A nice afternoon

My cousin and I decided to attend today's matinee at Jacobs Field. Weather looked promising and I thought it would be a fun way to spend the day. I asked how he wanted to get there. I thought maybe we could meet up and carpool or to avoid parking take the paid. He had another idea. Let's bike to the game.

Now my cousin bikes a great. He lives in Lakewood and he zips all over town. I live in Cleveland and wouldn't consider my neighborhood to be as bike friendly. I rode a bike once a few weeks ago with my niece in the Metroparks. So I wasn't sure if I was up for it.

In fact everyone I told about our plan gave one of three answers: You'll die. Did you get a DUI? And are you nuts?

But it sounded more grueling that it really was -- in fact Jacobs Field is only 4.38 straight down Lorain Road. That didn't sound so bad.

Yesterday I took a test run and road my bike from my house to W.25th. It was a nice easy ride. No real worries. I celebrated my success with a Christmas Ale from Great Lakes Brewery and then made the round trip home. A little dehydrated but successful.

It was a little warmer today but again it wasn't a bad trip. In fact climbing up the bridge with a full view of the Gateway project and the statues seemingly guarding the bridge was pretty cool. We raced down the bridge and were ready to get tickets.

The ticket lines were long. So my cousin went to look for a place to look up the bikes while I stood in line with my bike. You would have thought no one had ever seen a bike before. But I despise missing the first pitch and wanted to get through the line as fast as I could. One guy asked if I had to buy a second seat for my bike. Most just stared at me like I was nuts.

We got inside and sat down as the first pitch was thrown. It was a perfect day for baseball. Not too hot. A nice breeze. And despite Joel Skinner's best efforts (I have no clue about his thought process. Sometimes it seems it is based on what happened last time he made choice rather than the situation) the Indians won the game.

The ride home was uneventful but I felt it in my knees and back. I drank 100 ounces of Gatorade and everything seems fine.

Someone asked me why would I want to go to a game. I said because I love baseball. I enjoy it and frankly when the team isn't very good it can be more fun in a different way. Of course I want a team that can win a world series. But pressure packed pennant race baseball isn't very much fun until a rally starts or the game ends with a victory. It is stressful. Going with no expectations, you can enjoy every moment. There is little reason to get mad and even when Skinner is a bonehead you get over it quickly. Being at the ballpark is just a great way to spend a day. And frankly biking there made even better.