Travels: Past & Future

Below you will find most of my previous footie-related travels in my lifelong journey that I affectionately refer to as my 'Football for Peace Tour'.

Barcelona, Spain (12/10/02) - After the game had been postponed due to a rain-soaked pitch the night before, the Catalan giants would go on to beat visiting Newcastle United by a 3 - 1 scoreline in a Champions League group stage match.  Patrick Kluivert would score his 100th goal for the home side in this match.

Denver, Colorado (7/4/03) - On my way back across the country with the Advan (a mobile advertising vehicle), I stopped in Denver to catch an Independence Day match at Ivesco at Mile High Stadium.  Colorado was in the lead, 2 - 1, at the end of ninety minutes, but they allowed KC the tying goal in stoppage time.  Not to be outdone, however, the Rapids would regain the lead one minute later, to win this match 3 - 2.  Naturally, everyone in attendance was further entertained by a massive fireworks display shortly after the game had ended.

Valencia, Spain (6/04 and 6/08/05) - In town for my cousin Gabe's wedding, I attended two World Cup qualifiers at The Mestalla.  Nearly a dozen wedding guests attended the first match, a 1 - nil triumph against Lithuania.  The second match I attended by myself.  Spain thoroughly dominated this match, but it wasn't until the 97th minute of the game that they were finally able to net the tying goal to end the game in a 1 - all draw.  This was high drama indeed.

Cross-country U.S. Tour '05

Real Salt Lake vs. Chivas USA (8/6/05) at the University of Utah campus.  I pulled into town less than two hours before kickoff after spending the night in Nevada's Ruby Mountains.  "Groovy" Brian Lohnes and I pedaled over to the stadium to watch the MLS' two expansion clubs duke it out.  The final result escapes me now...I believe RSL won, but the highlight for me was watching a thunderhead fire off lightning bolts above the nearby Wasatch Mountains.

Chicago Fire vs. Kansas City Wizards (8/10/05) - I pedaled along the lakefront from the north side of town down to Soldier Field for this one.  Former Fire forward Josh Wolff scored a pair of goals in helping his team erase an early two goal deficit on their way to a 3 - 2 victory.  Or did they lose 3 - 2?  Either way, it was a good match.

NY/NJ Metrostars vs. Columbus Crew (8/14/05) - Jill joined me for our first of what I hope will be many soccer matches together.  Before the game we stopped to visit with my Aunt Freyda & Uncle Alan in nearby Pompton Lakes, NJ.  The sky was thick with building thunderheads throughout the afternoon and midway through the first half, the heavens unleashed their fury.  After a deluge of epic proportions, the match finally resumed more than an hour later.  It was a 2 - 1 victory for the home team I believe.

E. Hartford, Connecticut: World Cup Qualifer - USA v Trinidad & Tobago (8/18/05) - Jill and I took the scenic route and should have had plenty of time to make it to this one, but parking was a nightmare and then there were long lines for tickets.  As a result, we missed the only goal of the match - a 2nd minute game-winner by Brian McBride.  Still, it was a fun night as thousands of NYC-based T & T fans danced in the stands throughout the match.

Germantown, Maryland (8/24/05) - a U.S. Open Cup match between D.C. United and FC Dallas.  My pal Sam Williams joined me for this one.  The home side appeared poised for victory when on what was surely the last offensive opportunity of the match, a Dallas forward beat three defenders and then the goalie to send it into extra time.  After neither team could break through in the extra half-hour of play, Dallas went on to stun the home fans with a 4 - 1 victory in the pk shootout.

Kansas City Wizards vs. Columbus Crew (8/26/05) - after racing for nearly forty-eight hours to make it to this one, I was privy to one of the more lackluster performances I would witness as the Crew would go on to a 0 - 1 win on the road.

South America (Fall '05)

Internacional vs. Boca Juniors at the Estadio Rio Beira in Porto Alegre, Brazil (10/18/05) - After making a change to fly in on an earlier flight from Sao Paulo, my friend Ricardo picked me up from the airport with his girlfriend Tatiana.  Less than two hours later, and with Tatiana's five-year old son Lucas joining us for his first professional match ever, we were at this Copa Sudamericana clash.  The home side would go on to a shock 1 - nil victory against the Argentine giants, but we missed the 93rd minute goal as Ricardo had thought it best to leave so that we could beat the traffic.  He was way more bummed out than I was, but at least the right team won.

San Lorenzo vs. Racing Club (10/30/05), Buenos Aires, Argentina - Having missed my opportunity to see Boca play a home game the day before, I made a trip to the outskirts of town for this one.  I passed through a depressing garbage-strewn slum along the way, then watched the end of the reserves 4 - 1 victory over the visitors before the senior squads took the pitch on a chilly spring day.  After a scoreless first half, Racing took an early second-half lead, but the home fans were ecstatic a short while later when San Lorenzo first tied things up then put in the game winner with less than a quarter-hour remaining.

On the horizon...

Berlin, Germany (6/30/06) - World Cup quarterfinal match

Comments

[pastor jacobs]

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[elue mark]

I am a Nigerian and reside in Nigeria.I am a footballer and I play for a local club,jossy football academy.

Sir,I am an experienced player but I need an exposure to improve my football career.Sir,I want to play football to the highest level and my coach and my sponsor are ready to support me.

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I am hoping to hear from you.Please contact me if you need more information.

Thanks

[Gabriel Lazarus]

Looking forward to hanging out in Valencia!

[Saul & Abbey Rasnick]

I've got you logged in for August 11th. I'm very excited to spend some time with you at that time and also in Valencia.

[Mark Nightingale]

very tentative at the moment, but we're thinking of moving to glasgow around this time next year.......