Thursday, March 27, 2008

Spring Training '08

I try to go to spring training every year(I'm currently on a three year streak), but I'd never been with more than one friend before. This year we had a crew of five guys going, but the challenge was how to get a group of guys out after a night on the town to a 1pm game. The solution, was to bring the game to them:


It was a great idea in theory, but I had no idea how it would work in a real world environment. It was scary to drive, but at least other drivers would yield against any moves I made. I also didn't know that it didn't come with any bedding. Thankfully, Lindsay(Costello's girlfriend) is a Phoenix native and supplied us with about all we needed.


Costello, Dan, Campbell & LADave catching rays

Friday night we were supposed to go to the Brewers/Padres game, but Dan & Costello's flight came in late, so me and Campbell went solo. Prince Fielder hit a massive shot, but of course, I didn't think to record it. It's actually still in the air as of press time. We all met up after the game for a few drinks at the Rock Bottom Brewery and then a few drinks in the RV. After settling down we drove out to set up camp near the next days game. We settled at a Walmart parking lot that seemed tame enough, but as you'll see in the video, we got rudely awakened.



The whole trip video compilation!

That day we headed to the Royals/Brewers game where LADave met up with us. I was looking forward to the sausage races, and figured Churizo would win because it was Churizo bobblehead day, but it wasn't meant to be. We then headed to the Coyotes game early and tried out the RV shower before we headed in. We got to watch the Pac10 Final game at the Fox Sports Bar before and was actually pleasantly surprised at how good their food was despite their crappy beer selection. As for the hockey game, it was one of the worst in recent memory. For a team fighting for a playoff spot, the Coyotes played one of the most uninspired games ever. It was nice to get free green St. Patrick's Day Coyotes hats, but it would of been nicer if the cold air wasn't turned on in our section.


After the game, we headed to a Dave & Busters which was singularly the most genius/idiotic idea of the trip. I liked the cheap beer and the most games were fun enough, but as it got closer to closing time, things got retarded. Everyone started sliding their cards into this game that would give you coins that got flung into the game and if any fell over the edge, you won tickets. I think we literally spent $60 dollars on it. We had a little argument at the ticket redemption center as Dan really wanted the oversized pink Little Mermaid ball, but we settled on a purple metallic soccer ball and three inflatable hammers.

That night we decided to park in a residential neighborhood to avoid any urban woes, but this time we were rudely awakened by roosters! We got to the Cubs game early enough to hit around some balls, but unfortunately were parked to a larger group of goofballs. And yes, they were Angels fans. Dan had to head back early, but the rest of us went to Lindsay's parents place where we were treated with pizza, a good old-fashioned shower, and some 2x2 hoops in her backyard roller rink. We then hit the dog track which was the most underrated part of the trip. Every race took place about every 12-15 minutes, which was way faster than the horse races. We all won money too, so that was also a factor.

We parked the RV in another residential area that night, but even though we were parked in the flight path of the airport, we didn't seem to care anymore. Dave caught an early flight out, but the rest of us hit the A's St. Patty's Game. Of course, we tried the green beer which was actually a green-dyed Corona, but for some reason it tasted better. Campbell also caught a foul ball, although it bounced a few times before he corralled it.

All in all, a great trip considering all that could have gone wrong, like crashing the RV, not being able to shower or inviting Parker. Next year might be packed with the Dodgers moving to town, but I'm willing to give it a go now that I've got over 200 miles logged into a RV.

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