as you can be in professional sports, and I am happy that he will finally get some strong recognition from the public.
Once we finally got our fill of golf and Nate Squared rolled back into town, we prepared to return to action. There was a little bit of a mix-up in terms of which park we were actually supposed to be at, but we finally righted our ship and made it to the Council Bluffs Recreation Complex. I don't think I've actually explained this very well, but this specific facility is actually located across the Iowa state line. So even though we're technically in Omaha for about two weeks, we are also working an Iowa park.
On this night, the Council Bluffs Park & Recreation was celebrating the 10-year anniversary of their park, as well as the opening ceremonies for Session #2 of the Omaha Slumpbuster Tournament. The evening was similar to the La Vista Complex from last week, with a bunch of different vendors and exhibits, including GameSports who had a couple of interactive video games set up on a pair of plasma TVs. There was also some live music on a pretty big stage, courtesy of "The Sound Effects." It was definitely nice having some background "noise" while we unloaded, etc. The kids and families were extremely lively, which made the night very enjoyable and go by quickly.
We stopped at a local gas station/truck stop that also housed an Arby's for some late night feasting. It was nice having all four of us back together, and what better way to reunite than over some roast beef sandwiches.
Tuesday
Park visited: Rosenblatt Stadium
City: Omaha, Nebraksa
Food of the day: Minute Maid Frozen Lemonade @ Rosenblatt
iPhone song of the day: "I Wanna Grow Old With You" by Westlife
Miles traveled: 15
Following a late night in Council Bluffs, Tuesday was an off day for the Road Trip, and we took advantage of the free time to catch up on our news, fantasy teams and video games (well, Kohrs did anyway). Heck, even Clink took the time to find out that Tim Russert had died....four days ago. The surprise in his voice when he read the headline reminded me of when Jim Carrey gets excited in "Dumb & Dumber" over the United States space race..."We landed on the MOON!!"
During the afternoon, we drove around for an hour attempting to find two local Golden Corral restaurants. Upon arrival to both, however, we discovered that not only were they closed, but they were not even functional. Quite disappointing. We settled for a Valentino's (local pizza/pasta joint) buffet, and it was equally disappointing. Maybe we'll have better luck with lunch tomorrow.
Tonight, we caught the shuttle from our hotel to Rosenblatt Stadium to catch the Fresno State vs. North Carolina winner's bracket game. It was an exceptional game that the Bulldogs eventually won 5-3 (sorry Pat), and the atmosphere was spectacular. The announced attendance of over 23,000 made the experience extremely memorable, and I think we all look forward to the remainder of the tournament. I actually will be doing a "fan experience" piece on the College World Series for "Baseball Youth" magazine, so I won't say too much here and will be sure to share my article(s) with you once they are complete.
I suppose that's about all for now. We continue to have a good time meeting new people and adding more experiences not only to this trip, but to our life list as well. Thank you for taking the time to follow our progress....I hope you are enjoying the ride! Talk to you soon.
Until next time,
Chris
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