Trip to Tampa, Day 2

Bernie and Nick were really looking forward to Sunday.  We went to Steinbrenner field for the Yankees’ first home spring training game.  The opening ceremonies were impressive and included things like fighter jets and former Yankees players including Reggie Jackson (Bernie’s favorite player), and Tino Martinez.  Bernie’s friends Joe and Jamie Cormier joined us for the game.  Jen St. Martin and her son also came along as a surprise for Chris’16^th birthday.  It really would have been the perfect day if it hadn’t been so windy and cold. It was one of the very few days out of the year where the temperature in Tampa dipped into the 50s.  The Yankees stars started the game: Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, and Nick Swisher to name a few.  Roy Halladay was the starting pitcher for the Phillies.  It is a neat facility because you get much closer to the field and the players than you do at Yankee Stadium.  We even got to watch batting practice and the batting coach give tips to a few of the players.  Jack was excited to see the Yankees and even tried (albeit unsuccessfully) to take some pictures of them with our point and shoot camera.  He wasn’t really into the game, but there were plenty of people and food to keep him occupied.   If you are a Yankees fan, this is a trip that you definitely need to make at least once.  I am hoping we can return someday.

After the game we headed to Tampa Bay Grand Prix.  It is an indoor go-kart racing place.  We had gone here with my Tampa property group for a team building event and I knew that Bernie, Nick, and Dean would love it.  Jack couldn’t race because he was too little and I obviously was not allowed to race either, but here is a picture of Dean, Nick, Bernie, and LaDonna in their go-karts and lined up to race:

That night we were supposed to go to Oystercatcher's for dinner on the shore of Tampa Bay.  It is one of my favorite places in Tampa because you can literally sit on the beach in Adirondack chairs around a fire pit and order gourmet meals.  We decided not to go with that plan though because it was so windy and cold.  Bernie really wanted crab cakes for dinner (I had mentioned I thought he could get them at Frenchy’s the night before, and that turned out not to be the case) and I wanted casual with Jack.  In doing internet searches for those two things we stumbled upon Skipper’s Smokehouse.  Nick was excited about going there since it has been featured on Man v. Food.  Cheryl and Alberto were joining us for dinner and had eaten there many times before and agreed it was a good choice, so we headed there.  Sadly I did not get any pictures of what turned out to be a really great meal with great friends.  When Nick was little, he would order the baby back ribs at Chili's just so he could eat them in front of me and try to gross me out.  Staying true to form, he ordered the Gator Ribs and ate them down to the bone.  He says they were very good.  I’ll take his word for it (Ick!).  

To be continued, again...