Travel Tag

As the Augusta National finished hosting the Women’s amateur tournament this past weekend, my thoughts are about the continuing growth of women’s sports and women's golf, and also about the women that have lead the sport throughout history.

I remember seeing the name Patty Berg for the first time on the clubs in my mother’s golf bag. From her first clubs when she was a teen, all the way through her adulthood, my mom's clubs were Patty Berg’s woods and irons. I started golfing when I was 3 years old and even before I was big enough, I was obsessed with those Patty Berg’s! I was convinced my little kid clubs were holding back my game.

In the summertime, I golfed every week with grandparents and recall being told numerous times by them that Patty Berg was the greatest female golfer in history. She was a founding member of the LPGA, and from 1937 to 1961, she dominated the game with 57 LPGA and WPGA tournament wins. She won 15 majors during her career

The last 108 years or so has been torturous for Chicago Cubs fans. Then, on Saturday, October 22, 2016, a day that shall live on in the memories of modern day Cubs fans forever, the Chicago Cubs won the NLCS and earned their first trip to the World Series since 1945!

The scene here in the city has been electric. Wrigleyville was packed with an estimated 300,000 on Saturday night. The bars were over-flowing, many charging much more than their normal cover charges for a game day. Fireworks were exploding in all the cities neighborhoods well into the night after the Cubs clinched.

At night, the Chicago skyline is dotted with Cubby Blue on most of the major skyscrapers. The Art Institute has donned Cubs caps on their world famous lion statues at their entrance. Cubs jersey's and W flags are present everywhere. Both Northsiders and Southsiders have joined in a sort of peaceful unity in honor the Chicago Cubs being in the World Series.

On my way to work this morning, I passed the Metra station

Rolling hills, beautiful scenery, and equine history await when you choose to stay in Lexington, Kentucky during the most popular horse racing week in the United States. Staying in Lexington has become one of our most popular tours and for good reason. Travelers can enjoy a laid back atmosphere, away from the hustle of downtown Louisville during Derby Week and instead relax during the evenings over looking the rolling hills of the legendary Blue Grass Country.

How to plan your trip:

Consider staying three or four nights in Lexington to fully experience everything the area has to offer during Derby Week. Our Lexington Kentucky Derby Packageincludes lodging at the Embassy Suites Lexington, located close to area highlights including area horse farms, bourbon distilleries, and downtown Lexington.

Lexington - Kentucky Derby Tour Itinerary:

Day 1: Arrive in Lexington. It's easy to fly into Blue Grass Airport (LEX). In the evening, relax at the hotel or take a quick cab ride to downtown Lexington

Cowboys Sideline Reporter’s Travel Diary: A Special Night for the Team at Freedom Tower’s One World Observatory

--Kristi Scales

Ten road trips a year are among the biggest perks of broadcasting NFL games. Some people don’t like business travel or find it tedious to make trips that are quick turnarounds, but Cowboys road trips are among my favorite parts of the job.

During the 2015 season, Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett deviated from the team’s normal travel routine to provide an extra special experience for players and coaches (and a couple of lucky long-time broadcasters, including myself). For the game at the New York Giants in October, we left a day early so the team could spend Friday evening touring the 9/11 Memorial and attending a private team dinner party inside Freedom Tower.

It was a high-brow evening, to be sure. All the players and coaches were dressed in suits & ties. The team’s hotel is in Jersey City, so upon arrival on Friday evening at Newark Airport we took a bus to

I want to express my gratitude to all our guests who have entrusted my team with planning their sports travel adventures over the years.

In this blog I'm sharing many of our memories (in no particular order) as we celebrate this business milestone. I invite all our past guests to share your special Sports Traveler trip memories and experiences by posting below, on Twitter using #SportsTraveler15 or on our Facebook page.

Here’s to another 15+ years!

Cheers!
Anbritt

#1: 2003 Eagles at Dolphins. The tour was successful for our guests, but what many people don’t know is what happened during our opening night reception. I choose a large dock for our groups evening meal overlooking the intercostal waterway. At some point during the event, one of our guests fell or jumped off the dock and onto the deck of one of the super yachts parked below. He was found alive by the crew, remarkably uninjured, and eating a pork chop in the galley. They returned him to us and I somehow convinced the captain of the boat to not call the police. The rest of the weekend went great, but to this day I have never done any of our receptions on a dock!

