Drum Corps Championships

Day 7 - Indianapolis, Indiana

Lots of driving yesterday on our way from Minneapolis to Indianapolis.  It was 8 hours of driving time but we crossed back into the Eastern time zone so we lost another hour.  We were worried about making it in time for the show but an early start got us on track.  We took I-90 East and then I-65 South.  We passed lots and lots of corn.  More corn than you can imagine!  We keep looking for signs of the drought but everywhere we have been so far have had green grass and lots of corn.
 

We backtracked through Wisconsin and past Chicago then headed south.  We past Indiana University and Purdue University.  Finished another book on CD and continued our license plate challenge.  We are keeping track of all the states that we have seen and we have seen most!  We are missing Nevada, Vermont, Rhode Island, Mississippi and a few others but that has been a fun game.  Driving south we past through Fowler Ridge Wind Farm which was so cool!  Over 400 windmills as far as the eye could see.

 As we kept driving through Indiana we were reminded of the Middle, one of our favorite ABC shows. They live in the middle of nowhere Indiana and we've seen it!

The Drum Corps Championships (marching music's major league) have been one of Randy's favorite events since high school.  Every year for Christmas his parents get him the video and cd of the championships so to see it live and in person was a thrill.  Lucas Oil Stadium is humungous!

The large facility did not feel like a dome at all, instead it felt like a big open arena.  We got to see the field where Peyton Manning played for so many years and more importantly where the Giants won the Superbowl this past February!

The top 12 corps competed and each one was better than the next.  We were high up so we could see all of the drill designs.  It was so fun to watch for each corp's signature logo, letters, numbers, and symbols spelled out by the bands.

Madison Scouts

Santa Clara Vangard (SCV)

Carolina Crown

Cavaliers

What a night!  The Blue Devils from California took home the #1 spot closely following by Carolina Crown from South Carolina.  The stadium was packed.  There has never been so many band nerds in one arena, until next year that is.

At the end every corps came out and lined the field!

Indianapolis was very pretty at night. We drove through town and saw a really nice center area.  

There are a ton of hotels and businesses and we saw a couple of wedding parties but it didn't look like many apartments or condos in the town.  The locals must live in the burbs.

Thank you Indy!  Good luck Andrew Luck! Now back towards Chicago...White Sox-A's

Gorgeous Minneapolis

Day 5 - Minneapolis, Minnesota

What a great day we had in Minneapolis.  The weather was perfect, 75, sunny, and no humidity.  The town is very green and bike friendly.  They have a system called Nice Ride where you can rent a bike for 24 hours for only $6.  There are stations all over the city to switch bikes and recharge our 30 minutes of ride time.  Luckily Randy has his new iPhone because there is a Nice Ride app which locates bike stations and even gave suggested bike tours.  We were all over!

The University of Minnesota was our first stop and it was so pretty!  The campus was alive with its Preview Day so there were people everywhere.  We saw the stadiums, student union building, and the science buildings but I couldn't find the math building.

Our next mission was to find Matt's Bar, featured the Travel Channel shows Food Wars and Man V. Food to try the legendary Juicy Lucy, a cheese filled burger.  After about 40 minutes on the bike and a mile and a half walk we made it.  And boy was it worth it!  Awesome burger!  And the walk and bike ride back into town worked off some of it.

Then it was game time.  We left the car at the hotel and walked downtown to the stadium.  Target Field is right next to Target Center where the Timberwolves and Wild (with ex-Devil Zach Parise) play so it was a happening part of the city.  There were lots of outdoor restaurants and people heading to the game.  I bet its very different in the winter, but I could get used to summers in Minneapolis!

The game was fun but we suffered our first loss rooting for the home team.  The Rays were knocking balls out of the stadium during batting practice and it didn't end there.  They won 12 to 6.  We got to see a lot of good players, Joe Mauer, Justin Mourneau, Evan Longoria, BJ Upton.  The stadium opened in 2010 and it still has a new feel.  We sat in the seats right above right/center field.  Great seats.  During batting practice one of the Rays threw a ball into the stands and I got it!  Pretty cool.

Thanks Minneapolis! Next Stop DCI Finals in Indianapolis!

Motor City USA

Day 2: Canton Ohio-Detroit Michigan

So after a fun night in Pittsburgh, we headed to our next destination: Detroit!

We had a few hours to burn, so we made a detour to see the Worlds Largest Teapot in Chester West Virginia.

After the brief stop, more like a slow roll, we made our way to Canton Ohio for the Pro Football Hall of Fame!

                                                  

                                                                    It got pretty flat in Ohio.

Saw my Favorite QB of all time!

Diane with some of the more recent inductees. Jerry Rice's face looked way to real! 

Osi Umenyiora's jersey from 2008 Superbowl! Unfortunately they didn't have anything from this years Superbowl!

This is the Lombardi Trophy that will be handed out THIS Superbowl in NOLA!

And Diane attempting to do the Heisman Pose!

After Canton, we headed north to Motor City USA for the Tigers - Yankees Game!

Detroit felt like an old town that's taken a beating. A once prosperous city crushed by economic downfall and Automotive bailouts. Still there were glimpses of revival. The area around the stadium was booming with bars, restaurants and theaters. There was even a rather new looking monorail! All new buildings constructed to feel and look like they've been there for a long time. 

We were running close to game time so we did not get a chance to truly explore the downtown area.

Cool Wall in Detroit!

Comerica Park was Gorgeous! The ballpark felt huge! Very spacious concourses and an awesome view from anywhere along the main level! Our Seats were way high to the left of the scoreboard! Still an awesome seat!

The stadium was rather full considering the game was on a Tuesday Night. I guess that's what having a competitive team will do (<---Angry Mets Fan) and it doesn't hurt that the Yankees were in town. They always travel well.

The game was fun! Saw a few home runs, saw Ichiro and saw Prince Fielder!

 The Final score does not truly reflect the game since the Tigers closer gave up 3 runs to make it close. As a Met fan, it felt all too familiar. As the sun went down, the Tigers went on to win the game 6-5!

2 days, 2 games, 2 wins! 

On to Milwaukee for a 1:10pm game!

The 'Burgh

Day one: Put it in the books!

Driving down the PA turnpike we found some interesting billboards!Definitely do not see them in NJ!

The Prius got us safely to Pittsburgh!

PNC

Heinz Field

What a beautiful day! High of 82, low humidity. We walked around the Point State Park where you can see Heinz Field and PNC Park across the Allegheny river!

Beautiful Park, but unfortunately they were doing some construction on the actual Point so we couldn't get all the way to the edge. The walkway goes from the point all the way to the Roberto Clemente Bridge! There were some fun things along the way!

Under 1 of the Bridges

Large Rings

Di Holding up PNC!

Cool mural

In Town there were these cool murals showing the evolution of Pittsburgh. The one to the right here is one of them!

All this leading up to the Roberto Clemente Bridge. 

They close the bridge during game days and use it solely as a pedestrian bridge. Pretty cool standing in the middle of town on a main bridge with no cars!

Here's the view from the Ballpark side toward Pittsburgh!

Outside of PNC there are statues of:

Bill Mazeroski

Roberto Clemente

Willie Stargell

We met up with our friends, the Bergs, and took our seats in the ballpark.

Section 29 Row D Seats 1-5

                                                    We enjoyed a Pittsburgh Favorite

Primanti Brothers Sandwich!

And got to see the potential MVP and Bucs Mascot!

Andrew McCutchen

Parrot

Erik Bedard pitched a gem: 7innings 2 hits for the Win

Pirates 4 Diamondback 0

Game 1 in the books! Next stop Canton Ohio then Detroit Michigan!