JTOG Day 22: Taking Care of Torch and Visiting GC of Mexico

It was good to get settled into Mexico City! I already felt yesterday with the afternoon seeing the Olympic Stadium at the National University of Mexico City and learning about the 1968 Olympics was a great start to this key stop on the 'Journey to Olympic Golf.' But to continue on this odyssey I needed to get Torch fixed. Her back right wheel was tilting even more and I knew it would only get worse if driven any further than I had to. I decided to take her down to the Bridgestone Service Center on Insurgentes Avenue that I saw coming to the Inn Sur last night. After all their tag line is "Your Journey, Our Passion" sort of fit my situation. Fernando, the Bridgestone Store Manager, was great.  He was interested in fixing Torch but the only problem was that he didn't speak English and I did not speak Spanish. He put poor Torch up on the lift and it was obvious that she was in poor shape. Fernando sketched his repair thoughts in my journal and we used Google Translator to converse in a bit more detail. What really saved the day was Alberto Corral walking in the front door. Fluent in English and Spanish, little did this Bridgestone customer know that he would be a translator too! It looked like Fernando could make the necessary adjustments and have Torch ready to go by 10 am on Monday. Not bad for an American car repair that showed up on Friday morning. I was sad to leave Torch in the Auto Hospital but that is where she needed to be. We really did take on this Journey together, it was as much about the car making it to Rio as the golf explorations. CLICK HERE for the Video Interview with Mario Ortega, Member of the Golf Club of Mexico. Delia, my new friend from The Spirit International in Houston had arranged for me to meet a member of the Club de Golf Mexico, a.k.a. the Golf Club of Mexico. His name was Mario Ortega and he was no ordinary member if there is such a thing. Born into the club, he has been a member his whole life and knows the history of the club intimately. The Golf Club of Mexico was founded by a sitting president of Mexico in 1949—President Miguel Alemán Valdes. Current president, of the club, is Mario Zertuche Díaz and he has led an impressive revitalization and modernization of the club. It is spectacular! The Golf Club of Mexico hosted the Mexican Open, an official event for the PGA Tour Latinoamérica, in 2013 which was won by American Ted Purdy. Two-time Major Champion and future World Golf Hall of Famer Lorena Ochoa moved her LPGA Invitational event here last year with Christina Kim winning the event. As Mario mentions in his video interview Lorena won many amateur events at the Golf Club of Mexico. Mario was 10 years old and a Boy Scout when the Olympics came to Mexico City in 1968. The Boy Scouts were recruited to act as marshals so he got to see a lot of the athletes and the competitions up close and personable. He is excited about golf coming back to the Olympics in 2016 in Rio. His hope is that Lorena Ochoa comes out of retirement to represent Mexico but if she doesn't maybe Gabby Lopez, who comes from the Golf Club of Mexico and calls him Uncle Mario, will represent Mexico in the Olympics. She is a junior at the University of Arkansas and finished runner-up in the 2015 NCAA Tournament with an impressive bogey-free 66 final round. My first full day in Mexico City was quite exciting getting Torch hopefully the help she needs and visiting the Golf Club of Mexico and learning all about its storied history and more about the 1968 Olympics from someone who was there! Tomorrow will be an exciting day too! 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!