Silly times in Lincoln: My Royals Caravan experience

For reasons I never did figure out, the Lincoln stop of the Royals Caravan was not at Sportscasters Bar, but at HyVee. That worked out for me, because I’ve been putting off grocery shopping for more than a week. Our guests were Alex Gordon, Willies Bloomquist and Wilson, Ryan LeFebvre, and Sluggerrrr.

I had Wilson sign my sling, and explained I was hoping he could add some old World Series magic to my shoulder’s healing process. He said that in all his years, he’d been asked to sign a lot of things….but never a sling. I win!

I had never met Bloomquist before, but I like him more now after this – he certainly wasn’t boring. He asked why I was wearing a sling, and “is it just for attention, or…?”  Jerk. I was certainly NOT expecting that, but he did seem sympathetic once I explained that after 3 years and 2 surgeries, I’d prefer to not have any more attention for wearing a sling, ever again.

Gordon didn’t have a whole lot to say, but he seemed in good spirits. I know he’s never really comfortable at events like these, but he gave a bunch of kids hearty high-fives on his way in, and seemed to be having a decent time (or faking it pretty well). So that was nice.

My friends and I debated whether to talk to LeFebvre about the Ryan LeFebvre Drinking Game. I decided to just go for it. He said he has heard about it before, but didn’t know any specific rules. I could only remember a few, but I just know that any time he mentions the U of Minn or makes fun a fan who brought his glove to the game, he’ll be fully aware that bitter Royals fans everywhere are taking a swig.

I also learned that LeFebvre is great friends with Omaha Royals radio man Mark Nassar. Somehow I never knew that before, but apparently those two get together every year when the Caravan comes through Nebraska and stay up all night “watching silly YouTube videos.” This is also a time when Nassar gets LeFebvre up-to-speed on various technological advances from the past year. Cute. Say what you will about LeFebvre as a broadcaster – but he does seem like a genuinely good guy.

After we moved on from that surprisingly lengthy conversation, we caught Sluggerrr enjoying his HyVee surroundings. Here he is bagging some groceries:
….and later, he found a large candy display in the back of the store. Before I could get my camera out, he was picking up huge handfuls of candy and throwing them in the air. Here, he’s tossing some M&Ms in the general direction of our shopping cart.
I’m still a little sad I couldn’t make it down to KC for FanFest, but this was nice too. And I got some ice cream while I was there, so…victory! 77 days until Opening Day…

Related posts:

1. Hey Lincolnites! Royals Caravan has been MOVED!
2. Royals caravan, complete with pictures
3. Happier times ahead for Husker fans