#2: Cubs Fan Tours 2002-2007. My family raised me a Cubs fan and in the mid-2000's I started a second company to focus on travel to Chicago to see Wrigley Field. We still offer similar Cubs tours every year at Sports Traveler and I’ll always be a Cubs fan no matter what my southsider friends say.

#3: Sports Traveler Chicago - Book Launch. Lydia Rypcinski and I wrote this book together and it won best non-fiction awards both in Illinois and National competitions! Our book launch party is still remembered fondly by those who attended. It was at Harry Caray’s, featured several sports mascots, and our guest of honor was the now late Minnie Minoso.

#4: STR: Sports Traveler Radio. For some reason in the early days all the college kids from my university’s radio station ended up working for my company. We launched our own podcast and had opinions about sports travel for 6+ awesome years on iTunes.

#5: Cowboys vs Redskins 2014. Our first marriage proposal! We were standing on the field at AT&T Stadium when he got down on his knee and she said yes! So sweet.

Before we get into the heart of this month’s travel blog I feel it would be best to introduce myself to you all. My name is Jake Alleruzzo, the newest addition to the Sports Traveler staff. I myself have a very deep passion for sports travel and thought writing our latest blog entry would be a great way to share my experiences with you fellow sports travelers.

About a month ago I took a trip to Missouri to a beautiful region called Lake of the Ozarks, located just a few miles south of Kansas City. Being in the far western edge of Missouri is quite a unique experience, considering the mixed fandom between Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals fans. While we were in the western tip of Missouri I could have sworn I was in the heart of Kansas City as I drove through town and saw Royals flags hanging about. This goes to show you that you never know what kind of fans you can find as you travel through any given town.

Now going through this town you would figure there is not much to do besides

washingtonpost.com

I love London and I love the Dallas Cowboys so when the opportunity came to host this years NFL International Series in London when the Dallas Cowboys play the Jacksonville Jaguars in November I was in!

I’ve hosted tours all over the world during the past 14 years at Sports Traveler and this trip is one that I am really looking forward to.

From Westminster Abbey to Big Ben to St. Paul’s Cathedral, the city is filled with history and amazing architecture at every turn. I love the fish and chips and taking a walk on the River Thames. I love the cool air on my face. And then there is the game at the incredible Wembley Stadium. I can hardly wait to show you everything while we are in this amazing city!

On November 6^th, we’ll start out at Heathrow Airport where our guides will meet and greet you after your arrival and transfer you to our host hotel. We will be staying at the Copthorne Tara Hotel, located right in the heart of everything you’ll want to see in the city center.

I now follow a horse on Twitter and Facebook. But this isn’t just any horse, he is the great Little Silver Charm. I met him for the first time on the farm where he is spending his “retirement years”, Old Friends, an equine retirement center home located in Georgetown, Kentucky, just outside of Lexington.

Old Friends is home to many past Derby winners and race horses, but the real star is Little Silver Charm or 'Charmie' as he's known to his thousands of followers and fans (follow him on Twitter or his Facebook page). He was a rescue show pony who today considers himself an entertainer.

He’s a blonde, loves kids, carrots, and plays soccer in YouTube videos.  He often talks about his crush, a horse named Zenyatta, and he seems to enjoy posing for quite a few pictures that are auctioned off to benefit Old Friends. He even has his own miniature replica toy available on Ebay.

I recently traveled to Ireland and Northern Ireland to see exactly where I come from. I ended up in the little coastal town in Northern Ireland called Annalong located an hour north of Dublin, right at the base of the Mourne Mountains. 

I walked the shores of the Irish Sea on a gravel-like sand, visited the church where my great-grandfather worshipped, and hiked The Kingdom of Mourne, a place my cousin described as the ‘Center of the Universe’. Here you can see the mountains, the sea, and the green earth all in one glance. Incredible.