Off-Topic Forum

Since I've been going out of my mind being so cooped up becuase of this Covid situation I've been day dreaming about places I'd like to go.  Let's get a fun discussion going about cool sports related places around the US or other countries worth checking out.

Let's leave out the obvious places like major league stadiums but if there is something usual like the Field of Dreams stadium then that's worth mentioning.

Couple places I'll start the discussion with...

Cooperstown, NY - This is more than just the hall of fame.  The entire street that the HOF is located on is one baseball related shop after another.  Definitly a bucket list place to see.

Lefty O'Doul's in San Fran - Never been to this resturant but its on my list to visit.  Owned by several players including Ozzy Smith.  From what I read about this place, it sounds like a baseball history lovers dream (original owner, Lefty was himself a player)

What else?

I also like to visit sites of former MLB stadiums, some sites still have pieces still standing, such as the site of the old Forbes field in Pittsburgh and the site of Tiger Stadium in Detroit.

The Negro League Musem in Kansas City, Bob Feller's in Van Meter, and Yogi Berra's in Little Falls, NJ.

I'm a big fan of sports-realited statues and the history of their surrounding areas, and found this site to be a fun look across the country on where a bunch have been stationed.

http://offbeat.group.shef.ac.uk/statues/database_us.htm

So I know you said no baseball stadiums, but one of the most memorable sights I have seen is the sun rising over Wrigley Field the day of the wildcard tiebreaker game in 1998.  The area has so much to offer other than baseball.

I would also recommend tours of stadiums when there is no game.  Took a tour of the current Busch Stadium in the snow a few years ago.  Unique perspective and I got to see some interesting places like the clubhouse, the owners box and the dugout.

Will also highly recommend the Negro League Museum in Kansas City.  It is more of an afternoon trip than a weekend event like Cooperstown, but it opened my eyes to a lot of history and there is good BBQ just down the street.

Finally, a big must see is Churchhill Downs in Louisville.  I am not much of a horse racing guy, but the place was amazing.  The museum is very interesting, the restuarant is excellent and you can catch a race there that is not the Kentucky Derby pretty easily.

The Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory tour is less than 5 miles away from Churchill Downs. I enjoyed both places. 

Can confirm this is a dream spot for baseball lovers. As a mainly football person I even loved seeing the history of the place and what it has to offer, and great food is plus for sure. In the bay area theme I would have to say Levi Stadium's 49er History Musuem. Very amazing walk through that any football history lover would enjoy even if it is 49er themed (I'm a Steelers fan). Then Canton, OH for the NFL Hall of Fame. Somewhere I plan to visit hopefully next year when Covid relaxes.

Great topic!

Here's a fun one that I stumbled on a ffew years back during a trip to Denver, CO.  Only about a block away from Coors Field, it's a little hole in the wall museum that houses some really cool pieces of sports history (if you like memorabilia):

https://ballparkmuseum.com/

Also, if you can somehow swing an invitation, I would recommend checking out the Sports Museum of L.A.

http://www.sportsmuseumla.com/

I had the privlidge of seeing the collection when it was on public display.

Lake Placid, NY: site of two Olympics including the 1980 "Miracle on Ice"

Chicago, IL: the original Billy Goat Tavern

You would like Holman Stadium in Nashua, NH, currently home to the Silver Knights.  Built in 1937, it was home of the very first post 1900 US baseball team to intigrate it's roster bringin on Don Newcombe and Roy Campanella in 1947.  They were the Nashua Dodgers at that time.  Robinson was playing in Canada prior to being brought up in 47 to play for the majors so they were the first in the US.

Still has that old tyme feel to the games there.

A couple of out of the US places I have been that I would really recommend are; the Panothenaic Stadium in Athens — home of the first modern Olympics from 1896 but the original stadium is from approx 300BC having had neumerous alterations of the millennia.

The Australian Sports Museum at the MCG in Melbourne is an absolute haven of information and memoribillia. I lost a whole day in there and barely made it out of the Olympic area. Need to go back and properly check out the other sports.

I also really wanted to go to the Drazen Petrovic Museum/Memorial in Zagreb but was on a bit of a whirlwind tour of Eastern Europe and the wife's itinerary did not allow it!

The other thing I would recommend every try is going to some live top level sport that you would never normally watch. Gives you a whole different perspective on the speed, skill and strategy involved that you often do not get on TV.

I understood Australian Rules football so much better after watching on game at the MCG after thinking it looked like a disorganised rabble on TV. I imagine a sport like ice hockey may be similar.