Here is a recap of my visit back in time to the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City… I felt like I was there! Mexico City is truly a world-class city! (Facebook Post Link, Andy Reistetter, 11/11/13)
JTOG Day 20: Rough Roads in Mexico, Part 1 of Torch’s Saga
October 30, 2013 By
Here is what I saw when I first noticed something was wrong with Torch.
When the day started in Ciudad Victoria I had booked the night’s hotel room in Mineral del Monte about 60 miles northeast of Mexico City. On Google Maps it was about 360 miles away and would take about 7 hours to drive which was an easy day’s drive to me. As it turned out I drove at least another 100 miles and it would take 14 hours to get there. But that was the good news of the day. The bad news was that mid way through the day I pulled into a gas station to fill up and was horrified when I looked down to see my back right tire sitting at an outward angle. The rough roads we encountered, especially a tollway from Tampica to Tuxpan, had taken a toll on Torch, my 1992 Infiniti M30 Baby. It was as much my fault as I was slow to adjust my driving speed to the road conditions. Luckily she was drivable at least as far as I knew as it was my only choice. Hopefully I could make it to an Infiniti dealer in Mexico City and it was a minor adjustment to bring her wheels back into alignment. Hopefully being the key word.
The sun was going down and I was lost in the mountains trying to find my room for the night. Fortunately I did but not until well after dark at 10 pm.
My day started off great with a hearty breakfast and a smooth road, even divided at some points from Ciudad Victoria to Tampica. Silly me I went that way missing the tollway to Mexico City in Monterrey and then thinking why not swing by the Gulf Coast and stop for lunch. Driving along I never did see the Gulf of Mexico and looking back at the Go Pro videos I missed the sign and the turn to Playa Miramar. Then seeing the condition of Torch’s back right wheel later in the afternoon my focus was to make the notel in Mineral del Monte by sunset. That didn’t happen either because I got lost in the mountains in the dark trying to find the old mining town which sat at an elevation of 9,277 feet. Remember Mexico City is at a high elevation of 7,380 feet which was a major concern for hosting the Summer Olympics in 1968. Unfortunately there was no satellite reception for the Garmin. The day did end happily as I found the quaint town just before 10 pm when they were about to close reception.
We did get from Point A to Point B to well position ourselves for an early arrival tomorrow in Mexico City on only our third day in the country. Though instead of the priority being to find a golf course and some Olympic history, it was now to get Torch repaired properly. I had only planned for three nights in Mexico City. That would turn into eight nights needing time for Torch to fully recover from her injuries. More on that in the days ahead.
Driving along with my buddies Jesus the teacher (L) and Roland (R) the student and cologne salesman.
Overall it was a good day with the highlight being picking up two hitchhikers who didn’t want to wait for the school bus to take them home. One named Jesus was a teacher and the other Roland was a student. Roland was trying to sell me cologne of all things and I was just trying to communicate with them. Someday I will have to get the full 10-minute Go Pro video translate to learn what they were trying to say to me!
CLICK here for the Highlight Go Pro Video of Andy & Two Hitchhikers on the way to Tuxpan.
Sometimes, like in golf, an early challenge met and overcome is the trigger and sure sign that a good round is ahead. I was hoping that would be the case as we faced Torch’s mechanical difficulties early on in the ‘Journey to Olympic Golf.’
There are some more stories in the pictures below this request to make a donation to The First Tee…
I am looking for 100 new friends in the next 100 days to make a $100 donation (or any amount that you are able to make) to The First Tee. Each day I will be reliving the original “Journey to Olympic Golf” and hope to find a new friend in golf. Is that you? Please join me in giving back to the game we all love.
CLICK here to make a donation to The First Tee.
Please select ‘Andy Reistetter’s Journey to Olympic Golf’ on the drop-down menu for the question ‘What inspired you to make a gift today? This is for tracking purposes only, Andy does not receive any part of your donation or anything financially from The First Tee organization.
There are interesting incentives for making your donation to the First Tee…
PLEASE click here to make a donation to The First Tee.
