Last week Ellen and I took our rented
VW Jetta south to Chicago down I90 to 294 to I80 East skirting the
loop, but not the tolls. Man, they're greedy. From the Illinois
border to Amherst, Ohio, it cost $29.50 in tolls! We stayed in
Amherst all three nights. That drive was almost 10 hours. (Our
rented car cost $221 for the week but with its 33 MPG average, I
figure we saved $127 in fuel compared to either one of our 4X4's in
the same distance, and if it had broken down, Hertz would provide
another car in an hour or two so we wouldn't be cooling our heels for
maybe days while Honest Lloyd's Repair shop in Podunk Ohio got one of
our old vehicles back on the road. The most inexpensive gasoline was
in Canton at $3.39.) Why Ohio? Well, Cleveland is home to the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame and Canton is home to the Pro Football Hall of
Fame, two destinations that have been on on my bucket list for a long
time.
The first night, on a tip from the Days
Inn night clerk, we drove down along Lake Erie to search for a sports
bar with a good burger. We cruised through a park and into downtown
Lorain. We finally settled on Jackalope's at the Lorain marina.
(Interesting name for Ohio; jackalopes are mythical western plains
creatures that are basically jack rabbits with antelope horns.) We
were able to get a table out on their deck right away. The people
were super and the prices not bad. When she found out where we were
headed, our waitress who is a huge Cleveland fan told us about some
of the cool things to visit in Cleveland including the Great Lakes
Science museum and new aquarium, and then she introduced us to music
writer and photographer Kurt Hernon. He was kind enough to talk
about the hall of fame and some things not to miss. He has a pretty
cool website at: kurthernon.com. He also told us how to avoid the
toll roads to get to Cleveland and Canton. Speaking of photography,
when we got there to the restaurant, it had been raining and had just
quit. Ellen was able to take some shots of a huge and dramatic
double rainbow that went from the lake over the city of Lorain.
While we ate, from the deck at Jackalope's we looked out over the
tall masts of sail boats as a red sun sank steadily into the lake.
The pier was decorated with sculptured lawns, shrubs, trees, and many
flowers. We even saw a deer. (Unlike Wisconsin roads, we saw very
few road killed deer or other critters for some reason.) Also we
could see a coast guard facility with a long pier that lead out to a
huge lighthouse. Anyway, the people and place were special and very
cool.
Back when I called about tickets, a
kind lady at the Pro-Football Hall of Fame told me that there were
busloads of cub scouts coming on Wednesday of that week, so we opted
to go to Canton on Tuesday. The signage isn't real great, but we
found the turn off. The Hall is right off of I77, so we drove right
to it. We had to park at a nearby high school because of all the
preparations underway for this weekend's Induction of new hall of
fame members: Warren Sapp, Bill Parcels, Larry Allen, Cris Carter,
Jonathon Ogden, Curley Culp, and the most important of all – for us
anyway – Dave Robinson of the Green Bay Packers' glory years teams.
We rode a shuttle to the hall. An older gentleman who said he was a
retired creamery worker and now a Hall of Fame docent, talked to us
about the preparations – over a week in advance – for the big
event coming up. Each inductee gets a huge tent on the grounds
(already being erected on July 23!) and there is a parade and the
Hall of Fame Game played in the Stadium on site, Fawcett Field. This
year Dallas and Miami will begin their preseason on August 4. He
said he had heard we have a pretty nice hall of fame museum in Green
Bay and he hoped to see it sometime. (Ellen and I compared notes
later and agreed that the Packer Hall of Fame is maybe better, but
then we are sort of partial to the Pack.)
Inside there is a self guided tour of
the halls and galleries and theaters. There is plenty of Packer
history and paraphernalia and newsreels and highlights, including one
of the team benches used for Green Bay during the Ice Bowl, uniforms
and equipment from the early years, videos of famous plays and
players, and of course the busts of all the Packer inductees
including Curley Lambeau, Don Hutson, John McNauley, Clark Hinkle,
Bart Starr, Vince Lombardi, Ray Nitschke, Reggie White, Cal Hubbard,
Mike Michalske, Arnie Herber, Walt Kiesling, Emlen Tunnel, Tony
Canadeo, Len Ford, Jim Taylor, Forrest Gregg, Herb Adderly, Willie
Davis, Jim Ringo, Paul Hornung, Ted Hendricks, Willie Wood, Jan
Stenrud, James Lofton, Henry Jordan, and after this week, Dave
Robinson. Current Packers are represented too. There was an Aaron
Rodgers MVP display and some award winning photography in a gallery
that included shots of Favre, Rodgers, and a grinning Donald Driver
doing a Lambeau Leap. At the risk of ire raising, I have to mention
my three favorite Bears too. Walter Payton because he deserves the
title sweetness for all he did for kids, not to mention his fabulous
career in football; Jim McMahon for his antics at UW Platteville and
with the 1986 Superbowl Bears, and for being a member of the Packers
Superbowl 31 team, and finally, William the Refrigerator Perry. He
was just plain fun; Perry's Superbowl ring is on display. It is a
size 23 and maybe the largest ring of its kind; I think you might be
able to put a half dollar through it.
We were about to view the Road To
The Superbowl film when we were
ushered to the lower floors because the tornado sirens were going in
Canton. Fortunately, it was a false alarm. We visited with Jake,
from Massillon, Ohio and an Ohio University sports management major
who was working as a docent for the summer. He said he loved
football but played lacrosse in high school. He was pumped because
he might be able to be a driver for one of the inductees or NFL types
who come for the induction ceremony. He told us that one gets into
the hall of fame by being nominated by anyone, and then voted on by a
group of sportswriters from each team city. Nice kid. Jake took our
picture by the Lombardi Trophy that Elen and I predict will be given
to the Packers this February after they win the next Super Bowl. We
had lunch in the hall's sandwich shop and spent about 6 hours there.
Tickets were $22, and we both enjoyed the experience. If you're a football fan and of a
certain age, you will really enjoy this venue; however, most of the
high school and younger kids I saw were pretty bored and I predict
that many of those cub scouts will be too.
Next week, I'll rock on about our visit
to Cleveland and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Until next time, get out – it finally
rained; we had nearly 2 inches last week, enough so that our driveway
is rutted. Ellen found some hail damage in the garden too. Our new
hummingbird feeder with the ant moat on top and six flower feeding
stations is the hottest meal in town, at least for the hummers. We
watched all six holes busy while other birds buzzed around
impatiently wanting a turn. They are using up nearly 4 cups of
nectar a day! Also, in the last journal, I wrote that Ellen talked
to master gardener Roger Plesha – Roger Plesha is a master
photographer; our master gardener is Roger Popelka (that's what
happens when Ellen doesn't proofread my column before I send it.)
Finally, doesn't it make you just sick to see how low Ryan Braun has
sunk? I am just disgusted by the whole story. On a better note,
baseball playoffs, football, and Hunting season are just around the
corner! Enjoy.
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