Greensboro Daily Photo

Greensboro Grasshoppers: A Glorious Evening of Baseball

Strike 1,2,3 and you're out at the old ball game!  If you are looking for affordable, family fun, head down to Newbridge Bank Park.This is a view of the Greensboro Grasshoppers playing the Delmarva Shorebirds in the stadium last Friday night. The weather was perfect and the fans were enjoying themselves. There is a free playground for children and, for adults, North Carolina's largest outdoor sports bar, Natty's Hill-- a nod to Greensboro's namesake, Nathanael Greene. With the events held here, our stadium keeps downtown Greensboro hoppin' all summer long. For more fun, get your picture taken with Guilford, the mascot. You don't even have to go inside to take your picture with the larger-than-life baseballs that adorn the entrance. For sure, the venue is the pride of Greensboro.

The Grasshoppers are one of the minor league teams affiliated with the Miami Marlins. Learn more about minor league baseball and purchase tickets here. Batter up! 

Farm Course Fun!

If you live here, you know Greensboro is a big golf town. If you do not live here and like golf, you should make it a point to come play one of our courses. Above, we see an event from a few weeks ago at the Farm Course of the Greensboro Country Club. Golfers seemed to be enjoying every minute of the event. With six million dollars of renovations to the Farm Course, located off Carlson Dairy Road in Northwest Greensboro, use of the venue has increased significantly. Golf architect, Donald Steele, redesigned the above course. The 103 year-old Greensboro Country Club has not only one but two fabulous 18-hole courses. 

In addition to Greensboro Country Club, Grandover, Bryan Park, Cardinal, Forest Oaks, Pleasant Ridge, Starmount and Sedgefield  Clubs are some of the many options for golf in Greensboro. This News & Record article about golf in Greensboro goes all the way back to 1937-- the year of the first PGA-sanctioned golf tournament in Greensboro, the Greater Greensboro Open.

We're sharing this sky shot with Skywatch Friday. While an overcast sky doesn't make the most attractive sky picture, it can be good golf weather. Fore!

Pole Vault

Now that spring has sprung, track and field events are springing up everywhere-- including this high school meet last Saturday at Elon College. The Elon Phoenix were great hosts for this annual event. We know that Elon is not in Greensboro; however, they have a law school in downtown Greensboro and, with all of the construction between Greensboro and Burlington, it feels like we are really close communities now.

Pole vaulting has been around for a very long time and they have been a full medal event in the Olympics since 1896 for men and 2000 for women-- 104 years difference. In the above photo, pole vaulters were just warming up.  The poles look heavy but are definitely light. We're sharing this photo with Skywatch where the whole world sees the blue above!

 

Wyndham Championship & Golf in Greensboro

Greensboro is abuzz about golf this week. Today is the Round 3 Tournament Play of the Wyndham Championship. At 6p.m. tomorrow, we'll know who takes the Sam Snead Cup and prize money. Sam Snead won the Greater Greensboro Open (GGO), the precursor to the Wyndham,in 1938, the year it began. He won the GGO a total of eight times, his last time being in 1965 at the age of almost 53 years. His record still stands today as having won the most times and having been the oldest to win. With these records as well as his commitment to the event and the sport, it is easy to see why the winner will be awarded the Sam Snead Cup. It was said that when Sam Snead hit the ball, "(i)t sounded like a rifle and the ball flew like a bullet" (reference). Mr. Snead died in 2002, four days short of his 90th birthday.

If you are interested in following the results of this week's PGA event, the Wyndham posts the leaderboard here. Tommy Gainey started the day Saturday in the lead position. The event combines several social events and and the Wyndham is donating 100,000 toward a charity that focuses on helping children. We have to disclose that the above photo was taken at the Greensboro Country Club earlier this week as we weren't confident that we could get into the Wyndham with a camera (without a press pass). 

Cornhole-- "It's your turn to toss!"

The lawn game Cornhole is all the rage in Greensboro! In the above photo, we see some young adults who brought their Cornhole game to the Coliseum to pass time until the fireworks started on July 4th. For those of you who haven't played before, the white raised board in the middle of the photo is one of two plywood, cornhole targets. The opponent's sloped target is in the spot where we were standing to take the photo.  Little corn-filled bags are tossed back and forth. The goal is to get the bag in the hole and to reach 21 points. If you really want to learn to play, read here.

Nobody is sure of the exact origin of cornhole. Native Americans played a similar game and there are tossing games in many early cultures. In modern times, Ohio and Michigan have played a significant role in popularizing the game. Word has it that in Greensboro teams and competitions are cropping up even with county employees to boost collegiality and to alleviate on the job stress. The game costs from $75 up depending on the elaborateness of the façade and whether they are made at home or purchased pre-made. We'd love to own one if you know of an affordable source.

We're tossing this post up on Skywatch Friday.  If we're lucky, we'll get comments from around the world. Wonder if they play cornhole in Siberia, in Rio de Janeiro........... in Jerusalem?

Giant Lawn Chess at the Parisian Promenade

Yesterday, Lawn Chess was one of the many activities at Greensboro Beautiful's  Parisian Promenade. People far and wide descended upon Tanger Family Bicentennial Garden to enjoy the artwork, music, food, socializing and much more in these public gardens. Poodles, from teacup to giant standard to labradoodles; from privately acquired to rescued, brought their owners out for a stroll. Non-poodles were also welcome!

As open, green space becomes transformed into apartments complexes and shopping, public spaces, such as parks, gardens and greenways, are becoming increasingly important to communities. Greensboro is no exception and Greensboro Beautiful and the Parks and Recreation Department are working hard to provide a great quality of life for our families. In the photo above, the older guy on the right appeared to be providing his young chess partner with pointers about chess with the giant lawn pieces. At the Parisian Promenade, children of all ages enjoyed the afternoon. Stop back for a few more photos this week.

Gone Golfing

Greensboro is a big golfing town and here you can see we've "gone golfing." Actually, this is the driving range at Bur-Mil park. It is open to the public and mighty fun and affordable. These men were having a blast while their children practiced at the putting green and, in at least one case, the wife was looking on. In the 1930's Greensboro launched its first PGA-sanctioned tournament and golf has become entrenched in our local culture. Public and private courses abound in our city. The News & Record has assembled a great history of golf in Greensboro (here).

This is our contribution to Skywatch Friday-- a place to enjoy the sky fifty-two weeks a year.

Greensboro Grasshoppers Ready for Season Opener this Friday

Here we see Guilford the Grasshopper (mascot for our minor league baseball team) greeting fans at the corner of N. Elm and Bellemeade Streets, a couple of blocks from the baseball stadium. At the impromptu photo shoot, we learned that Guilford was actually en route to the "Walk to Defeat ALS" at Center City Park last Saturday. Guilford reports that turnout was tremendous this year and fundraising goals were surpassed. Thank you, Greensboro!

After the ALS Walk, Guilford the Grasshopper hopped back to the stadium to get ready for this weekend's baseball games. According to their website (here), the 2011 home opener is this Friday evening and after the game there will be a fireworks show.  Also, to kick off the season, the Grasshoppers have 9 nights of home games in a row at NEWBRIDGE BANK PARK. We have a new, conveniently located stadium with comfortable seating, a nice field, a wide variety of concessions, places to find shade when it is too hot, a playground for energetic children, and much, much more. The club is always offering special events, including fireworks shows. The Greensboro Grasshopper baseball games are great, affordable family fun. With ticket prices ranging from 6-9 dollars, attending a game is less expensive than going to a movie! Attending minor league baseball games is quite a Greensboro tradition and Guilford hopes to see YOU there!

Honk if you Love Guards

Happy Monday!

Whether you are more interested in guards on basketball teams or on battlefields, both drove out of town yesterday. If you are a Carolina fan, you are saying, "Wait until next year." If you are are a Duke fan or a reenacter on the British side or the American side of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, you are thinking about next year saying, "Same thing; different year." 

As for the owner of this North Carolina vanity plate, 1FTGUARD, he is celebrating being a fan of reenactments 365 days a year. He is a  foot guard which makes him part of a senior infantry regimen. Foot guards can be distinguished by the spacing and arrangement of the buttons on their tunic. The oldest regiment of continuously serving foot guards are the Coldstream Guards and they have been serving since the 1650's.

We don't know about you but as for us, it seemed like February would never end and that March is almost over!

2011 ACC Basketball Tournament in Greensboro

This weekend, while people are reenacting the Battle of Guilford Court House, others are flocking to the Coliseum in Greensboro to watch ACC  Tournament basketball games. By tomorrow, we'll know the 2011 Champs. For now, we're reposting the photo of this window from a couple of years ago. Not only are the games here this year, Greensboro is home to the Atlantic Coast Conference. As their website states, "(t)he Atlantic Coast Conference was founded on May 8, 1953, at the Sedgefield Inn near Greensboro, N.C. with seven charter members- Clemson, Duke, Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina State, South Carolina and Wake Forest." Today the conference has expanded to eleven member schools and generates some pretty intense rivalries.

As of last week, Greensboro is now home to the ACC Hall of Champions. One of the highlights of the brand-new, state-of-the art facility is a 4-ft. 360-degree video globe that shares conference highlights with visitors. We'll try to get a photo of the new facility but NOT during tournament madness. Getting near the venue during the busiest weekend of the year is not advisable. 

We're posting this photo, with the reflections in the windows, on Weekend Reflection.

 

 

Steelers Fans in Greensboro

Last month, these Pittsburgh Steelers fans were standing around waiting for the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. parade to begin. As seen on the green street sign, they were gathered on Martin Luther King Jr Drive in East Greensboro. It was a gray winter day.  Informal surveys and NFL clothing choices indicated that more citizens of Greensboro were in favor of the Pittsburgh Steelers. So, today is not only a sad day for Pittsburgh but also for Steelers fans in Greensboro and across the nation. The Super Bowl was an exciting game-- determined by the last possession. Congratulations to the Green Bay Packers. Even with injuries, they played a great game. We hope the man in the center of the photo continues to wear his jacket as six Super Bowl wins is something to be proud of. If he has one, can, however, put his terrible towels, away!

Greensboro is a great sports city. We love athletic events of all kinds and are especially excited that the Women's and Men's 2011 ACC Basketball Championships are in Greensboro in March! Check out our old March Madness photos.

Revolution Park

The sun rises over the three-acre Revolution Park at 2200 Yanceyville Street, at the beginning of Cornwallis Drive. If this softball field could talk, it would recount many fun times. For decades, workers from Revolution MIll, just down the street, came for picnics with their families and played ball from dawn to dusk. Workers at Revolution Mill were a close community; living, working, enjoying recreation, socializing, and attending school and church all within a few miles of the mill. Owners saw to it that their workers' children had access to a sound education and to family-friendly recreation. 

The park is a still-active city facility and, while textile looms were silenced in 1982, in 2003, the mill was purchased and renovated for office space. Preserving the integrity of the buildings, the $40 million dollar renovation has resulted in nearly 100 businesses opening within the structure. The owners endeavor to make the new facility the heart of the community. Many families on Maple, Cypress, Walnut, Fairview and surrounding streets have memories of Revolution Mill and Park that are as strong as the sun reflecting and refracting in this photo. When the weather warms, families will be filling up the field and the bleachers.

This post will be shared with Skywatch Friday.

War Eagle(s) Spotted in North Carolina

Auburn University is not the only home of the "war eagle" mascot. War Eagles are soaring in nearby Davie County! Knowing that Auburn University plays Oregon in football for the National Championship today, Mr. and Mrs. GDP drove over to Davie County, home of the Davie County War Eagles to take this photo. While the Davie County War Eagles fell to the Hillside Hornets for the North Carolina 2010 4-A Championship in December, they still represent quite a Cinderella Story, making it all the way to the finals for the first time in the school's history.

We're hoping that Auburn's War Eagles can represent the South and beat Oregon tonight. Regardless, here's to a good game, everyone staying healthy, and record viewership for a Monday game! Many TV sets in Greensboro, including those in the local sports bars, will be tuned to this nationally televised game.

AMF All-Star Lanes

This week on Greensboro Daily Photo, we're trying to feature ways to spend time around town. If you want something to do over Thanksgiving with your family, consider good old-fashioned bowling. Bowling is a family-friendly activity and a great way to get a little exercise. AMF lanes is conveniently located at the corner of Holden Road and Spring Garden Street. The muffled sound of pins scattering upon impace with the bowling ball is a memory from early childhood. Strikes, spares, split, gutter balls..... make these expression part of your familysj' vocabulary.

In the background, you will notice Adam's Hair Studio. When it was built, it was a florist shop called "The Flower Pot." It is Greensboro's one example of novelty architecture and was the second ever post on Greensboro Daily Photo (featured here) almost two years ago! This is our contribution to Ruby Tuesday were everything has a little red.

Page High School Stadium

Greensboro city residents know the depth of the rivalry between Grimsley and Page High Schools. Last week, we featured the stadium at Grimsley. This week, we offer a view of the stadium at Page High School, home of the Page Pirates. On Friday, the Grimsley Whirlies will host the 51st regular-season meeting of these two teams. Students on both campuses are putting a crazy amount of energy into theme dressing and expressing school spirit. Revenue from the events centered around this game significantly helps the athletic program. We seem to recall reading the Page High School is slated to receive a new stadium. However, Google searches on Page High School are hard. There are not many Grimsleys out there; however, page is a tag for everything from where you are in a book to what you do when you are trying to contact a doctor in a hospital! Also, we didn't readily find any information about building plans on the Pirates' website. Does anybody know?

If you are an alumnus, you may not know that both schools have impressive Wikipedia sites (linked above). 

We share this today with Ruby Tuesday, the place for all things red.

Cathy Gray & Dig Pink!

Cathy Gray was the breast cancer survivor recognized last night at the annual Dig Pink volleyball match between Page and Grimsley High Schools. Many of the women in Cathy's family have suffered from cancer and she talked of not only losing family members but also surviving cancer herself. Cathy spoke with such passion and grace. She shared her story with the audience last night during the recognition ceremony. After chemotherapy and multiple operations, Cathy has been cancer free for nine years. Thank you so much for stressing the importance of mammograms and self examination to help fight a disease that touches the lives of so many. To be sure, the young athletes were paying attention to you! As stated last night, long after the score of the game is forgotten, the young women will remember that they played for a very special cause.

The Dig Pink fundraising event raised several hundred dollars for the Side Out organization and their efforts towards providing breast cancer awareness and helping patients directly. Here's to Greensboro resident Cathy Gray for all that she does do contribute to our community. This award is much deserved.

Jamieson Stadium and the Grimsley-Page Rivalry

Robert B. Jamieson Stadium was so named in 1975 after Grimsley High School's Coach/Athletic Director. Coach Jamieson retired after 42 years of service. A Grimsley High School timeline of interesting facts can be found here. This is the week of one of the biggest rivalries in town, Grimsley and Page High Schools.  In the above parking lot in front of Jameson Stadium, there will be tailgate parties and other festivities in anticipation of the big football rivalry. All week at the two schools, students will get to dress in "theme based" clothing : wear school colors, imitate the opposing school's fashion, dress like a twin, look like a superhero, to name a few. While we're at Grimsley, we want to mention that Home Depot and its employees spent a great deal of money and person hours providing a picnic shelter for the Grimsley Athletics Program. Thanks to Home Depot, Grimsley's picnic attendees will have a place to eat, rain or shine.

Today, Page will host a DIG PINK/SIde-Out volleyball game to raise money and awareness for breast cancer. We'll try to get a photo of Page High School while we're at the game! These rivalries are taken seriously by the high school students, but to adults, in most cases, they represent good old-fashioned fun!

 

Tate Street Festival

The Tate Street Festival was held this weekend. Here we see a view of vendors and shoppers. In the background, you can see a few historic buildings on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG). Everyone who attends, teaches, or works at UNCG is likely to spend time on Tate Street. The beauty of Tate Street is that many of the businesses have their proprietors on site so you actually develop a relationship with the people who sell you coffee, food, jewelry, antique clothing, etc. Not only do they get to know you on a first name basis, they know how you like your coffee, how long you will sit and grade papers, when you are scheduled to graduate, etc. The proprietors organize the festival as a way to build community and to get people who do not normally come to the campus area to visit. One of the best things about this festival is that the entrance and entertainment is FREE. Free is a valuable word to college students.

This photo has been shared with the Mellow Yellow Monday crowd. The yellow umbrella belongs to the local man who invented/is selling his ASKEW game-- the father son team in the foreground is involved in a game of ASKEW.

 

Gate City Roller Girls

Gate City Roller Girls roll onto the scene when you least expect it. What a bundle of energetic fun. This photo was taken a few months ago on Elm Street in the heart of downtown Greensboro. However, we thought this action shot would be a great way to jump start the work week. By the way, according to their Facebook page, Greensboro Roller Derby will be practicing from 7-9 tonight at Skate South in High Point. See their Facebook site here. The group is very welcoming. All it takes is a willingness to go in circles (fast) on four wheels stuck to shoes! 

With over 500 leagues in 16 countries, this American-invented sport is experiencing a revival. We love this Wikipedia description. "Leagues typically operate on an amateur circuit, and are based on a strong do it yourself ethic which features both athleticism, combined with elements from punk and third-wave feminist aesthetics " (quote found here). We're sharing this with Ruby Tuesday where third-wave feminists are welcomed as long as they're wearing RED!

 

Take Me Out To the Ball Game

The Greensboro Grasshoppers are at home tonight everybody! Let's all buy a ticket and head to town. For those of you from elsewhere, we have a Class A team that plays in the South Atlantic League. Since 2003, the Grasshoppers have been a farm team for the Florida Marlins. Our stadium was built in 2005 and it seats 7,499 fans. Our baseball team has had several nicknames (Patriots, Hornets, Bats, and now, Grasshoppers). According to Wikipedia, the team first played at Cone Park on the property of Cone Mills. Then it moved to War Memorial Stadium; now, the team plays in NewBridge Bank Park (seen above) at 408 Bellemeade Street. You can follow them (here) on Facebook!

Greensboro's baseball history is actually pretty interesting and available on Wikipedia where we found most of this information! This is our entry for Ruby Tuesday. In case the brick isn't red enough, the lady in the bulls eye red shirt in the center of the photo has us covered!

 

Tackling Religion

Today is Sunday, the day we try to present a fresh look at religion in Greensboro.  We've featured Friendly Baptist Church before (here); however, what we didn't mention is that it is a dynamic church with meetings, events, and practices of some sort daily. The church is alive with activity well beyond the direct preaching from the pulpit. Here we see a football team practicing on the church lawn on a very hot afternoon. Just after this sprint back to the church, the coach instructed the guys to take off their helmets and get water. He knew their limits. Two other teams were practicing in different corners of the grounds. This is a very common practice in the United States.

First we took a picture of the guys running toward the camera but decided that the message of running in the direction of the church was more powerful: Tackling religion. It is, after all, not always an easy topic to broach and we couldn't resist the play on words. Other than reading this blog, how are you spending your Sunday?
 

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Here you see a photo of some of the first fruits of our backyard-garden labor. We make it a point to plant edibles (almost) exclusively.  Here is our first tomato, some hot peppers, blueberries, and rattlesnake green beans. The purple flowers are what the beans look like before maturing. Next, although not edible, is a yellow marigold. We surround our garden with marigolds as they seem to help keep the bugs out. In addition, we have okra, cucumbers, eggplant, basil, lavender, mint, lemon verbena, figs, and Swiss chard.

In Greensboro this summer, we first experienced excessive rain. In the last several days, the sun has been relentless. Therefore, gardening has been challenging.  Presently, the blueberries are really prolific and the rattlesnake green beans are starting to produce enough beans to feed us. They are a very tasty pole bean. We like to take a picture every year around the Fourth of July to document our garden successes. Are you planting anything? How is it growing?

 

Love is All Around

This photo, from the Summer Solstice Celebration, evokes the 1960's song by the Troggs, "Love is All Around." 

 "I feel it in my fingers, I feel it in my toes. Well love is all around me, and so the feeling grows. It's written in the wind, it's everywhere I go. So if you really love me, come on and let it show"

Here we see an arboretum full of people letting love show. Here we see a man TIRELESSLY blowing bubbles for the children around him. As soon as he would suspend a giant bubble in the air, a child would gleefully burst it. Also, the man in the striped shirt would put his daughter's head into the bubble, it would pop, and she would giggle. The little boy in the tie-dyed T shirt could pop bubbles faster than we could snap photos. Truly, love was all around. 

The July Theme Day theme for the City Daily Photo Community is, REFLECTION. First, we are reflecting on summer fun and the profound sense of community felt that day. Second, we're admiring the brief reflection sizzling on the surface of the soap bubble.

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants 

Askew!

Askew is a game of suspension and balance invented by a local Greensboro man. We purchased the game in 2006 when he was demonstrating it at Guilford College. Askew involves the laws of physics and challenges fine motor skills. We like it because people usually don't get upset when you talk while playing and there are several ways to modify the game. Plus, we just love creative, innovative people and are darned proud that this award winning game was invented in our back yard! Here we see it set up on desks at a local school. We think we'll keep our set in the car this summer to tinker with during concerts in the parks and other public events. What was invented in your city? 

Hey, that would be a good City Daily Photo theme!

 

Reflecting on Greensboro's Past and Present

Go Greensboro Grasshoppers, so says John Klopp at his State Farm Insurance Office in downtown Greensboro. This reflection represents the view out John's window. The window reflects the most recognizable building downtown-- the JP building. From the parking lot, you can see Newbridge Park Stadium.

Since we're posting this for our friends at Weekend Reflection, we decided to take this opportunity to reflect and be thankful for the week. We're sharing David Hoggard's post on Greensboro's 1926 World War Memorial Stadium, that, to some, has outlived its usefulness . Hoggard quotes Edwin Jeffress (then part owner of one of the local newspapers and Greensboro's mayor in 1926 at the stadium's dedication). The inspirational words explain the name, World War Memorial Stadium.

"And so the stadium has been built by children's and widows' and wives' and rich men's wealth. It is here for the use of the coming generations; the soldier boys said they wanted no hollow granite, no useless monument to decorate our street corners, even no statuary or brass to remind us of those who have passed along after doing life's full duty, but they wanted something that would be useful; that would help develop mind and body; that would in this way be a perpetual memorial to those who have passed..., that those of us who follow should use our best efforts to make ourselves physically fit to answer any emergency... and when the call to duty comes, answer with a clear, strong voice, 'We are ready to do our bit.'

Thank you David for sharing the quote. This would be a good quote for public school children to memorize.

 

...In with the New.... Newbridge Bank Park

Yesterday, we featured War Memorial Stadium, Greensboro's premiere stadium for 79 years. However, since 2005, Newbridge Bank Park has been Greensboro's destination for baseball. The new stadium has contributed significantly to the rebirth of downtown. From baseball games to fireworks displays to scout camp outs to evenings on the playground just inside the gate, Newbridge Bank Park is fun, fun, fun. 

Take me out to the ball game in the new ballpark; but, find a way to keep our vintage gem, War Memorial. To follow up with questions yesterday, World War Memorial Stadium was so named because it was dedicated on the eighth anniversary of Armistice Day (November 11, 1926). See more pictures here.

For the ABC Wednesday crowd, N is for Newbridge and NEW ball park!

 

War Memorial Stadium

War Memorial Stadium, originally designed for football and with a capacity  of 7,500, opened in 1926. Formerly, the Greensboro Bats played minor league baseball here. Spring 2005, the new baseball stadium downtown replaced War Memorial and the Greensboro Grasshoppers replaced the Bats. This change did not come without controversy and opposition. While most Greensboro residents concede that the new stadium was a good economic choice for our city, considerable debate has taken place about the future of the pre-World War II stadium above. Perhaps War Memorial's most ardent supporter and articulate advocate has been local resident David Hoggard. We highly recommend his latest blog entry on the issue. This stadium has so much character from wooden bleachers to little stand-alone ticket huts.  We wanted to photograph this beauty, located at 510 Yanceyville Street, while it is still unchanged. At least it will be immortalized in the movie Leatherheads.

Thanks to the touch of read on the flags, we're sending this out to Ruby Tuesday.

 

Let's Bowl!

Greensboro has some fun bowling alleys that provide a clean, wholesome way to spend time with family and friends. Here we are at the AMF All Star Lanes at the intersection of Holden Road and Spring Garden Street. The guy in the next lane over had better luck (skill) than we did! Bowling alleys have a distinctive muffled sound as the ball meets the pins and cloukkkk, a strike! Then there is the faint, sweet smell of the polish that makes everything shine. 

Bowling has been traced back to the Stone Age. Evidence of bowling was found in an Egyptian tomb dating back to 5,200 BC. Different cultures attach different symbolism to the game. Since it is the Lenten Season, we'll share the fact that in Germany, bowling was introduced to the masses by the monks as a customary test of faith. While not in Greensboro, did you know that there is an International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame? For the Weekend Reflection crowd, see that REFLECTION on the lane?

 

Grand Prix GSO

Grand Prix Greensboro, located near the airport at 302 Gallimore Dairy Road, is open to the public and is loads of fun. Young and old alike can strap on safety gear and race around the indoor track. Grand Prix Kart Racing makes even a mom and pop like us feel like we are NASCAR material. In the photo above, a red flag has been waived because a driver is stuck. As you can see, the other karts, all wait patiently until the path is clear. The fastest lap during our 8-minute session was 23 seconds. Unfortunately, that was not our time! Karting is a great activity, especially in bad weather. We may just book our next birthday party there! 

Happy New Year 2010 for those of you signing on today. This is post #366 and we'll make every effort to bring you a new photo of Greensboro every day in 2010! We've managed to post every day since we began last January 2nd-- even through power outages, funerals, and vacations! As always, WILL WORK FOR COMMENTS!!!

 

Greensboro Country Club Farm Course

After a major redesign and renovation, the Farm Course of the Greensboro Country Club has officially reopened. Here we see golfers out on [re]opening day the other week. The new course is beautiful and said to be amply challenging. Even if you do not belong to GCC, if you are a golfer, Greensboro has plenty of options for golfing-- at all price points!

 

Golf in Greensboro, NC

Golf is a major sport and form of recreation in Greensboro, North Carolina. We have at least 12 courses: Bryan Park, Bur-Mil Park, Cardinal Golf & Country Club, Forest Oaks Country Club, Gillespie Park Golf Course, Grandover Resort's West and East Courses, The Greensboro Country Club's Ross and Maples Course, Pleasant Ridge Golf Course, Sedgefield Country Club, and Starmount Forest Country Club.

