Family with Rockets & Baseball - March 12-25, 2019

Allen IV  clocked THOUSANDS of miles

A terrific night rocket launch and more baseball than most fans need, made for a terrific backdrop to the visits from my two sons.

Allen IV DROVE from Colorado by way of Missouri, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.  That is NOT a typo.  He actually drove from Colorado to Missouri, his car's transmission failed, he rented a car to avoid missing time with his mother, brother, brother's wife, niece and nephew in PA, drove back to MO to drop off the rental and get his repaired car, drive back to PA, then to SC to visit his cousin and her son, then on to Florida to see me.  By the time Allen IV returned to his home in Colorado, he had driven over 6,300 miles!

One of the LARGEST campsites we've seen!

Allen arrived at my campsite at E.G. Simmons Park in Ruskin, FL late on the 12th.  We spent a couple hours catching up then caught a few hours sleep before enjoying a day driving into St. Petersburg across the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.  We played disc golf in St. Pete's Maximo Park, then spent sunset on the beach before heading back to our campground.

Allen IV on the beach at St. Pete

St. Pete Sunset

McKechnie Field/LECOM Park, Bradenton, FL

We enjoyed our first Spring Training Baseball game on the 14th.  Our first game was at the Pirates' home for Spring Training in Bradenton, FL where they faced the Phillies and trounced them!  Allen and I celebrated in Bradenton Beach at the Bridgetender Inn, now a favorite of ours after visits there in 2017 & 2018.

Murph, Harry's empty seat, Allen IV at the Bridgetender Inn

We had tickets for an Orioles game on the 15th (my buddy Harry is a Nats and Os fan, but couldn't make this trip.  He and I have enjoyed many games together!) so Allen and I decided to skip the game and drive across Florida as there was a rocket launch scheduled!  Allen had never seen a launch, except on TV, and this gave us a chance to take a fun trip on the water, so we made the trip to Irish Rover, tried sailing (too little wind) then motored to a great viewing spot (see chartlet at end of this post) and waited for the launch.  And waited.  And waited.  And waited.  What was scheduled for an evening launch as the sun was setting, turned into a dark, yet exciting, night launch.  It meant we had a very late dinner in Titusville at the new Pier 220 and an even later night drive back across the state, but the dramatic launch was well worth the drive.

Allen IV aboard Irish Rover, VAB in distance

Warbird Airshow viewed from Irish Rover as we waited for the delayed launch

Sunset as we wait aboard Irish Rover for the rocket launch

Video of Rocket Launch from Irish Rover

Fortunately, our next event was an evening hockey game in Tampa so we were free to sleep in on Saturday.  We still left early so we could fit in a game of disc golf at the Limona Disc Golf Course, then continue downtown to Amalie Arena to catch the league leading Lightning battle the 2019 Stanley Cup Champs.  It proved to be a terrific hockey game with lots of terrific action ending with the home team on top.

Caps at Bolts, Amalie Arena, Tampa, FL

Sunday was St. Patrick's Day, perfect for another Pirates' game at home in Bradenton.  The Buccos pleased the hometown crowd with another win over the Red Sox.  Although it didn't make up for the Patriots bumping the Steelers out of the playoffs, it still felt pretty good.

St. Patrick's Day at McKechnie Field

Our next game took us to Dunedin Stadium, Dunedin, FL to the home of the Toronto Blue Jays.  I spent a week in Toronto when I began my full time cruising in 2011 so the Jays felt like "Our" team.  It was an older park which was very comfortable for me and they had a great selection of beers in their Craft Brew Pub.  And the Jays won!  Allen had a call with his employer Monday morning asking him to return early, they needed him sooner than Allen had known, so he departed Florida as soon as he deposited me back at the campground.

Allen IV cheering the Jays vs Tigers

Originally, Allen (older son) and Paul would both see baseball with me, but with Allen's early departure, I got "one-on-one" time with both boys (OK, they're fully grown men now, but Dad still thinks of them as my "boys".)  Paul flew into Orlando and drove his rental car to the campground, arriving late Tuesday, the 19th.

Paul and Dad at Twins vs Pirates

Paul enjoys Pirates' victory at Hammond Stadium

Our first game was Pirates vs Twins at the Twins park in Ft. Myers.  It was a long drive, but a nice stadium with a walkway around the entire field, similar to McKechnie Field in Bradenton.  We enjoyed several walks around the park together as we watched the Bucs come from behind to beat the Twins with a strong eighth inning.

Home Run wins game for Bucs

Paul's first and only game in Bradenton was on Thursday when the Pirates hosted Harry's Orioles.  Given the boardwalk around the field, we sauntered our way to another Pirate victory.  Since both food and beer are excellent at LECOM Park (McKechnie Field has a name sponsor) we enjoyed both as we ambled about.  After the game we drove to Bradenton Beach and played catch on the beach, giving Paul's baseball a good washing in the sand and waves.

Paul, Allen IV's seat, Dad at Bridgetender Inn

Paul's final Pirates' game was hosted by the Rays at the Spring Training home in Port Charlotte.  I'll admit here that the final score of any Spring Training game is absolutely meaningless.  OK, you guessed it, the Pirates lost to the Rays.  Even so, in all these games, we saw lots of terrific baseball as the individual players are tested and performing to earn spots on the regular season team.  Double plays, diving catches, home runs and stolen bases made for terrific baseball every game.

Dad, Paul at Charlotte Sports Park, Port Charlotte

Great seats Pirates at Rays

Karen and I had a play to see in Cocoa Saturday night, so Paul and I drove back to Titusville.  Paul lounged about Karen's home finally catching up on March Madness and some Zs as he left his Stay-At-Home-Dad responsibilities for a few days.

Paul at Playalinda Beach before he went swimming

Sunday after church we drove to Playalinda Beach at the Canaveral National Seashore, just north of the Space Center at Cape Canaveral.  Paul took a brief swim in the ocean, much warmer than when he did the same at Clearwater in December.

Paul saw this gator behind Karen's house just before leaving for MCO

Paul had to catch his return flight from Orlando Monday evening so we had a lazy day showing him how retired folk live:  playing pickleball, living in RVs, driving golf carts, lunching at tiki bars on the river, etc.

I had a terrific time hosting both my sons and I'm looking forward to the next time.

Irish Rover's track and anchorage for the rocket launch. 
See Here for Google Map of launch pads.

Satellite View of Launch Area, courtesy of Google