Quest for the Rest: Finale

The Eclipse of 2017 started out as a dud for Steve and I. When it occurred, we really didn't notice. My automatic car lights came on, but that was it. We were on the road to Nashville, where it turned to night for a minute, but we were still nine hours away. Nashville was hopping, which I really didn't notice until yesterday morning. Our 12-hour ride turned into a traffic filled nightmare. After 14 hours, we were still in Virginia and fading fast. So last night we snagged a room in Winchester, VA, for a quick five hours sleep.

This morning, Steve and I were up by 4:15 a.m., and on the road by 4:45. We pulled into the driveway before 8:10. Quick little morning jaunt, with very little traffic. We completed our quest, and the entire 15-day journey took us 6,928 miles through parts of 17 states, and 12 hotels. We saw six Major League Baseball stadiums, the Gateway Arch, The Alamo, an eclipse, the desert, the forest, the mountains, the prairies, and everything in between. It's been a blast.

Quest for the Rest: Quest Achieved

Steve and I woke up before the crack of dawn today, and scooted out of San Antonio under the cover of night. When we arrived in Houston, we were too early to check in, so we headed downtown to Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros - the final destination of our quest to see a home game for every team. We grabbed some brunch near the stadium, then walked the four blocks to Houston's great stadium. The stadium, complete with a (closed because of the heat) retractable roof, is a great place to take in a game. The full glass wall with a downtown view is a nice touch. It has had some crazy features that have been removed, but one I really enjoyed was a balcony over the warning track in center field. The Quest has been a blast, and now comes the fun part of ranking the parks. Steve and I will each be doing our own rankings to see how they compare.

Tomorrow we have a near 13-hour, eclipse-crossing, jaunt to Nashville for the night. It's about halfway home so we'll put our feet up for a night before heading home on Tuesday.

Quest for the Rest: A Stroll Through San Antonio

This morning, Steve and I headed south from Arlington to San Antonio. We had a day break between our last two games, so we visited the Alamo and the Riverwalk here in town, It was a pretty cool stopover on our way to Houston. Tomorrow is an early out as we have a three hour ride from San Antonio to Houston before an Astros day game.

Quest for the Rest: And Then There Was One

Steve and I headed out of Midland, TX early this morning on our way to Arlington, near Dallas. Today is night two of our four-night Texan adventure. On he way into town, we decided to take a tour of the Dallas Cowboys highly regarded new stadium. I'd toured the old one in 2005, so seeing he new one, and having a catch on the field, was something I was looking forward to doing. We took a tour, which started with time on the field, then we went with our group into the other parts of the stadium as the event crew began to prep the field for tomorrow's Cowboys home game.

After a BBQ birthday lunch, we Ubered to Globe Life Park in Arlington, home of the Texas Rangers since 1994. I really thought the stadium was newer, and it looked newer than its age. Food options were limited, and the stadium didn't feature anything that seemed local. Change the logos and some of the music and we could've been in any city.

We are officially down to one team left to see play at home, the Houston Astros. The plan is to see them this Sunday afternoon. Tomorrow we have a room waiting for us in San Antonio where we plan on seeing The Alamo and the River Walk.

Quest for the Rest: Arrived in Texas

In a nutshell, Texas is a big state. Steve and I arrived at our hotel in Midland, TX after about a 7 hour drive through two time zones. Today was purely a travel day. Tomorrow we head to Arlington, TX to see the Texas Rangers play the Chicago White Sox. We saw a lot of desert, mountains, and oil fields today.

Quest for the Rest: Laundry Day

Steve and I are back in warmer weather after spending a few "cold" days in California. The games on Monday and Tuesday had temps in the 50s an 60s respectively. Long sleeves and jeans were on tap for both. Today was an off day for us. We woke up in San Diego and took care of laundry. Now we're ready for the next week or so of travel. 

After finishing our laundry, we hopped in the car and drove to Tucson, AZ. The longest stretch of our trip between games is from San Diego to Arlington, TX. We were originally going to drive more than 1,000 miles in a day, but we decided to break it up to 400 and 600. The trip took us from temps in the high 70s to temps of 108. 

Tomorrow we head out early for a trip to Midland, TX.  

Quest for the Rest: San Diego Rises

Steve and I began our second week of he trip, one that will be filled with daily travel and a new hotel every night. Today we took off from Oakland early on our way to San Diego. The ride was fine, and when we got here, we headed out on the town for lunch. Our hotel is walking distance to the stadium, Petco Park so we hoofed the 12 blocks to the game.

What a great stadium they have in San Diego. The place was a cross between and airport, a mall, a neighborhood with a park, and a baseball stadium. It was a triumph in design and amenities. There are multiple places to just relax and have a conversation, aside from the game. Families have a park and playground that kids can play on. So far, we've been to the home of 28 teams, and Petco Park just became my favorite.

Tomorrow is our laundry day, followed by a drive to Tucson, Az.

Quest for the Rest: Bay Area Cool Down

Dreary clouds, and low temperatures were on tap for today. We spent the day in San Francisco heading to Pier 39 for lunch and over to the Fisherman's Wharf. While we were there, Steve and I rented bikes and rode up to and across the Golden Gate Bridge. After making the trek back to Oakland, we headed out, in 50 degree weather, to see the Oakland A's host the Royals (second time seeing the Royals on the road this season). Early out tomorrow as we are trying to see a Phillies game in San Diego tomorrow.

Quest for the Rest: Long Day on the Road

Steve and I woke up this morning thinking we'd only have an eight hour ride. We had breakfast at the hotel in Phoenix, and Pushed off about 10 after eight. Steve took the first shift today. It was smooth sailing to the Lazy Dog Restaurant in Rancho Cucamonga where we met with an old friend for lunch. From that point on, it was supposed to be only 4 and a half hours, but traffic added about three hours of time to our day. Needless to say it's a straight to sleep night, in one of the oddest hotel rooms I've ever stayed in.

Quest for the Rest: The Diamondback Strike in Phoenix

Today was a lazy day in Phoenix. We relaxed, swam, then hit the town for the game. No sightseeing at all. Chase Field, home of the Diamondbacks, was an interesting place to watch a game. It has little charm, but does have some neat amenities, like a retractable roof. Next stop, Oakland.

Quest for the Rest: A Day of Travel and Relaxation

Waking up in Tucumcari, NM, Steve and I had an nine hour ride in front of us heading to Phoenix. With no game on tap for the day, we actually took advantage of the hotel pool in Phoenix, and just relaxed a little. We've clicked almost 2350 miles so far, and we've only seen one of the six games. The Arizona Diamondbacks are hosting us and the reigning World Series Champion Chicago Cubs this afternoon.

Quest for the Rest: New Mexico Stopover

Driving was the name of the game yesterday. Steve and I put more than 900 miles on the odometer before stopping in Tucmcari, New Mexico. We're up and at em early today, with Phoenix the goal.

The Quest for the Rest: Busch Stadium

After a day of sightseeing in St. Louis, we caught a baseball game at Busch Stadium. That leaves us with only five left to see. The next stadium is in Phoenix, but we have to make a stop in Tucumcari, NM. Should be interesting traveling more than 1500 miles in two days...through the desert.

The Quest for the Rest: Meet me in St. Louis

As many of you know, 12 years ago some college friends and I set out on a plan to see a home game for every major league baseball team. At that time, we'd just seen our seventh team play at home (Phillies, Yankees, Mets, Dodgers, Angels, Giants, and that day the Orioles). We've visited 24 to date. Along this journey, some of us have fallen in love, one of us passed away, and some of us were just around for a few spots.

This summer, Steve and I are on a Quest for the Rest. We have six teams left to see, and over the next two weeks we plan to see them all. (Pray, dance, burn some sage or ancient herbs, hope for no rain.) In an effort to save time and keep our friends and families updated, we will be making video posts.

Here is from yesterday, day 1. (P.S. we were parked in the second video, not driving)

First stop: St. Louis

Summer 2017 Peview