July 31th - Aug 3rd
Wow. Where is the time going? Is it really the end of July already? It feels like we just began this Palermo's adventure yesterday!
It is Friday July 31st and Kevin, Jake and Katie are traveling to Appleton for another dose of Wisconsin's single-A Timber Rattlers. I can't stress enough how gorgeous this stadium is, especially for being more than 10 years old. Our signage is looking great out in left field. A large thank-you is in order for Nick the intern. We are having truck problems (again) and he is being a saint chauffeuring us back and forth all evening. As always, we continue to stay positive and fight through the adversity. Fridays crowd is smaller than usual, due to the fact that EAA is starting this weekend. The EAA crowd is missing out on 7 cases of free pizza. Our ears are still recovering from last weeks air show, so instead of seeing more aerial feats, we head to Vince Lombardi's steakhouse. The steak and potatoes are flowing, and our smiles are wide and glowing.
The first day of August greets us with heavy winds and abundant sunshine. We are heading to the (slightly) famous Grignon Park disc golf course in Kaukana. The front 9 is great! Katie is not an avid disc golfer, so she is going to catch up on her reading. Anyways, the day 2 of sampling at Fox Cities Stadium awaits us. A swing band is playing outside next to us, so that's providing us with a little push. Crowd attendance is down again, but for those who are getting free pizza, it doesn't matter! After sampling another 7 cases, we are making the short drive to Madison.
Sunday August 2nd brings us to the Alliant Energy Center, located right off the Beltline in Madison. The finish line for a Multiple Sclerosis benefit ride ends here today. The parking lot is bustling with hundreds of volunteers, massage therapists, and also - a baby fox. Naturally, we are naming him Palermo the Fox. He looks like he could use some pizza, but his nerves get the best of him as he scampers away. In the meantime, the Charlie Horse from Madison's Charlie FM pays us a visit. His spatula-handling skills are second to none. Sarah, the Promotions Director at Charlie FM, pays us a few visits as well and keeps us entertained. The Charlie booth is serving up Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream, which is really good news for Jake. Bikers start piling in a little after noon. Most use what little energy they have left and walk on over for some free slices. A very successful day, we are going through 16 cases very quickly. Immediately after the events conclusion, we will head south to give Bears' fans free pizza tomorrow morning.
Monday morning came and the putrid navy & orange colors filled our eyes with sorrow. Today we will be serving up our NFC north rival fan base in Bourbannais, IL, home of the Chicago Bears training camp. Olivet Nazerene University has a stunningly beautiful campus. The road to the campus grounds is jam-packed, and there are thousands of cars parked to see their beloved team. A reported 9,000 fans watched Sunday's practice. Our location is great, as fans must walk by our trailer to get to the practice fields. Fans are pleased to learn that we are a sponsor of the Bears this year, and will be sold in Soldier Field all season. A total of 13 cases will be sampled today to hungry kids wanting autographs (of players, not us for some reason). After a long weekend, and many miles of orange construction barrels, it's certainly nice to be back in Milwaukee.
Speaking of, Milwaukee plays host to the 11 day adventure known as the Wisconsin State Fair starting this week! You'd better pay us a visit. We'll tell you all about the tour over a cream puff or two!