On the way to the Hamilton County Fairgrounds, Carol and I stopped off to see our Los Angeles of Anaheim play an afternoon game.
My flight left at 10 p.m. and the game started 9 1/2 hours earlier.
The ballpark has a wide share of eateries. We ate at local favorite, Ruby's.
I always get extra garlic for our garlic fries!
There's nothing like some Ruby's chili and garlic fries at the old ballgame.
Carol is a bigger fan of baseball and Angels baseball than I am.
This was our view of the game today. We don't normally sit here but these seats let us view the afternoon game in the shade.
Check out the train in the center. I'll end up riding that train past the ballpark on my way home from LAX at the end of this trip. We can ride the train from our home in San Clemente to the game when we want.
The Honda Center (formerly the Arrowhead Pond) sits beyond center field. This is home to the recently crowned Stanley Cup champions, the Anaheim Ducks.
Through some trick photography my baseball ticket is superimposed upon our view of the game.
The Angels currently have the second best record in baseball behind the Yankees. They won again today.
The Angels take time to congratulate each other.
When you come to an Angels game you are expected to wear red.
Palm trees rule in SoCal.
The Angels grounds crew goes about keeping the park one of the very best in major league baseball.
This is the guy who started it all in Anaheim. It's Gene Autry!
Will you be ready?
After the game we had time to stop by and see the most beautiful grandchildren we have, Astrid and Mitch.
They're getting big....and old! 14 months now.
Uncle J.J. gets to spend the most time with the kids with his airline pilot schedule.
Astrid is the first of the two to walk.
Everyone likes their grandpa to read them a story.
Especially when it's “The Lady wtih the Alligator Purse”.
Mitch seems a bit more interested than Astrid.
Mitch helps turn the pages to “Let's Dance Little Pookie”.
J.J. likes to read to the kids too.
These kids can go.
That's my reading glasses case that Astrid is chewing on.
She likes to empty the contents of every ladies purse.
Mtich looks ready to be a Bruin. He's even got a cellphone.
They look like they are on a ride at Disneyland. We're off to dinner.
We've arrived and no one seems happier than grandma.
Well, Astrid seems pleased too.
Mitch likes the view from atop.
Most of the restaurants we visit are within walking distance.
Mtich is being introduced to the band.
We are about ready to enjoy some Dixieland band jazz music.
The adults all toast with an adult beverage.
You can never start the kids out too young on the way to drinking beer.
The spicy chicken was a delight.
Astrid looks full.
Mitch wants more music.
Check out my teeth gramps.
Not only is Astrid full but she looks sleepy.
Mitch is good at making eye contact.
Someway Astrid will put those big blue eyes to work.
For now, just a few sips will do.
Mitch is starting to rock now.
However, Mitch seemed sad to learn that Gramps had to leave on a trackchasing trip.
I did leave the grandkids and head to Detroit on an overnight flight from Los Angeles.
This was my view at 5 a.m. Detroit time (2 a.m. San Clemente time). I thought I might be dreaming.
I had not been to the Detroit airport in a long time. It is much improved.
Check it out. It's an indoor monorail.
It was a clear morning in Detroit on my flgiht to Cincinnati.
I don't think of forests when I think of Detroit.
However, Michigan is a heavily wooded area.
There's an abundance of farmland too.
Soon as I looked out over the plane's wing the Ohio River was in view. I was ready to go trackchasing.
As I drove around Cincinnati, not all the news was good.
You might think I post this view from the same photo. Nope! It's just that I've been visting Cincinnati a lot this summer.
Just a mile from the track I found my favorite Skyline Chili.
I would end up eating my chili 4-way and cheese coney in the National Rental Car Racing Hyundai Sonata.
After dinner it was fair time.
The riders are upside down. Does this look safe to you?
Yes, it's a dog show.
There was a sellout crowd for this show. However, I was here for figure 8 racing.
I always enjoy a brief view of the exhibits at these county fairs.
This was an unusual looking Ferris wheel.
The carnival was small but the rides were exotic.
The stands were beginning to fill in nicely for tonight's racing.
This was my view of the pit area.
It's the midwest and the fans stand for the National Anthem.
The first event of the night was a lawnmower race.'
These things are evolving at each show that I see.
They'll probably have wings by next year.
They needed to work on this one.
This is the beginning of the lawnmower demolition derby.
This big fella has had enough.
There was a good deal of action although it took a long time to complete this demo.
A long time!
No, you might not understand. It took a very long time to finish this show.
Luckily, I had the time. Now I could see what I came for....the figure 8 race.'
Seven cars would contest it.
There was a good deal of action.
This was not part of the plan.
A nice crowd showed up for tonight's activities.
There was a good deal on contact at the “X” in of the figure 8 course.
This course was bigger than others that the BacktoBack Promotions company has used.
From my seat I had a good view of the fair rides as well as the motorsports action.
Overall, this was an entertaining event.
Toward the end it got even wilder.
Overheating is the biggest problem for these cars.
When it's over, it's over. Check out the fire in the engine compartment.
The fire crew takes a leisurely approach to this problem.
The figure 8 race was followed by a small truck demo derby.
There were only three competitors but they “got it on”.
I don't think truck #67 has much of a future.
The final event of the evening was the small car demolition derby.
I enjoyed a pleasant evening in Cincinnati, Ohio seeing my 1,477th lifetime track.