Thank You!
Everything fit neatly into Torch’s boot! Note the hickory shaft on the right holding up the lid.
I never felt in danger but there were pickup trucks with armed and ready Policia on the roads.
Tampica seemed like a nice place. Some day I would like to return and have lunch at Playa Miramar on the Gulf.
JTOG Day 19: Leaving the United States of America!
October 29, 2013 By
Houston in in the rear view mirror of Torch, I am in Laredo, Texas looking right at Mexico tomorrow morning! “Journey to Olympic Golf” goes international… (Facebook Link, Andy Reistetter, 10/28/13)
BLOG Update- Tuesday, 10/29/13 Leaving the United States of America
Arrived Safely in Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas!
October 29, 2013 By
Okay came here for a salad & internet to Priceline a bed… but these guys were too much! Are they doing this is USA at Applebee’s? I get the green shirts, for apples and Appletinis right ladies? Applebee’s México u crack me up! Almost scored a green shirt and found that bed! (Facebook Post 2 Pics, Andy Reistetter, 10/19/13)
JTOG Day 19: Crossing the Border into Mexico!
October 29, 2013 By
To the BIG flag of Mexico in Nuevo Laredo is where I needed to go!
The plan for the first day in Mexico was simple. Get up early, get across the border, get Torch and myself registered (her as a vehicle, me with a personal visa) and make it as far as reasonable to Mexico City which according to Google Maps was 703 miles away and a drive of 10-1/2 hours. So much for plans as I ended up making it 323 miles, driving pretty much all day, to Ciudad Victoria and staying there my first night. Victoria City is kind of on the way to Mexico City but not exactly!
The border crossing was uneventful to the extent I didn’t even realize I was in already in Mexico. I don’t really remember any tough questions, it seemed more like an Upstate toll plaza on the New York State Thruway. In fact I had to pull over and ask someone fro sure if I had crossed the border and what do I need to do next. They were nice, offered to join me (which i declined), and pointed me in the right direction—toward the BIG flag of Mexico and the Control De Internacion Temporal De Vehiculos or the Control Temporary Importation Of Vehicles. Both Torch and I would be imported to Mexico on a temporary basis!
CLICK here for a Video of my stop at the Control De Internacion Temporal De Vehiculos.
Crossing the USA-Mexico border at Nuevo Laredo.
My bet to myself was that it would take two hours for us to cross the border, be processed how ever we needed to be processed and on our way to Mexico City. We arrived at the right time as there wasn’t much of a delay at the border or lines at the place with the BIG flag of Mexico above it. There was only one major problem and it was with Torch. When they typed in her VIN the system identified her as ‘Other’ instead of the beautiful Infiniti M30 2-door convertible that she was. It took some time to resolve especially with the language barrier. I don’t speak Spanish and Norma Teresa Torres Zavala didn;t speak English. If she had I probably would be better educated on why she had four names.
All-in-all the four-step process went quite smoothly. Step 1 was get the papers and fill them out. Step 2 was to pay two dollars for copies. I was able to skip Step 3 whatever it was (documentarian in me, see pictures at bottom and please explain if you can). Step 4 was to verify and resolve Torch’s heritage and of course pay the fees, $24 for my personal visa and $48 for Torch’s plus a refundable $200 deposit to redeemable when Torch left the country. Which I think I received back, not really sure, checked, yes I did!
We were free to come (and more importantly to go) and back on the road at 9:41 am, beating my two-hour guesstimate by twenty minutes!
‘Movin Right Along’ footloose and fancy free… good choice here!
So here is Lesson One from the ‘Journey to Olympic Golf’ or any other international travel for that matter. Get a good local phone that works and has GPS. I did not do that (mainly for cost and limited time in each country) but learned my lesson and did it in Australia and New Zealand this past winter. I had a Garmin in Mexico which was good as far as it went until I lost the satellite connection. I was relying on maps (real maps, you know the ones you can fold) and handwritten notes from internet Google Maps directions. And you know how bad my handwriting is!
I passed the first “bear left, frog right” Muppets fork in the road by choosing correctly the ‘cuota’ (tollway) and not the ‘libre’ (free local road) coming out of Nuevo Laredo and heading towards Monterrey. Going along on my merri way, however, I missed the exit for the tollway to Mexico City. I was expecting it to be closer to Monterrey but it was much earlier and I sailed right by it as far as I can figure out. So there I was in Monterrey which is beautiful and encircled by a highway I was travelling along and around for a few times. Never seeing the tollway to Mexico City I pulled out my map and when I say a highway that was on the map I took it. In this game of Mexican Roulette that road was Mexico 85 leading me to Ciudad Victoria. I rationalized the choice (like I had a choice) by noting to myself that this route would bring me closer to the Gulf of Mexico and perhaps I could have lunch in Tampico the next day at a nice place overlooking the water. The reality was something entirely different and nearly ended my odyssey two days into Mexico. More on that tomorrow.
With my new friends at Chili’s in Ciudad Victoria, Mexico.
Like the night before in Laredo I pulled into a McDonald’s to use the free internet and Priceline a room for the night. No, Priceline was not a sponsor though I did find then a convenient, efficient and cost effective way to find a bed when needed. Across from the McDonald’s was a Chilli’s so I went in there and had dinner and met some nice young people.
Day 1 in Mexico, the 19th of the ‘Journey to Olympic Golf’ was a good day. Torch and I were safe, making progress towards Mexico City and enjoying our time in Mexico.
Hopefully more of the same tomorrow but not exactly…
There are some more stories in the pictures below this request to make a donation to The First Tee…
I am looking for 100 new friends in the next 100 days to make a $100 donation (or any amount that you are able to make) to The First Tee. Each day I will be reliving the original “Journey to Olympic Golf” and hope to find a new friend in golf. Is that you? Please join me in giving back to the game we all love.
CLICK here to make a donation to The First Tee.
Please select ‘Andy Reistetter’s Journey to Olympic Golf’ on the drop-down menu for the question ‘What inspired you to make a gift today? This is for tracking purposes only, Andy does not receive any part of your donation or anything financially from The First Tee organization.
There are interesting incentives for making your donation to the First Tee…
PLEASE click here to make a donation to The First Tee.
Thank You!
Step 1: Get papers to fill out.
Step 2: Pay $2 for copies.
Step 3: Skipped, not sure why?
Step 4: Get verified and pay fees!
BLOG Update- Tuesday, 10/29/13 Leaving the United States of America
October 29, 2013 By
With Jeff Blume and his father Jay.
BLOG Update- Monday, 10/28/13 Houston/Laredo, Texas
After an amazing 6-night stay in Houston, I am in Laredo, Texas and ready to venture south into Mexico early tomorrow morning.
Well, what I thought would happen, did, during the last leg of “Journey to Olympic Golf” in America—I got lost and absorbed in the “Texas Triangle” of Dallas, San Antonio and Houston and it was hard to leave. The USA is so familiar and comfortable with a lot of friends and connections but I am all set to be a RoadTripper on the Pan American Highway on the way to Rio De Janeiro!
Wish me well, I will need it! The journey will transition from a golf trip to more of an adventure trip trying to navigate through borders and countries. I am sure I will still find golf and Olympic connections along the way!
Andy Reistetter interviewing Charlie Epps at Redstone Golf Club.
Highlights in Houston included meeting Charlie Epps, the Golf Doctor and Houston’s preeminent golf professional who is also two-time major champion Angel Cabrera’s coach. I attended the Grand Opening of the Campus Course at Texas A&M and played the course with Mike Bailey, GolfChannel.com’s Senior Travel Writer. I avenged my loss to him in Puerto Rico at Royal Isabela back in 2011 where we first met. The Opening Ceremony of The Spirit International was all that I dreamed it would be with 80 young golfers from around the world.
ClICK here for the video interview with Charlie Epps.
CLICK here for the video interview with Jeff Blume who designed the Campus Course at Texas A&M
Andy Reistetter with U.S. Team Captain Paige MacKenzie
CLICK here for the Opening Ceremony of The Spirit International.
It was a real treat to stay at The Woodlands Resort & Spa the last three nights and play Panther Trail on Saturday. I also played the Shell Houston Open Tournament Course at Redstone on Thursday so that was three golf days in a row, eight days golfing of the first 16 of the journey. I do not think I will be golfing that much south of the border during the next 2-1/2 months but who knows?
No birdie on No. 18 at Panther Trail but I chased a few ducks!
Time for bed, sweet dreams and an early rise to head south!
JTOG Day 18: Heading to Mexico!
October 28, 2013 By
Parked at McDonalds to use the free internet to Priceline a room for the night.
Being lost in the Texas Triangle of Dallas-San Antonio-Houston for the last eleven nights was a lot of fun when you stay at places like the Four Seasons Dallas Resort & Spa, J.W. Marriott San Antonio and The Woodlands Resort & Conference Center. Now it was time to break free and get down to the border in Laredo and go for the border crossing at sunrise. After a relaxing morning lounging around The Woodlands Resort I drove the five hours to Laredo and arrived as the sun was setting. I pulled into a McDonald’s to use their free internet and Pricelined a room for the night. This would be my MO (method of operation) when golf resorts chose not to offer me an invitation to visit. Amazingly that only happened one time. unfortunately there were not golf resorts separated by five hours of driving all the way down to Rio.
The Golf Channel producer who came to Glen Echo to film the hickory round referred to me as “a golf voyager and documentarian.” I kind of liked the term with only one qualification—that I like to document what I voyage!
CLICK here for a Highlight Video of the In & Out Dash-Mounted GO PRO Cameras in Houston.
As I arrive in Laredo, the sun sets on my last day in the States for the next three months.
As evidenced by the first GO PRO driving video shot in Houston, my dual dash-mounted cameras, one facing in to record me and one facing out to record the road were in place and operational. I did not realize my arms were that long or my attention to the road that weak. But I was good at documenting my travels. Looking back I took over 35,000 pictures, over 1,000 videos and used 673 GB of electronic storage. Voyager and Documentarian am I!
Crazy too as I was heading into Mexico and down through Central America with no firm plans but with a great proposition—Would you like to be part of the ‘Journey to Olympic Golf?’
There are some more stories in the pictures below this request to make a donation to The First Tee…
I am looking for 100 new friends in the next 100 days to make a $100 donation (or any amount that you are able to make) to The First Tee. Each day I will be reliving the original “Journey to Olympic Golf” and hope to find a new friend in golf. Is that you? Please join me in giving back to the game we all love.
CLICK here to make a donation to The First Tee.
Please select ‘Andy Reistetter’s Journey to Olympic Golf’ on the drop-down menu for the question ‘What inspired you to make a gift today? This is for tracking purposes only, Andy does not receive any part of your donation or anything financially from The First Tee organization.
There are interesting incentives for making your donation to the First Tee…
PLEASE click here to make a donation to The First Tee.
Thank You!
Torch was looking good from the outside and front!
Taped glove compartment was a bit tacky and not secure at all!
Torch’s back window was creatively patched though not effectively as I would have to drain out the water every once in a while, usually after it rained! Would you follow me to the moon?
JTOG Day 18: First GO PRO Video!
October 28, 2013 By
Funny (in my mind hilarious, my arms are so long and skinny) first video with a GO PRO camera mounted in Torch, my Infiniti M30 baby! (Facebook Link, Andy Reistetter, 10/28/13)
Jack Fleck, 1955 United States Open Champion
October 27, 2013 By
With Carmen & Jack Fleck at the Outback Steakhouse in Fort Smith, Arkansas.
Right after starting the “Journey to Olympic Golf” at Glen Echo CC in St. Louis I headed south to Fort Smith, Arkansas to visit my friend Jack Fleck and his wife Carmen. I first met Jack and his buddy (and now my Czech mate) Ed Tallach at the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines. We met again at the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach where I interviewed Jack and since then we have always seen each other at The Masters as well. I was excited to interview Mr. Fleck again to capture his insights on the “spirit of golf within” as I felt that he, as well as anybody, had that special feeling when he won the U.S. Open at the Olympic Club in 1955.
Jack Fleck at lunch at Hardscrabble CC.
Jack gave me all the time in the world for our interview early the next morning. His life in golf started as a caddie at age 14 during the Great Depression when he traveled 14 miles to get to the golf course. Immediately after high school he declared himself a “pro” and combined managing golf courses as a “golf professional” with traveling south during the winters to compete as a “professional golfer.” He spoke about his devotion to the game and his evolution into an “ambassador for golf.”
CLICK here for the VIDEO INTERVIEW with Jack Fleck, the 1955 United States Open Champion.
With Jack Fleck and Jeremy Moe at Hardscrabble CC.
Jack drove me over to Hardscrabble CC in Fort Smith, Arkansas to introduce me to his friend Jeremy Moe, the Head Golf Professional. He wanted to give me a tour of his home golf course. I wanted to meet Jeremy and see Hardscrabble CC too. In addition I wanted to get a golf lesson from Jack, something I had dreamed of doing for the last 20 years since I saw an article where it noted he lived in Northwest Arkansas and gave golf lessons. If Jack Fleck is a stand-up golfer, a lover of the game and quite proficient at it (an understatement) then Jeremy Moe is his younger version. What a great guy! You can tell immediately there is something very special about him and Hardscrabble CC. I like that Jack Fleck introduced Jeremy in the video interview and the camera captures a bit of the special friendship between these two men.
CLICK here for VIDEO INTERVIEW with Jeremy Moe, Head Golf Professional at Hardscrabble CC.
Jack driving me around Hardscrabble CC.
What a treat to have Jack Fleck give me a personal tour of Hardscrabble CC. If Fort Smith, Arkansas is home to Jack Fleck (it is) then the Hardscrabble club is like his personal golf library or his favorite room in the house. As host of the LPGA and the Web.com Tour for 13 years (last in 2010 when called the Nationwide Tour) this golf course is a world class venue tough enough for the pros and enjoyable for the members. Jack loves trees and the trees and pleasant terrain at Hardscrabble make for a refreshing walk in the natural outdoors every round.
CLICK here for the VIDEO of Andy’s golf lesson with Jack Fleck.
Presenting a Champion at Olympic CC with an Olympic Golf Gold Medal.
What a treat to have a golf lesson with Jack Fleck, the 1955 United States Open Champion! What a great sense of humor this man has. Of course I hit a right-to-left shot and after seeing my swing his comment was “I hope it was a dogleg left!” I will always remember his summary comment of “you have a good swing and you should play more.” I will take his advice for sure. For the record and in response to Jack’s concern that I might not get to play much on the “Journey to Olympic Golf.” In hindsight it was a disguised golf trip where I played 42 times on 35 different golf courses!
CLICK here for VIDEO of Jack Fleck receiving an Olympic Golf Gold Medal.
Having come to Jack’s place directly from the Glen Echo CC in St. Louis an idea came to me on the drive south (unfortunately along with a speeding ticket for Torch). The wonderful folks at Glen Echo gave me a full-sized replica of the 1904 Olympic Golf Gold Medal. I realized Jack and his generation missed the opportunity to play golf in the Olympics. I knew that he won the U.S. Open at the Olympic Club and that club was named for and based on the modern Olympics which started in 1896. I thought it proper that Jack receive the Olympic Golf Gold Medal so I presented it to him just before saying good bye and leaving him at Hardscrabble CC.
Here are the pictures and more stories in the captions from my visit with Jack and his wife Carmen in Fort Smith, Arkansas. What an honor and privilege!
JTOG Day 16: Playing Panther Trail at The Woodlands Resort!
October 26, 2013 By
The entrance to The Woodlands Resort & Conference Center.
My last respite before heading south of the border was a welcomed three-night stay at The Woodlands Resort & Conference Center about 28 miles north of Houston. A master-planned community by oil industry investor George P. Mitchell in the mid 70s I first became aware of it at that time in relation to the Shell Houston Open at the Woodlands CC from 1975 to 1984 and then at the TPC at The Woodlands through 2004. This time I was aware of The Woodlands as the place where the Opening Ceremony of The Spirit International were taking place on Sunday night.
I arrived late Friday evening after the day in College Station with Mike Bailey with golf planned on Saturday. After the Spirit festivities I would be driving down to Laredo on Monday and cross the border into Mexico early Tuesday morning. Where I was headed after that who knows but I knew my final destination was the Olympic Golf Course under construction in Rio.
Now completed, a new wing of the resort ,overlooking the dramatic 18th green, was under construction when i visited in October 2013.
The transformation of The Woodlands Resort & Conference Center from a modest 218-room property in 1974 to today’s resort with 406 deluxe rooms and suites, 4 onsite restaurants, 33 meeting rooms totally 60,000 square feet, and 36 holes of championship golf was still ongoing during my visit. The Forest Oasis Waterscape, with lagoon-style pools and a lazy river was completed last summer as planned making the property the region’s premier meeting and vacation destination.
Plus nearby there is shopping, for the non-golfers with complimentary individual transfers offered to Market Street and The Woodlands Mall. But for me it is all about the golf and the golf is very good at the The Woodlands Resort & Conference Center with me being forced to make the difficult choice of choosing which championship golf course to play—Panther Trail or The Oaks? Of course, you will be smarter than me and extend your stay to have time to play both courses!
Only ducks to greet me, not a birdie on the 18th green!
I choose Panther Trail which was originally designed by Joe Lee & Robert von Hagge and completely renovated in 2002 by Roy Case. I liked the gently rolling fairways and undulating greens with outlined by tall Carolina pines on every hole. The finishing hole is a tough par-4 with an island green. I was ecstatic to par that hole nearly missing a 15-foot birdie putt after a near perfect hybrid-4 approach shot. I birdied two holes back to back (the 9th & 10th) to end my birdie drought in Texas!
Here is a video of me happily missing that birdie putt on the 18th green!
With Leeann Sullinger, the Marketing Manager. This is where I would want to have a corporate meeting for sure!
Also originally designed by Joe Lee & Robert von Hagge, the Oaks Course was formerly a private course that was redesigned in 1999 by Jay Morrish & Associates. With lots of oak trees I am sure it is a great test of golf for all golfers. In fact, I have missed playing it two times now with a strong recommendation to play it when I was in town for this year’s Insperity Championship. I am sure that when I return to The Woodlands for the third time it will be charmed with a round on the Oaks,
From the welcoming chips and beer in my room, to a fabulous tour of the resort by Marketing Manager Leeann Sullinger, through the fairways of the Panther Trail Course, my time at The Woodlands Resort & Conference Center was full of relaxation, fun and adventure.
An Olympic-like golf competition for collegiate male and female golfers… Charlie Epps was right, The Spirit International was not to be missed for a lot of reasons!
There are some more stories in the pictures below this request to make a donation to The First Tee…
I am looking for 100 new friends in the next 100 days to make a $100 donation (or any amount that you are able to make) to The First Tee. Each day I will be reliving the original “Journey to Olympic Golf” and hope to find a new friend in golf. Is that you? Please join me in giving back to the game we all love.
CLICK here to make a donation to The First Tee.
Please select ‘Andy Reistetter’s Journey to Olympic Golf’ on the drop-down menu for the question ‘What inspired you to make a gift today? This is for tracking purposes only, Andy does not receive any part of your donation or anything financially from The First Tee organization.
There are interesting incentives for making your donation to the First Tee…
PLEASE click here to make a donation to The First Tee.
Thank You!
View of the golf course from the Cannongate Restaurant.
Resort lounge area, well appointed and comfortable, Texas-style!
Everything seemed to be tasteful, exceptional and well-timed, even this inspiration note left for me to find in my room.
