Summer was winding down and it didn't look like we'd be going to the beach, so we decided that it was time for an old fashioned road trip and we chose as our theme, halls of fame. Ben and I began by driving through Connecticut and stopping at the Blue Colony Diner
where music blasted out at us
as we had our drinks
and then he had his burger
and I had my veggie burger
which Ben seemed to enjoy
as did I
before we continued on to our hotel room in West Springfield.
Once settled, we headed out to Big Mamou's Lousiiana Cuisine
where this was the menu
as Ben ordered
and I looked at the kitchen
before our meals came
and we recorded the local hot sauce.
The next day began with the breakfast spread at the hotel
where I chose to have a waffle and so poured the batter
flipped the device
and watched the timer
until my waffle arrived
and could be doused with syrup
ad Ben had his breakfast.
Our first hall of fame was basketball in nearby Springfield
which has a large shoe in front
and so as we studied the entry which we could do because we were early
we then approached the shoe
and waited our turn
to get pictures
including the gum on the bottom
before I made my way to the entry
and we noted what else was on site
before entering
and noting the feet of Cheryl Miller
to which I compared mine
and then Charles Barkley
Uliana Semionova
and Ben compared his to Bob Lanier (largest feats in basketball)
and I compared mine to Bill Russell
before using the men's room and noting the hand dryers.
Then, after a comparison between Ben and Shaquille O'Neil
we admired some stars of the game
and some materials from tthe new inductees
before making our way into the museum and up to the top floor
where the new inductees were celebrated
along with this logo
and we admired the Olympics gold medal
as we made our way around the membership including Dick Vitale (and his microphone)
a ball signed by players on Texas Western (as in, Road to Glory)
and Charles Barkley
taking a break to record Charles Barkley
and Maurice Stokes in the photo gallery above
while looking down at the court
and then noting the Harlem Globetrotters
and the photo of Pete Carril
and Pat Summit, the great women's coach
and Danny Biasone, the inventor of the 24 second shot clock.
Julius Erving
and Connie Hawkins were next
followed by Larry Bird
and the ball he used to score his 20,000th point
and then Pete Carril
Julius Erving
including his motion shot
and Bob Lanier
including his bronzed shoe
and Connie Hawkins
Bob Knight
Pete Maravich (and his socks)
Walt (Clyde) Frazier
Billy Cunningham
Senda Abbott (who began the women's game)
and Dean Smith (Deandome) and Jack Twyman (guardian of Maurice Stokes).
Next, Bill Bradley (with Willis Reed),
Hal Greer,
Jerry Lucas and Oscar Robertson,
Pete Newell (tall man's camp)
and Wilt Chamberlain
with the ball from his 25,000th point
Paul Arizin, Joe Fulks and Cliff Hagan,
Tom Gola,
Bill Russell,
and John Wooden
who was next to Dolph Schayes
and Ed Gottlieb who helped get things started.
There followed Abe Saperstein and Ed Diddle (original towel man)
with Bob Cousy and Bob Pettit
and Chuck Taylor (next to Adolph Rupp) who createed the Converse All Star shoe.
Hank Iba,
Red Auerbach and his cigar,
John Russell (who had his Rosies),
Nat Holman,
John Wooden, as a player,
Amos Alonzo Stagg,
George Mikan,
and the first team ever to play the game
which brought us to Mind, Body and Spirit, the 3 attributes of good basketball.
Next we moved into the museum section where we saw this diploma awarded to James Naismith
along with his swaddling blanket, his earliest artifact,
and this statue.
The history of the game was told
in uniforms
and balls
including one signed by Calvin Coolidge
and this one from the Georgia state championship
and a piece of the original floor where the game was invented
and a ball autographed by Naismith for his great-nephew
and some hoops beginning with the original peach basket.
We learned the early rules
and saw a shirt worn by Maurice Stokes
and a ball used to score 113 points (no wonder it is so beat up)
and team jackets
before seeing Wilt showing off his 100 point game
and an ABA ball
and memorabilia from the NCAA women's tournament
and Patrick Ewing's college shirt (when they won the NCAA)
and the ball that Notre Dame used to break UCLA's long win streak
with Kareem Abdul Jabbar's shoe and Cazzie Russell's shirt
and a poster showing salaries
before we came to the foul shooting set up
and a shoe display
after which we saw Larry Bird
and various memorabilia
that caused Ben to try his hand at grabbing rebounds
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and then to check out the shoe display
before measuring our heights
and seeing the artifact from ancient Greece that mentions basketball.
After visiting the media room
and looking down
we saw the display on the Princeton offense
one on the Sixers championship season
and another about the Celtics
before seeing the flag made of shoes
and the collection of Olympic shirts
and making our way to center court to shoot some hoops ourselves.
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and the photos of the hall of famers
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where Ben
and I
settled in and had bread
and then he had a sandwich
and I had an iceberg wedge.
Next we went to the Doctor Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden
where we began our tour with the Lorax
and then after studying the map
caught a glimpse of the Horton Court
and the benches
where the visitors
invited Ben to join
before we were back to Horton Court
and the Cat and the Hat
before going to the story teller
and after a final spin by Horton Court, we were on our way
to the volleyball hall of fame in Holyoke, Massachusetts
where we found the door
and made our way in past the displayed shirts
to the story
and face of William Morgan who was Naismith's friend and so invented volleyball to compete with basketball.
The exhibits began with a display of the players in their roles
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and the history of volleyball at the Olympics
followed by this sculpture memorializing Flo Hyman
and then the placards showing the members of the hall by year of induction.
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Next we went to the diorama of Holyoke's Frog Circus first created in 1927 and well preserved in its construction of taxidermied frogs. The images may seem weird but the whole experience was even weirder.
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Having met our hall of fame (and other) obligations for the day, we headed to Johnstown, New York and checked in to the Microtel where this was our room
and then made our way to Romana's for dinner
where I began with 2 Genesee's (because I know the Geneseecret)
and Ben began with salad and bread
before his pasta
and my sandwich arrived.
After dinner we returned to our hotel room and watched the Steelers soundly defeat the Giants.
