Picking up where we left off after an awesome couple of weeks in Atlanta, and also the epic trip up to Bristol Tennessee for the NASCAR event (blog to come), it as time to make my way further down South to game 28 in Tampa Florida. This leg of the trip would be unique as it would involve the first game where I would not be with my trusty travel companion/transport/hotel the Dodge Nitro.
So leaving Atlanta early (shout Dave for dropping me off at the train), I got onto my flight headed for Tampa Bay airport and this beautiful stretch of country they call “Central Florida”.
Upon landing, I realized that to get to my hotel in St Petersburg I would need a rental car (no UBERs for me), and I’m not one to skimp out on things like that so naturally I asked for some muscle and got a Jeep (oh the reminder of home and ummmm beauty of this model).
First stop before the hotel, was to complete the fourth NFL stadium of the NFC South division, so I grabbed a quick bite, booked tour tickets and headed directly for Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay.
Despite this stadium being relatively old by NFL standards, a cool twenty years, it stands the test of time, with a very cool sunken field, not a bad seat in the house and probably the coolest feature I’ve seen of any stadium in any sport, the Buccaneers Pirate Ship that occupies the Western End Zone of the stadium.
As my tour guide informed me, the pirate ship was actually built by the Disney Corporation (located in nearby Orlando), and will fire cannons containing t-shirts and let off effects whenever the hometown Buccaneers make a big play or score a touchdown. On top of this, the area surrounding the ship contains bars serving all the types of drinks (margaritas) and food (classic stadium garbage) that you’d expect from a joint located in Florida.
The tour also took us through some of the private suits, the locker rooms and even onto the field to touch some of the legitimate turf that the Bucs play on each home game (again, according to our tour guide in an annual players poll this turd was voted number one to play on by not only the Bucs, but all teams who play on it each season – very impressive).
“Put me in coach!”
Fired up by the revelations on how cool this stadium was, I jumped back into my monster Jeep, and headed for my hotel located in downtown St Petersburg, where I would go for a quick walk around before getting ready for the big game between the Tampa Bay Rays and our friends from Kansas City the Royals (shoutout Katie Morris, Mackenzie, Tanja and Casey).
Prior to the game, I decied to get some refreshments in at the local spot located right next to the stadium known simply as “Fergs”. Here, I would indulge myself with some happy hour priced refreshments ($3 a pop) and also a MASSIVE burrito, served wet with rice and beans (FYI I ate the whole things – I will join a gym upon my return – shoutout James Mayor, please hook it up!).
Once this was all done, I’d make my way to the Rays home stadium “Tropicana Field” and be well…. Kinda underwhelmed?
Don’t get me wrong, the structure is impressive and was built back in the 90’s, but at the end of the day it lacked what every other ballpark had in terms of charm and incorporating elements of the city. Disappointing isn’t the word, but I felt the Tampa Bay / St Petersburg had some many cool elements that they could have done something to the exterior of the ballpark (like what the Bucs had done).
HOWEVER, after walking in and going direct to guest services to ask what I should see, I immediately had a change of heart, because the Rays had their own petting area near the field where you could walk up and actually pet a damn sting ray (shoutout Steve Irwin)!!
Obviously this was an extremely cool feature and despite it being full of kids, I muscled my way through the crowd of six and got my mits on one of those slimly bastards – truly a fun time but I had a game to watch.
Taking my seat, the struggling Rays were looking solid against the also struggling Royals.
With some solid hitting and getting guys on base, the Rays found themselves up 3-0 by the end of the fourth inning with the Royals unable to offer any resistance.
The tide would turn slightly in the fifth with a run to the Royals, however this was quickly cancelled out with the Rays getting one in the sixth to make it 4-1 as me and my 5,000 other friends (for a sure a low for any game I’ve been to on this trip) belted out a solid rendition of “take me out to the ball game” during the seventh inning stretch.
Both sides got some additional hits in the last two innings, however even with some borderline calls, the Rays were able to hold on and get the W with a 4-1 win sending all of us home happy, including me with my newly purchased bottle of dirt that was apparently taken from the original baseball diamond during the inaugural season of 1998.
Today, I’ve woken up and gone for a quick jog around town to get some sort of fitness back, before I return the Jeep back to the airport (I never knew ye’), and head further South to the tip of Miami and the cosmopolitan city of Miami. Here I will link up once again with a solid crew and usual suspects from Pittsburgh, and enjoy some sunshine, relaxing and game 29/30 down in South Beach before heading back to Los Angeles to wrap it all up.
I’ve had an awesome time in the Tampa Bay / St Petersburg area, and wish I had more time to hangout more. On the bright side though, it gives me a somewhat legitimate excuse to comeback soon.
Super pumped for Miami and the write-up that follows it. Hopefully you’ll enjoy reading it just as much as I have enjoyed experiencing it and conveying it all through this mediocre blog.
Have a good one all.
Thirty before 30 