Historically, we are perhaps best known for the Greater Greensboro Open, first played in 1939 with Sam Snead winning. The tournament has been renamed more than once and played at Sedgefield, Forest Oaks, and Starmount Country Clubs. 

During this hot, dry, drought-like fall in Greensboro, we had to practice great restraint not to run through this starburst of water to cool off! We post this picture of a hole being watered  (NOT a watering hole!) for Watery Wednesday.

Greensboro Grasshoppers

NewBridge Bank Park is home of the Greensboro Grasshoppers. The ballpark has been a wonderful addition to downtown Greensboro. Attendance is up this year as families look for fun, affordable ways to have a night out.  The stadium is a photographer's delight. Additionally, the playground area, reminiscent of a scene from "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" keeps children happy. The above view, with the 3 1/2'  cement baseballs, is just outside the main entrance. On Fridays, home games usually end with fireworks. Thanks to YouTube, we can enjoy a Greensboro Grasshoppers fireworks display virtually! 

On an historical note: In the early 2000's, the Greensboro Community had to decide if we wanted to renovate the  War Memorial Stadium. Much nostalgia was attached since War Memoiral, built in 1926, was the oldest minor-league ballpark still in use. In the end, Greensboro elected to build a new stadium and even renamed the mascot-- formerly the Greensboro Bats, now, the Grasshoppers. In the end, even local preservationists conceded that building the new stadium was a wise decision. Here's to a winning season for the Grasshoppers!!!

The Green Bean Coffee House

The Green Bean is a family friendly coffee house at 341 South Elm Street. Some consider The Green Bean the social center of downtown Greensboro.  In this conveniently located coffee shop, you can hold small meetings, access Wi-Fi, enjoy live music, take in the ever-changing art exhibits, play billiards and board games, or simply enjoy a cup of fair-trade coffee. On Saturday, they are open from 8:00 am- 11:00 pm. Today is somewhat quiet; however, last night, they had a couple of fabulous live bands. Currently, in their gallery, they are showing Matthew Mica's photography and paintings by Lisa Woods.

Don't ever stay home alone or bored. Grab a friend and head down to the Green Bean. Sunday brunch seems to be getting a lot of traffic. We just might head on over in the morning! Regarding photography, we love the reflective round mirrors against the blue wall. We shot this picture from the back room near the exit to the patio seating area.

ACC Tournament

Greensboro is home to the headquarters of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The conference was founded in May 1953 in the city. While the schools of the conference are competitive and have produced champions in all intercollegiate sports, basketball has generated some of the nation's most intense rivalries and greatest teams.

The ACC Tournaments were exciting this year as always. Hopefully, you got to watch some of the great basketball. Unfortunately for Greensboro, this year's men's tournament was played in Atlanta. However, the city did host the 2009 Women's ACC Tournament. Here we see a picture of team banners at the Greensboro Coliseum complex. The Coliseum and the ACC will play host for two rounds of this year's men's Division I NCAA Tournament.

The day the idea for the picture came to us, we did not have our camera. Upon returning the next day, cherry blossoms had started blooming. In springtime, nature changes daily! In basketball tournaments, changes are hourly! Congratulations to the ACC Champion Maryland Lady Terrapins and Duke Blue Devils.

                 

The Ultimate Sport

In case you have not heard of ULTIMATE, it is a team sport played with a disc that many refer to as a Frisbee. Players toss the disc to teammates advancing it down the field towards the goal-line. Once a player has control over the disc, a pivot foot must be established, similar to basketball. Picking up your pivot foot results in a travel.  Ultimate players act as their own referees, taking great pride in their sportsmanship -- which is referred to in the community as "Spirit of the Game."

The above photo was taken at a recent Ultimate event held on the intramural fields at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. As you can see, it is not uncommon for teams to be comprised of both men and women of varying ages (from high school to post-collegiate). If you have tremendous stamina and are talented at tossing a disc, it is never too late to play ULTIMATE!