Molson Bike Tour (North): St. Louis - Tight spaces, bad football, and supporting the local product

Five forty-somethings had the great idea back before we knew our football team blew that St. Louis would be an ideal road trip location to see a game. No regrets on the city choice but oh how the Lions play so bad. We'll get to the game in a bit but we need to rewind back to Friday when Al, Doke, Jim and myself met up with Jerry coming in from North Carolina. Our hotel was two blocks from the stadium with the arch right out our window. A great location. While tired from the drive, we were too exited to stop for the night so after a snack at the Saint Louis Brewhouse, we ventured over to BallPark Village; a mix of bars just outside of Busch Stadium. Some great people watching there and I'm sure people were looking at us 'yuck yucks' the same.

Saturday came and it was going to be tourist time; Budweiser and the arch. I remember as a kid of about five years old being absolutely terrified to stand next to the arch. I thought for sure that thing was going to fall. Needless to say, I didn't go up in it as a kid. This year was going to be different; thrill seeking Tim would not be afraid of the arch. The guys with me weren't interested in going up but I was ready....until I saw the pods you go up in (pictured at the bottom of this post). They even ask you when you buy the ticket if you are claustrophobic and capable of walking 90 stairs. I was picturing a larger train/elevator taking you up but these were little boxes. I have jumped out of an airplane but closed spaces are not my cup of tea. I was next in line but it was not to be for me. Exit, stage left.

No worries. I caught up to the guys and off we walked on this bone chilling 70+ degree December day. After a few cold beverages, we walk by this bar called "Bobby's" with a hockey logo on it. A girl walking out said 'Bobby' was inside. Nothing against the Bobby who played for the Blues and owned the bar but we were expecting someone else. Nice guy though. Funny thing is we were watching the hockey game later that night and there is Bobby on the television getting some kind of award.

The walk then moved on to a city museum which was one like I have never seen before. It was kind of a mix of abstract art but also funky slides for the kids (and yours truly) to hang on. Some of the pictures below are from that. I'm normally not a museum fan but this one was pretty cool.

Back to tourist mode, we hailed a cab for the brewery tour. Five large men in a cab is not a pretty sight. I had about a quarter butt cheek to sit. Thankfully the ride wasn't too long, however, we felt like the Griswolds when we got to the brewery as they told us the last tour of the day just left 10 minutes earlier. Waaa, waaa..... The gift shop was pretty cool and surprise, they had beer for sale so all was not lost. The cab back to the city wasn't needed as the brewery has a shuttle bus we found that takes you back to BallPark Village where you can buy more of their beer. They aren't stupid.

Us old farts somehow had enough energy to head out for a meal that evening, an awesome place just out of the downtown called The Shaved Duck. There was an hour wait but we weren't in any hurry so we killed time with a beverage outside; the temperature still near 70 that evening. The wait was worth it as my chicken (surprise) was A#1.

After all of this, and I've left out quite a bit, we still had a football game to see Sunday morning! We went with a different look on the tailgate scene this year and a great choice it was. Again, the stadium was only two blocks away so we weren't going to be driving anywhere. The night before, we inquired to the pub that was attached to our hotel if bloody mary's would be available prior to the game. "Open at 7 AM" she said so there was our tailgate. It rained all day so Tigin's Irish Pub was an ideal home base. Others had the same idea as by the time 10 AM rolled around, all the characters were in the house, even Elvis the Ram (pictured below). There were quite a few Lion fans in the house. We like torture I guess. I felt for the Ram fans though. While we are consistently inconsistent in the D, at least our franchise isn't being dangled to Los Angeles as St. Louis is right now. Most of the fans we spoke to more or less said good riddance. Some still miss the football Cardinals that moved out to Arizona. Two teams leaving town. Not right. It's not like the Rams stadium is an out of date antique. Besides the lack of crowd, I enjoyed the experience.

outside of Anheuser-Busch brewery

After the Lion loss, we somehow found an appetite again after stuffing ourselves at the game. We went back to the Saint Louis Brewhouse and put a few more pounds on.

We ate; we ate a lot this weekend. No regrets.

St. Louis, thanks for the hospitality, the beverages and the grub.

Trail Head