Royalty Tours USA

Monday, January 27, 2014

Royalty had a December to Remember!

The month of December got started with a two sport doubleheader as the King & I went to MetLife Stadium on the 1st to see the Jets play their division rival, the Miami Dolphins. The Jets continued their downward spiral as they lost for the third week in a row. After that debacle, we went to the Transformed Garden to see the Knicks take on the New Orleans Pelicans. After a night off on Monday night, I had a busy week. Tuesday night I went to the Barclays Center to see the Nets host the Denver Nuggets. Wednesday night I went to Newark, NJ to see the Devils do battle with the Montreal Canadiens at the Prudential Center. Earlier in the day, our pal & fellow roadtripper Paul Derrick who recently got back in touch with me came to visit the King & I for the weekend. He wound up meeting up with our pal Eddie Pelle who arranged to meet him & they both went out to Stony Brook for a college basketball game that night. Thursday night after work I met up with Paul & the King at the Barclays Center as the Nets hosted the Knicks in their first meeting of the season. It should be noted that many Knick fans who are priced out of the Garden made their presence felt in Brooklyn. Friday night the King & I went back to the Rock as the King's favorite hockey team, the Detroit Red Wings came to the area to play the Devils. Paul wanted to see Madison Square Garden for the first time so I sold him my ticket for the Knick game. They played the Orlando Magic. Saturday morning Paul joined the King & I as well as our friend Frank Anichiarico aka Duck as we all took Megabus to Philadelphia for the day. We all saw three basketball games. The first one was at the Wells Fargo Center where the Temple Owls were playing the Texas Longhorns at Noon. We wound up meeting up with some friends of ours there. We had Manny Morales & Andrew Van Cleve who brought his son Micah with him. After that game, we went to the Landmark Americana for a late lunch/early dinner. We met up with our pal Frankie Centola who practically lives there when he's not working. It worked out well since we had our second game at Drexel which is right there. The Drexel Dragons played the Tennessee State Tigers at 4PM. After that game, Paul Derrick decided to go to the Palestra to see the University of Penn play Wagner College while the King, Frank & I went back to the Wells Fargo Center to see the 76ers play the Denver Nuggets. After the games, we all met up near Drexel because Megabus is located a few blocks from there. It worked out well as we all got to do what we set out to do. Sunday afternoon Paul joined the King & I as we went into Midtown Manhattan & we met up with our friend Larry Peim who drove us all out to MetLife Stadium where we saw the Jets play the Oakland Raiders. Our pal Eddie Pelle joined us too. After the game, I went back into Manhattan so I could go to see the Rangers play the Washington Capitals that night. The King wound up going with Eddie & Paul to see Rutgers play basketball against the Pirates of Seton Hall instead. 

The week of 12/9 started with a night off. It should be noted that Paul who stayed with the King & I while he visited got up very early so he could catch his flight back to Houston, Texas where he lives. Tuesday night the King & I went to the Barclays Center to see the Nets host the Boston Celtics who they made the big off season trade with that brought Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce & Jason Terry to Brooklyn. Wednesday night we went to the Transformed Garden to see the Knicks play the Chicago Bulls who lost their star guard Derrick Rose again for the season thanks to another knee injury. Thursday night we went back to the Barclays Center as the Nets took on the Los Angeles Clippers. After having a rare Friday night off, I went to the Hynes Athletic Center in New Rochelle Saturday afternoon where I saw my first game at Iona. The Gaels as they're called played the Bonnies of St. Bonaventure which is located in Upstate NY near Buffalo in Olean, New York. After that game, I went out to Newark, NJ & I saw the Devils host the Tampa Bay Lightning that night at the Prudential Center. Sunday afternoon the King & I went to MetLife Stadium for a possible Super Bowl preview as the Seattle Seahawks came to play the Giants. They wound up shutting them out, 23-0. After that game, the King & I took NJ Transit back into Penn Station. We went to Brother Jimmy's BBQ for dinner before we went to the Garden to see the Rangers play the Calgary Flames that night. We were joined by my pal Greg Venuto who came down from Norwalk, Connecticut with his buddy Paul Bosler. They were also going to the Ranger game. We all got to enjoy each others company as well as a great southern style meal. 

