Royalty w/o 2/3 in review

Monday February 3rd after work I went out to Newark, NJ to see the Devils host the Colorado Avalanche at the Prudential Center. I got to meet up with my pals, the King & Frank Anichiarico aka Duck who were also in attendance that night.

As for the game we saw, the Devils scored a goal late in the first period to a take a 1-0 lead. It appeared they were going to make that goal stand up for the victory. That was wishful thinking for the home crowd. The Avalanche wound up getting the equalizer with just 1:47 left in regulation time to knot the score at one. The game went into overtime & the Avalanche scored just 28 seconds in to beat the Devils, 2-1 in sudden death. It wasn't a total loss thanks to modern NHL rules. The Devils by getting to overtime still got credited with a point in the standings even though they blew the game late then lost it in the extra session. As the King likes to say & I quote "they reward teams for losing." In addition, he likes to say "when is a loss not a loss." This game is a classic example of that.

Tuesday night after work I came home. I wound up making myself dinner & I took it easy for a change.

Wednesday night after work I went to the Transformed MSG to see the Knicks welcome the Portland Trail Blazers to the Big Apple. I sat up in the West Balcony where I usually do for games there these days. On this night, I wound up being by a group of people who were from Portland, Oregon. They were all decked out in their Trail Blazer gear. 

As for the game I saw, the Knicks did their best to hang with the surprising Trail Blazers most of the night. In the end, the Trail Blazers escaped the area with a 94-90 victory much to the delight of their fans who came all the way across the country to see them play on the road.

Thursday night after work I went to the Barclays Center in downtown Brooklyn where I met up with the King. That night the Nets took on the shorthanded San Antonio Spurs who played without their star players, Tony Parker & Manu Ginobili who were hurt as well as Tim Duncan who was given the night off. When I heard that, I was furious. People spend good money to see these guys play. Injuries are part of the game. As for Tim Duncan needing a night off, I thought that was a bunch of nonsense. 

As for the game we saw, the Spurs got off to a fast start despite being without their key players. As the game went on, the Nets came back. Once they took the lead they didn't look back as they cruised to a 103-89 win.

Friday night after work I returned to Newark, NJ to see the Devils battle the Edmonton Oilers with the King who I met at the Rock.

As for the game we saw, it was similar to the Avalanche game except both teams scored 29 seconds apart midway through the first period. It stayed that way as the game wound up going into overtime again. This time however the Devils came away with the two points as defenseman Jon Merrill lit the lamp midway through the extra session to give the Devils & their faithful something to cheer about on their way home, a 2-1 decision over the Oilers.

Saturday the King & I took the Long Island Railroad out to Lindenhurst where we met up with our pal Eddie Pelle who drove us to Stony Brook to see a college basketball game between his alma mater, the Seawolves & the New Hampshire Wildcats at the Pritchard Gymnasium.

Stony Brook Seawolves basketball at Prichard Gymnasium

As for the game we saw, it was a close contested from start to finish. Unfortunately for Eddie, the Seawolves came out on the short end of the scoreboard as they lost to the Wildcats, 73-69.

As a positive note, it was Wolfie their mascot's birthday. As a result, everybody in attendance were treated to cupcakes to celebrate the special occasion during the halftime intermission. 

After the game, Eddie drove us to Smokin' Al's which is a barbecue joint that he's gone to a number of times in the past before Islander games in Massapequa Park for dinner. Ironically we were on our way to the Nassau Coliseum that night too. Luckily we had enough time to do so. Eddie wet my appetite a few weeks beforehand. He painted a picture that couldn't be beat.

Full rack of Monster Bones at Smokin' Al's

As for the meal we had, I was so stuffed when I got done I felt sick to my stomach. Eddie wound up taking a doggie bag home. My stomach devoured the food & then some. I had burnt ends to start along with a full rack of monster bones which were massive sized ribs. They were so good I didn't want them to go to waste. 

After we ate, Eddie drove us to the Nassau Coliseum where we saw the Islanders play the Colorado Avalanche. It was the last game before the NHL shut down due to the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

As for the game we saw, the Avalanche raced out to a 3-0 lead midway through the game. The Islanders broke the shutout midway through the third period but they fell short by a score of 4-2. 

I want to thank Eddie again for taking such good care of the King & I.

Sunday night the King & I went to the Barclays Center to see the Nets play the New Orleans Pelicans. More importantly, I got to see my pal Mark Chesna who flew up from Atlanta to see the game. Mark needed to see the Barclays Center for the first time. I was able to get him a ticket a few months ago. He was joined by an old friend of his, Lars Wigren who lives within walking distance of the arena. 

As for the game we saw, the Nets went up early which set the tone for the rest of the night. They wound up beating the Pelicans, 93-81. 

As for me the real highlight was getting to see Mark again. In addition, I got to meet & greet his friend Lars.

Stay tuned for a few more posts that will recap the rest of my adventurous month of  February.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty goes to Fenway Park for ALCS Game 1!

On Saturday October 12th, the King, our friend Phil Butleman & I went up to Yankee Stadium so we could meet up with our pal Bryan Gilligan who drove up all up to Boston to Fenway Park for Game 1 of the American League Championship Series. The Red Sox were hosting the Detroit Tigers that night.

The Thursday before I left to go down South I was able to purchase tickets to that game because I had registered for the lottery they were having online to get tickets. I received an e-mail a day or two prior letting me know that I won a chance to have an opportunity to purchase tickets. It said it wasn't guaranteed that I would be able to secure the tickets though. I was able to get up to four tickets for one ALCS game if I got lucky & tickets popped up. With that being said, I decided to get the cheapest tickets I could so we could all get into the ballpark without losing a limb. I wound up getting three standing room tickets & a grandstand seat in section 33 in left field next to the Green Monster after I let some other pricier seats go. The King & I didn't care about having a seat so to speak. Phil on the other hand wanted a seat. With that being said, I told him he could have the seat I got. Bryan didn't seem to care one way or the other. He was happy to be in. In fact, he thanked me when informed him that I got us all tickets. He said & I quote "you did the job." It turned out that Bryan decided he would rather have a seat after all. He did manage to get himself one. As a result, I wound up with an extra ticket since a few other friends of ours decided for whatever reason they didn't want to join us. As I like to say, it's their loss.

Me & Joey Kraft outside Fenway Park

 Bryan parked the car on the street for free around 6PM & we walked a mile or so to Fenway Park. We decided to stop off by our favorite vendor outside the ballpark, Sausage Connection. Surprisingly, we got to see Mama & Harry who were both working there that night. It was great to see them again. Over the years it's become a tradition of ours to stop by to say hello even if we're not hungry. This time we certainly were. The King ordered a steak tips sandwich & I had a sausage. While we were eating & talking to them, our pal Phil was having a smoke. We thought he went into the ballpark. Luckily he didn't. The King went in when he finished eating. Then I saw Phil so I told him that we thought he went inside. I told him I have to try & get rid of the extra ticket I had. He told me they have a scalp free zone up the block. He said do you want me to show you where it is. I told him yes, that would be great. We proceeded to walk down the block together. As we were walking down, I got the impression there wasn't a big demand for tickets for some reason. I remember going to Game 2 of the 2007 ALCS against the Cleveland Indians & tickets were very hard to come by. That wasn't the case on this night. Everybody says how loyal Red Sox fans are, I found out firsthand that's not really true. It was Saturday night & it wasn't brutally cold outside either. When we finally got to the scalp free zone that Phil told me about there was a guy standing there with a clipboard. It appeared that I needed to give him my contact information in order to try & sell my extra ticket. Shortly thereafter, I heard a guy nearby yell out my name. He said & I quote "Gary Herman, it's me, Joey Kraft." To be perfectly honest, I was totally beside myself. I couldn't believe it. I was in a state of shock. We shook hands & we exchanged pleasantries. He said he needed a ticket for the game. He came all the way from Seattle at the last minute he said. He had just enough frequent flier miles to make it happen. He told me he was thinking of contacting to see if I was going. For whatever reason, he didn't. With that being said, without any hesitation I gave him my extra standing room ticket that I had. We stayed outside for a while because he met a perfect stranger named Dominick earlier when he got there who also needed a ticket for the game. As game time was fast approaching, I told him I'm going inside. I also told him that I plan to look for an empty seat in section 24 right in front of the grandstand which is just to the left of the screen behind home plate. They told me to try & get them a few seats too.

Joey Kraft & I inside Fenway Park

When I went into inside the park, I got my baseball passport book stamped & validated since I didn't have it when I made my only visit there back on Patriot's Day in April. This time I did. I also picked up a program for my Mark Chesna who requested one. After I took care of those priorities, I proceeded to press my luck. I went to section 24 & I wound up lucking out big time after I moved once. I got not one, not two but indeed three seats to myself. I wrote Joey Kraft a text message to let him know how lucky I was. Finally in the fourth inning, Joey & Dominick joined me. They had found a few empty seats in section 29 which was further out towards left field. When they came by me, they got to enjoy a major upgrade. We wound up spending the rest of the game together there. The King who found a few seats towards the back of the grandstand in section 23 wanted me to join him. I would have but Anibal Sanchez of the Tigers was throwing a no hitter. Mind you it was a very sloppy one as he walked six & he struck out a dozen. He lasted only six innings since his pitch count was so high. The Tigers' bullpen managed to keep the Red Sox hitless until Daniel Nava broke it up after fouling off a number of pitches off of reliever Joaquin Benoit who gave up a bloop single which prevented us from seeing history. I wasn't totally disappointed because I prefer to see one pitcher throw a no hitter not a bunch of them. It's not quite the same. The Tigers managed to win the game, 1-0 as they took a one game series lead in the best of seven series.

After the game, Bryan was nice enough to drive me to South Station in Boston so I could catch my 2:15AM Megabus back to NYC. The King, Bryan & Phil decided to stay over for game two on Sunday night. As for me, I wanted to get back home so I could go to the Jet game. The bus I took back left late at 2:28AM but it got back to NYC early at 6:28AM instead of the scheduled arrival time of 6:45AM. I proceeded to walk to the subway. I got home around 7:30AM. I laid down for a few hours before I met up with my pal Larry Peim at 31st Street & 8th Avenue at 11:30AM. He drove me out to MetLife Stadium for the Jets & Steelers game that day.

Stay tuned for all the details of that day.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty sees the Jets play the Falcons on MNF with another fellow roadtripper!

After landing in Atlanta back on Saturday, October 5th, I drove to Tennessee where I spent the weekend. Monday morning October 7th, I woke up & I planned to drive back to Atlanta for Monday night football as the Jets were on the road in Atlanta at the Georgia Dome. When I checked out of the Knights Inn in Cookeville, Tennessee, I went to Cracker Barrel which was nearby for breakfast to start my day off right. I enjoyed my Uncle Herschel's favorite which consisted of scrambled eggs, hash brown casserole, biscuits that came with sawmill gravy along with grits & a piece of farmed raised grilled catfish.

Uncle Herschel's Favorite at Cracker Barrel

After I finished my hearty breakfast, I drove towards the Great Smoky Mountains. I wound up taking a ride
back through Knoxville then I went to Pigeon Forge but when I saw how far out of the way I went, I decided to turn back so I could get to Atlanta. I arranged to meet up with another fellow roadtripper, Mark Chesna who lives about an hour from downtown Atlanta. It should be noted that Mark has been to over 2,700 live sporting events in his life. In addition, he's been to quite a number of countries in different parts of the world. I wanted to meet him earlier than I did. I called him with a progress report. It turned out he was kind enough to wait for me at the CNN Center by the food court. I finally found a parking spot on the street by a meter. Since I arrived around 6:45PM I just needed to feed the meter until 7PM which cost me $2. That was better than paying $10 or $20 in a parking lot and/or garage. In that regard, things turned out well. I wound up walking to the CNN Center which was maybe 10 minutes away. I went by the food court where Mark was holding a table for me. Upon arrival, we said hello to each other. We finally got to put a face with a name. For the past year, Mark & I have been in contact thanks to social media & modern technology. Since time was of the essence, I wound up going to Arby's for dinner. I had a roast beef sandwich with fries & a drink. It worked out well. When I finished eating, Mark & I walked towards the Georgia Dome. We ran into a scalper that Mark recognized on the street. He asked me what I wanted to pay. I told him $20. Surprisingly he was willing to meet my asking price. He had a few seats in the end zone in the upper level. I wasn't thrilled at first but after trying to wiggle my way out of the deal, we gave him $20 a ticket. We continued walking to the Dome.

Mark Chesna & I at the Georgia Dome

When we got there, we walked inside & we walked around the concourse. This was my first visit since 2002 so I didn't mind refreshing my memory of the building.

I was wearing my Gio Gonzalez jersey. As a result, I got some comments from people as I walked around. The best one was from a Latin gentleman who was so happy when he saw the name Gonzalez on my jersey. Mark said the guy must have thought it was a Tony Gonzalez jersey since he plays for the Falcons. It was hilarious. Regardless I enjoyed showing my Gio pride off.

After walking around we decided to go up to section 302 row 15 where my pal Ira Lieberfarb aka Ira from Staten Island was sitting which was in the corner of the end zone. We wound up lucking out into a few seats next to him. It turned out that his seat was better than what we had. It worked well as we got to enjoy the game with him.

As for the game we saw, the Jets lead most of the game. It should be noted they were up 27-14 in the fourth quarter with 12 minutes to go when the Atlanta faithful started to head to the exits. Typical Atlanta sports fans. Quite amazingly, the Falcons stormed back to take a 28-27 lead late in the game. The Jets did get the ball back with some time left. Geno Smith lead the Jets back as he put them in position to win the game. Thanks to the right foot of kicker Nick Folk who booted a 43 yard field goal at the gun which gave the Jets a 30-28 comeback victory. It was a perfect way to end this memorable weekend down South.

It should be noted that during halftime, the Falcons honored former running back Gerald Riggs as they put him in their ring of honor.

After the game, Mark & I walked back to the car that I rented for the weekend. I wound up giving him a ride to the train station where he left his car. We proceeded to say our goodbyes. We both enjoyed each other's company. I want to personally thank Mark for joining me while I was in the area.

Stay tuned for another special post that will go into detail about my return to the Big Apple.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman