All-Star Adventures

It’s been a while since I’ve had a chance to blog. Part of it is to be blamed on lack of internet access which has been sporadic the past few days, and the rest is due to the month from hell. I’ve been unbelievably exhausted after finishing my long days of riding. I keep on trucking.

I last blogged before I headed to the ballgame at Marlins Park in Miami. Wow. That seems like an eternity ago. However, it was only a few days past and a few hundred miles ago. Marlins Park is only a few years old, and the owner of the team has come under scrutiny from the fanbase through recent trades. It shows. The stadium wasn’t even close to capacity, in fact, they don’t even sell seats in the upper deck. A foul ball flew up there and bounced around to a stop with no children or overly eager adults racing for it while trying to not spill their beer.

The coolest thing, by far, in the ballpark was the bobblehead museum. A collection of bobbleheads from all the different Major League ballclubs. Each was individually lit, and guess what, the shelves were even moving so the heads were bobbling! How great is that! The museum is dangerous though, because I could easily miss the ballgame while I’m entranced in checking out the plethora of baseball collectibles.

During the game, I sat in front of Bruce and Al. Two pals who really knew their baseball. Both present day, and throughout the past. They loved to take advantage of Senior Thursday, in which seniors could attend the game for free. Yup. You read that right. Free baseball. Who could pass that up? I guess plenty of Miamians. Have you ever watched Finding Nemo? Remember the sharks? Bruce and Al reminded me of those two, ironically sharing some name similarities. They would heckle players for not hustling, they would argue with each other their favorite ballparks and players. Just two fun guys to share a ballgame with. In fact, they’d attended games at Yankee Stadium growing up, and just had spent their whole lives around the game.

I was also joined at the game by another Badger! Dave, also met me when I rode through Florida back in 2012. He made sure to make the trek down to Miami to catch the ballgame with me. He filled me up with some ballpark food for the next day’s ride. We talked Badger football and basketball, and he just recently returned from an extended stay in the land of beer and cheese known as Sconnie Land.

The Marlins pulled off the victory and I actually got to see a bit of Major League history. Jose Hernandez improved to 14-0 at home. If I remember correctly, he’s had 22 starts at home without suffering a loss to start his career. Woah. That’s deserving of a Major League record.

After the game, I headed back to the hotel only to rise before the sun to hit the road by 5AM to begin my trek through inland Florida. The heat was going to be rough. I was particularly worried about the infamous Florida storms that can roll throug and drench you with rain and startle you with dangerous lightning. The early start allowed me to crank out a whole lot of miles. I even had Chuck and Lynne meet up with me about 60 miles into the ride! Chuck came with his own bike and rode with, while Lynne provided some much needed support with water and snacks! As the day progressed, I just kept on biking through the heat. When the dust settled, I finished wih 140 miles! A new PR! Take that month from hell.

I spotted a few gators along the ride and I’m sure there were plenty more that I wasn’t able to see. Fortunately, I had a host a friend of Chuck and Lynne’s who cooked up a huge steak dinner and some great oatmeal in the morning. Just what I needed after a long ride.

I took of in the morning for Tampa. I needed to race to Tampa in order to catch the Rays before the All-Star break. Thus the 110 mile day was in order. Unfortunately, I got stuck in some storms that took a little longer to complete the ride. The rain doesn’t bother me. But the lightning does. Especially in Florida. I had a few strikes come within 100 yards from me. I don’t like that. Not one bit. I’d take cover, and there would be no rain so I would want tokeep moving. Then another lightning strike would come. The storms are tough to predict.

I got treated to a tour of St. Petersburg by Laura a longtime follower and supporter of B4B. I love to get the perspective of the city from a local. It’s great to learn the history and activities that make the city what it is. Thanks for treating me to a night on the town!

I had to bike to St. Petersburg in the morning where Tropicana Field is located. I got there a few hours before the game, took some pictures, it rained, and rained some more. I changed into some street clothes in a porta pottie. Stored my bike in the car of another UW friend who was meeting up with me at the game. And headed into the ballpark! Billy, from reddit, hooked me up with some tickets to the game as well as a place to crash in Tampa. He’s an Indians fan from Cleveland but like myself enjoys a good game of baseball.

All in all, the Tropicana isn’t the nicest venue, and doesn’t draw the biggest crowds but those who did attend the game were involved and active with their team. It was a fun game, back and forth, and the Rays grabbed the win to head into the All-Star break. Unfortunately, I had no luck of an All-Star break. I had to start heading to the porta pottie to change back into my bike jersey and hit the road. I thanked Kailey for locking up my car, and hooking me up with some great granola bars and gatorade. Then I was on my way.

 

I wasn’t sure how many miles I would get in before dark, but I knew I would try my best to pedal as far as I could to keep pace with my schedule. I spent the night stealth camping. My first time having to camp in Florida. I didn’t like it. Not one bit. Hot. Humid. And sweaty. Plus overnight, I got invaded by some ants. Great. They ended up chewing a hole through my tent and even part of my jersey. UGH. I just have bad luck on some days.

 

Despite the mishaps in the morning, I pedaled away. The terrain was flat, and I didn’t have many problems that would cause me to stop. Besides a few bites to eat, and water refills, I just kept cranking the miles out. All the way until sunset. The result? 150.9 miles of riding. Yes. You read that right. No typos. PR’s are made to be broken, and I did just that. Remarkably, I felt good at the end of such a long ride. My legs felt great, my body felt good, and it made for an even shorter day today. Only 67 miles. Woohoo!

After packing up my tent in a morning rain storm (not that fun), I hit the road and got my miles in, crawled into a hotel room for the night. Yup. I splurged. With the mid summer classic airing, I had to watch it. I mean, it wouldn’t be fair if I was riding my bike to all 30 ballparks and didn’t even watch the All-Star game. I already missed the Home Run Derby so I couldn’t miss all of the All-Star festivities.

So tonight, I relax, before heading off in the morning for another 130 miles. The month from hell rolls onward. It’s over halfway done, but there’s still another week in a half or so of cranking out miles day after day. I’ll continue the grind and make the miles.

Until next time, always keep on pedaling.

 

Matt