The week of 12/16 started off well as I wound up meeting up with my friends Peter & Carmen Agnew from Baltimore who came to NYC to visit for a week. They had bought tickets for the Knick game that Monday night through the Manhattan Club where they stay when they come to visit. Ironically the Washington Wizards were playing the Knicks that night so it was an added bonus for them. We wound up meeting up for dinner at the La Parisienne Restaurant then we all went to the Garden together. It was great to see them again. Tuesday night I returned to the Garden this time for the Jimmy V Classic as the Pittsburgh Panthers played the Cincinnati Bearcats in the first game of the doubleheader which was followed by the Florida Gators who took on the Memphis Tigers. I was joined my pal, Frank Anichiarico. Wednesday night my boss took my co-workers & I out for a holiday dinner after work at il vagabondo. Thursday night after work I had a company Christmas party in the building where we work. Friday night I went out to Newark, NJ to see the Devils play the Anaheim Ducks at the Prudential Center.

Eric Hasseltine
Saturday the King & I went to the Transformed Garden as the Knicks hosted the Memphis Grizzlies at Noon. I got to see my pal Eric Hasseltine who called the game along with my other pal Elliot Perry aka Socks. It was great to see them again. We got to catch up before they went on the air. I listen online to Eric on ESPN Radio 929 when I'm at work. He has a sports talk show that airs 2-4PM Central Time Monday-Friday. He's a great listen. The Grizzlies wound up beating the Knicks. I was so happy for these guys. It's been a rough start for them since the Grizzlies lost their star player Marc Gasol. After the game, the Grizzlies went back home while the King & I went out to the Nassau Coliseum to see the Islanders play the Anaheim Ducks. Sunday we went to MetLife Stadium to see the Jets play the Cleveland Browns in their final home game. After the game, I went to see the Rangers take on the Minnesota Wild that night.

Sojka Pavilion 
Prince at Giant Center


Heinz Field

BMO Harris Bank Center
Wings Stadium
 The week of 12/23 the King & I went to the Barclays Center as the Nets played the Indiana Pacers. After spending Christmas Eve at Donovan's Pub, we returned to Brooklyn where we saw the Nets & Chicago Bulls play on Christmas Day. I did my laundry Thursday night as I prepared for the busy weekend getaway we had. Friday night after work, I went to the Prudential Center to see the Devils & Columbus Blue Jackets with the King. Saturday morning I went to Avis & I rented a car for a week. The King & I wound up driving to see a college basketball game in Bucknell, Pennsylvania. We saw the Bucknell Bison play the Fairfield Stags that afternoon at the Sojka Pavilion. That night we went to Hershey, PA where we saw the Hershey Bears play the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at the Giant Center. After spending the night at Knights Inn in Somerset, PA we drove to Pittsburgh to see the Steelers attempt to keep their slim playoff hopes alive against the Cleveland Browns at Heinz Field. The Steelers won but they didn't make the playoffs since the San Diego Chargers won their game. Monday the King & I drove 550 miles to Rockford, Illinois where we saw a minor league hockey game as the Rockford IceHogs hosted the Charlotte Checkers. When we arrived in downtown Rockford, it was barely above zero degrees. We walked over to a local restaurant called the District Bar & Grill. We ate dinner there then we walked a few blocks to the BMO Harris Bank Center, home of the IceHogs. Tuesday we drove to Kalamazoo, Michigan as we closed out 2013 at Wings Stadium, home of the Kalamazoo Wings. They played the Cincinnati Cyclones. With that being said, I finished 2013 with 350 live sporting events. I only had 100 less than the King who ended up with 450.

Stay tuned for a special post that will recap how we spent our New Year's Day to start 2014. In addition, I'll try my best to catch up on my recent whereabouts.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty schedule w/o 1/27

Here's the game plan:

Monday, January 27th Raptors at Nets 7:30PM

Tuesday, January 28th Celtics at Knicks 7:30PM

Wednesday, January 29th Stadium Series Rangers at Islanders at Yankee Stadium 7:30PM

Thursday, January 30th Cavaliers at Knicks 8PM

Friday, January 31st Thunder at Nets 8PM 

Saturday, February 1st Bucknell Bison at Colgate Raiders 2PM

                                     Vermont Catamounts at Albany Great Danes 7:30PM

Check back to see how it turned out.

Hope all my readers and followers have a great week.

As always, if you need assistance don't hesitate to ask.

Stay tuned as I plan to do a special post that will go into detail about my adventurous month of  December. Please bear with me as I try to find time to catch up. I keep falling further behind. Please be patient. It will be worth the wait.

If you like to tweet you can follow me on Twitter too. @royaltytoursusa

Furthermore, we can hook up on Facebook and/or Four Square as well.

With all the ways to communicate these days, we should always be in touch.

Remember team work makes the dream work.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Royalty schedule w/o 1/20

Here's the game plan:

Monday, January 20th Flyers at Islanders 1PM

Tuesday, January 21st Blues at Devils 7PM

Wednesday, January 22nd 76ers at  Knicks 7:30PM

Friday, January 24th Capitals at Devils 7PM 

Saturday, January 25th Blues at Islanders 1PM

                                      Northeastern Huskies at Hofstra Pride 4PM

Sunday, January 26th Stadium Series Rangers at Devils at Yankee Stadium 12:30PM

Check back to see how it played out.

Hope all my readers and followers have a great week.

As always, if you need assistance don't hesitate to ask.

Stay tuned as I plan to do a special post that will go into detail about my adventurous month of  December. Please bear with me as I try to find time to catch up. I keep falling further behind. Please be patient. It will be worth the wait.

If you like to tweet you can follow me on Twitter too. @royaltytoursusa

Furthermore, we can hook up on Facebook and/or Four Square as well.

With all the ways to communicate these days, we should always be in touch.

Remember team work makes the dream work.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Royalty had a November to Remember!‏

The month of November started off with Opening night in Brooklyn at the Barclays Center as the Nets played the Heat on Friday night, the first. It continued on Saturday with a college football game at Wagner College on Staten Island which was followed by a NJ Devil game against their division rival, the Philadelphia Flyers. The first Sunday of the month consisted of a football/basketball doubleheader as the Jets hosted the Saints at MetLife Stadium. That was followed by the Knicks taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves at the newly completed transformation of Madison Square Garden.

View from Chase Bridge
The week of 11/4 I went to see the Nets host the Jazz on Tuesday night. I wound up going to see another soccer game as the Red Bulls hosted leg two of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Houston Dynamo that Wednesday night. Unfortunately for our pal Mike Carroll they lost & their great season came to a close. Friday night I took a ride up to the Bronx where I met up with the King as we saw the Fordham Rams play the Red Flash of St. Francis of Pennsylvania. Over the weekend, thanks to our pal Eddie Pelle, the King & I took a ride out to Long Island. We rode out to Lindenhurst on LIRR where we met up with Eddie who drove us out to Stony Brook where we saw the Seawolves battle the Richmond Spiders. Ironically a new co-worker of mine, Daniel Zagoria was at the game too. He told me his roommate's Cousin played for the Spiders. Little did I know when I saw them play in Rhode Island in October. His roommate Nick's Cousin is Evan Kelly who plays on the defensive line & he wears #90. After the game, the King & I took the LIRR to the Barclays Center where we saw the Nets host the Pacers. That Sunday we did another two sport doubleheader as we went to MetLife Stadium in the afternoon as the Giants & the Oakland Raiders played. That was followed by a hockey game as the Devils took on the Nashville Predators at the Rock in Newark.

The week of 11/11 I was able to get out of work a little early on Tuesday night which allowed me to meet up with our pal Larry Peim in Astoria who drove me to the Nassau Coliseum as the Islanders hosted the Predators. Thursday night I went back to the Transformed Madison Square Garden to watch the return of Linsanity as the Houston Rockets visited the area. Friday night I returned to the Prudential Center as the Devils & the Los Angeles Kings met up for the first time since the 2012 Stanley Cup Finals. Over that weekend, I rented a car from Avis. I wound up driving the King & I to Binghamton, NY for an afternoon college basketball game as the Binghamton Bearcats welcomed the Navy Midshipmen to the Empire State. After that game, we continued our tour of New York State as we drove to Utica to see a minor league hockey game as the Utica Comets hosted the Texas Stars in an American Hockey League game. After the game, we drove to the Buffalo area where we spent the night at Super 8. Sunday morning we were joined by our pals, Andrew Kulyk & Peter Farrell aka USRT. These guys live in Buffalo. They brought along a special guest, Peter's father. He came up to visit from Horseheads, NY which is just outside of Elmira. It was great to see them all again. We wound up having a royal breakfast together at the Royal Family Restaurant in Kenmore which is up the street from Super 8. When we finished eating, Andrew went home but Peter, his father as well as the King & I went out to Orchard Park, which is a suburb of Buffalo where the Bills play. We saw them embarrass the Jets that day. At least it was a great day for the Farrells who were in disbelief.

The week of 11/18 I went to Barclays Center on Monday night as the Nets played the Portland Trailblazers. Wednesday night I returned to the Transformed Garden as the Knicks hosted the Indiana Pacers who were off to a fast start on the young season. Over the weekend, I rented another car from Avis. This time for a week. I drove the King & I down to Washington DC as we saw the Knicks on the road against the Wizards. We wound up meeting our pal Tolu Robertson there. He joined for the game. It was nice to see him again. That Sunday morning we went to Baltimore & we met up with our friends Peter & Carmen Agnew at the Eichenkranz Restaurant. Peter had been sick all week but he was feeling better so he decided to join us. It was the King's birthday so I was really glad they were able to help start the day off right for him. As always, it was a pleasure to see them. The King & I went to see the Ravens host the Jets at M&T Bank Stadium. The Jets once again came up short. In addition, I got to see my pal Harry "Nib" Pirrung who hasn't missed a Raven home game since they moved to Baltimore back in 1996. He was there with his daughter Shannon. After the game, we drove back to Bensalem, Pennsylvania which is about 20 miles north of Philadelphia where we had a great dinner at the Texas Roadhouse.

The week of 11/25 I went to work for a half a day on Monday then I went back to the car I rented which I left in Astoria & I drove the King & I to Landover, Maryland where we saw the Redskins play the San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football. I got to meet up with my pal Charles Stephenson who has Redskin season tickets. He was there with some friends of his who were amazed with my sports travel accomplishments. Tuesday afternoon I went back to work. That night the King, Frank Anichiarico & Al Linderman met up at the Draddy Gymnasium where we saw the Manhattan Jaspers host the Fordham Rams in the Battle of the Boroughs. I want to personally thank our pal Bryan Gilligan who bought us all tickets for the game. He was supposed to join us but he had to work late that day. He graduated from there. Wednesday night after work Bryan joined the King, Frank & I for the Devil game against the Carolina Hurricanes. It was his birthday so after the game he drove us all to Donovan's Pub in Queens where we all celebrated. The King's brother Charlie & his sister Susie came too. It was a memorable night out. Thursday was Thanksgiving. The King & I drove to Lancaster, Pennsylvania where we got to spend some time with my family before we went back to Baltimore to see the Ravens take on the Steelers that night on Thursday night football. I also got to see "Nib"again. He told me he almost missed the game because he was feeling well. Glad he decided to go. After the game, we stayed at Super 8 in Aberdeen, Maryland. We got up early in the morning on Black Friday so we could get to the Wells Fargo Center where we saw the Philadelphia Flyers host the Winnipeg Jets at 11:30AM. We met up with our pal Andrew Van Cleve who was there with his son Micah. After the game, the King & I went to the Landmark Americana which is located at Drexel University. We were joined there by our buddy Frankie Centola. After we ate, we all went back to the Wells Fargo Center to see the 76ers take on the New Orleans Pelicans. Saturday morning I went to Avis & I returned the car I rented. Later that day, the King & I went to see the Hofstra Pride play the Manhattan Jaspers in a college basketball game which was followed by the Islanders who were home too. They played the Washington Capitals.

Stay tuned for another special post that will recap the month of December.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman       

Monday, January 13, 2014

Royalty schedule w/o 1/13

Here's the game plan:

Monday, January 13th Suns at Knicks 7:30PM

Tuesday, January 14th Lightning at Rangers 7PM

Thursday, January 16th FDU at LIU 7PM

Saturday, January 18th Rangers at  Senators 2PM

                                      Ottawa 67's at Belleville Bulls 7:05PM

Sunday, January 19th Lakers at Raptors 1PM

Check back to see how it turned out.

Hope all my readers and followers have a great week.

As always, if you need assistance don't hesitate to ask.

Stay tuned as I plan to do some special posts that will go into detail about the rest of my adventurous month of November as well as December. Please bear with me as I try to find time to catch up. I keep falling further behind. Please be patient. It will be worth the wait.

If you like to tweet you can follow me on Twitter too. @royaltytoursusa

Furthermore, we can hook up on Facebook and/or Four Square as well.

With all the ways to communicate these days, we should always be in touch.

Remember team work makes the dream work.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Monday, January 6, 2014

Royalty schedule w/o 1/6

Here's the game plan:

Monday, January 6th Hawks at Nets 7:30PM

Tuesday, January 7th Flyers at Devils 7:30PM

Wednesday, January 8th Warriors at Nets 7:30PM 

Thursday, January 9th Stars at Devils 7PM

Saturday, January 11th St. Francis (PA) at Central Connecticut 1PM

                                      Colts at Patriots AFC Divisional Playoff 8:15PM

Sunday, January 12th Manchester Monarchs at Providence Bruins 3:05PM

Check back to see how it played out.

Hope all my readers and followers have a great week.

As always, if you need assistance don't hesitate to ask.

Stay tuned as I plan to do some special posts that will go into detail about the rest of my adventurous month of November as well as December. Please bear with me as I try to find time to catch up. I keep falling further behind. Please be patient. It will be worth the wait.

If you like to tweet you can follow me on Twitter too. @royaltytoursusa

Furthermore, we can hook up on Facebook and/or Four Square as well.

With all the ways to communicate these days, we should always be in touch.

Remember team work makes the dream work.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman