Royalty sees the Jets play the Steelers at MetLife Stadium!

After I came back to NYC bright & early on Megabus Sunday morning October 13th, I still found a way to have enough energy to go to MetLife Stadium to see the Jets play the Steelers that afternoon.
I got home 7:30AM. I barely slept on the bus because it was hard to get comfortable. I tried to laid down for a little while when I got home. I tossed & turned most of the time. I got up & I went out to meet my pal Larry Peim in Midtown Manhattan who drove me out to the Meadowlands since he had a parking pass that day.

After we parked the car in the lot, I wound up meeting my friend Rich Wolber at the MetLife Central gate who like me needed a ticket for the game. Larry had a ticket already so he went inside. I wound up getting two tickets for $35 each. I decided to stay downstairs with Rich who likes to sit or stand in section 146 which is in the corner of the end zone. It's under the overhang which protects you from the sun & the wind. In addition, you can turn around & see the replays as well as the highlights from other games there.

Prince at MetLife Stadium for Jets & Steelers

As for the game we saw, there were a good number of Steeler fans in attendance despite their awful 0-4 start. The Jets & rookie quarterback Geno Smith had a rough day. Geno threw two interceptions in the red zone that killed a few drives. The Jets managed to hang around at halftime as they trailed, 9-6. In the second half, the Steelers turned it up a notch as they got big games from their receivers Antonio Brown & Emmanuel Sanders as well as tight end Heath Miller as they went on to beat the Jets, 19-6. The Steelers' defense shut down the Jets' offense all day.

After the game, I met Larry at the car & he drove me back to Manhattan. He asked me if I wanted to go out for dinner but I said no because I was exhausted. I wound up going home & I made myself dinner.

I wound up watching ALCS Game 2 on TV for seven innings. The Tigers were ahead when I shut it off. When I got up Monday morning I found out they blew the game as the Red Sox evened the series at one.

Stay tuned for a special post that will recap the great weekend I enjoyed after having nights off after work during the week.

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 meets up with Kurt Smith, author of Ballpark E-Guides at Citi Field!

Kurt Smith & I at Citi Field

Over the last few years, I've had the privilege & honor of meeting & greeting fellow roadtripper Kurt Smith  who happens to be the author of Ballpark E-Guides. He lives in Turnersville, NJ with his family. I've met him a number of times when I've gone to Philadelphia to see a sporting event. If he couldn't make the game I was attending, he's always willing to meet up to have a meal together so we could catch up if he was available to do so depending on his family needs.

This time Kurt decided to come to visit NYC to see the Mets play at Citi Field. In January, he booked a round trip ticket on Megabus which he took from Philadelphia to NYC for a mere $2.50 round trip. Since he bought the ticket so far in advance he was fortunate to get one of their advertised special fares for a dollar each way. Since they add a fifty cent reservation fee to all their transactions the grand total came out to a whopping $2.50. That doesn't even get you a gallon of gas if you drive a car these days he said. What a deal he got for himself. If you're familiar with his website you know this man knows how to get the most bang for his buck. As a result, he decided to start a side business a few years ago to help him make ends meet.

Kurt is a baseball fan and he decided he wanted to put his research skills to better use. By doing so, he has done extensive research to compile the essential information that people like you and I need in order to afford to attend a baseball game these days. Despite the bad economy we currently live in on a daily basis, the cost of living in general is still out of control. With that being said, more people than ever before have to resort to different ways of saving money just to make ends meet like Kurt. Once people have their necessities in order, they usually like to enjoy a luxury once in a while too. If you're a sports fan, you want to take in a live ballgame. In order to do so, I think it would be a wise investment to take advantage of getting a Ballpark E-Guide of your favorite team which can instantly save you money so you can afford to go more often to see them play when the opportunity presents itself.

With that being said, I strongly suggest and recommend that if you read and follow my blog that you take Kurt up on his special offer that he has made available to you. All you have to do is sign up for his weekly newsletter which will be delivered right to your e-mail inbox usually every Friday. A few minutes of your time will go a long way in making your life better in general because he includes other helpful hints that will save you even more. By doing so, you'll get a E-Guide of your choice for free.

Once you realize what a great deal is it you'll probably want to get more especially if you want to make a road trip. If you do, tell Kurt you're a royal reader so he can give you his version of royal treatment.

Kurt decided to revisit Citi Field so he could revise his current E-Guide so it's up to date especially since the Major League All-Star Game will be taking place at Citi Field on July 16th. As a result, anybody who plans to attend a Met game and/or the All-Star Game itself or the other festivities will have access to the 2013 edition. He continues to validate his credibility by doing that.

Please note that Kurt doesn't have E-Guides for all the ballparks just yet. He's done half of them so far. If and when time allows, he hopes to get them all done some day.

As for the game we saw, the Mets won in dramatic fashion as Marlon Byrd got the game winning hit with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Mets a 4-3 victory over the Miami Marlins. What a way for Kurt to head back home.

I want to personally thank Kurt for joining the King and I as well as the rest of the Royal Court that was on hand that day. Among those who were with us on that cold, nasty windy day we're a few regulars in Bryan Gilligan and Vincent Ascanio. We also had Michael Carson who seemed interested in Kurt's E-Guides. In matter of fact, he gave him a business card so he can accommodate his needs & wants in the future.

Stay tuned as I continue to play catch up. I plan to do my w/o 4/8 in review. In addition, I will do some special posts that will recap that memorable weekend we had. Sorry for the delay. I do appreciate your patience.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman