I read Bob's autobiography, "Strikeout Story," about 1949 and became a fan. In 1954 I won a trip to…read moreChicago and got to see him pitch. It was a coincidence that Chicago played Cleveland that night and that Feller was on the mound. He was near the end of his career and Cleveland lost, but other than that, it was perfect. A few years ago, on a drive from my home in Texas to visit family in Minnesota, I left I-35 to visit Van Meter and the museum. Glad I did. Feller was one of the greats.

Talk about a beautiful treasure! Very nice museum, clean well organized. When you pull into the…read moreparking lot you see one of the coolest brick..... not sure what to call it but if you look at the picture or visit you'll know what I'm talking about! As you walk up to the building there is a big baseball with Bob's autograph. They then have a home plate on the side walk and then a rubber where the pitcher would pitch from by the entrance. As you walk in there is a sign in book, make sure you check out the names in the brick. When you get in there is photos and memorabilia on the walls, they will play a video for you that is about 20 minutes long. After the video you can roam around and look at the different cases with autograph baseballs, bats, jerseys. They also have some football stuff here too. The big highlight inside to me where the Bob Feller photos and pins from his time in the Navy he gave 4 years of his life to serve in the military during the war. Those 4 years were in the prime of his career! Bob threw 3 no hitters in his career. There is a bat that Babe Ruth held in one of his most famous photos its the last bat he held on the field that is now at the museum. There is also a baseball bat that Ted Williams signed that you can buy for $1500. This is a great place to visit! I will come back to visit again and again! He's not only a great American but he's from Iowa too! If you have plans to be in Iowa make sure to stop here along with the Field of Dreams in Dyersville, Iowa They have signings, Billy Williams is coming up so and in a few months Mark Grace! Check out there web site for info!

Great value for anyone interested in aviation. There is an impressive amount of information on…read moreIowans in aviation from the early days at the turn of the 20th century to the present. There is a hangar with a number of vintage aircraft and information around 'famous plane crashes' that have taken place in the state. There is an Iowa Aviation Hall of Fame and library in the back of the hangar with racks of books, reference materials, and videos for perusal or research. This is a very quiet and quaint operation - don't expect anything too grand...but you will find a great deal of information with 'Iowa nice' treatment at a bargain price.

This is definitely a worthwhile stop for those of you who are interested in aviation. A little bit…read moreoff the beaten path and probably not Visited or recognized as much as it should be. The people who have put this together have done an amazing job. Five dollars fee for children $10 fee for adults free for members. Take the time, it's a beautiful place And definitely a tribute to those who have helped create aviation history but also those who have worked so hard to become the aviators.

Dinner at the Wallace Farm combines fine dining with a relaxed and delightful ambiance. Crisp,…read morefresh salads with fresh veggies from the farm and light, tasteful dressings. Entrees were scrumptious and filling. Deserts amazing. View from the dining room of rolling hills takes your breath away. Lovely music from a singer/guitarist. Service excellent and not a bit ostentatious. Dinner for two only $39 and it was similar to an upscale urban venue that would've cost $100 or more. Lovely evening.

The 80/35 Festival is a pretty fun music event in Des Moines. It usually lasts about 2 days, with…read moreseveral stages of artists to check out. The only negatives of the festival are that it's usually the first week of July, which means that it's both HOT and also that sometimes it falls on /around July 4th, which I would avoid if I was the planner of this festival. When we have been, we saw some pretty big names like Wilco, Weezer, Jenny Lewis, and Run the Jewels (before RTJ were gigantically popular). Other artists who've played 80/35 over the years are The Shins, MGMT, The Decemberists, Phoebe Bridgers, and Kesha, to give you an idea. So you can definitely depend on there being at least one or two acts at 80/35 that you will be interested in (or maybe you'll find a new favorite). If you're a fan of bigger acts as well as local or smaller artists to check out, 80/35 might be a good fit for you. Just bring lots of water to hydrate and stay cool!

Another 5 star year at the 8035 Music Festival! Beautiful…read moreweather, beautiful location in down town DSM! This year there were 4 FREE stages open to anyone! And the the mainstage's sound was the loudest and proudest I have ever seen! I really dug seeing Car Seat Headrest, Courtney Barnett, and I even dug Kesha - her show ruled! All the stuff I saw on the free stages were really great this year too! This was also the first year I spent a lot of time in the KIDS Zone and it was really fun with jumping blow ups, water guns, hoola hoops, and face painting! So many cool art sculptures, and music to be had! Always the best weekend in DSM of the year!

Winning a raffle for a 1day pass GA+ for 2 ppl and a GA parking pass was well worth the 4hr road…read moretrip adventure! The headliner on the day B and I went was Mumford and Sons. We got to the festival around 6pm. Walked the grounds to get a feel. Found the GA+ section, sat down, relaxed after getting some merch. Went to the restroom and I gotta say. GA+ had good men's bathrooms. Per B "they are like campground bathrooms instead of a port-a potty. And more importantly, they are air-conditioned." Who wouldn't want that in 80 degree weather. We got some mini donuts from Hoppers. Delicious and lighter compared to 'Tom Thumbs donuts(MN state fair anyone?!) I still prefer Tom Thumbs, but also enjoyed these. Found a bubblr station and tried them for the first time for free. The mixed berry was yummy! Then went on to get a THC 'climbing kite' beverage. Another tasty treat. They also let us sit in their chairs for a while. We drank and listened to Jessie Murph. As we headed back to the GA+ area we stopped at a stand and got a strawberry lemonade. It was a refreshing drink. We'd get it again. Maybe try the mango lemonade one as well. The walk back to the car was easy enough. There was one section of the walk right outside the security checkpoint that is gravelly. Kind of wished they'd clean that up a bit. Walking in and walking out, there were plenty of big rocks that if you weren't paying attention, you could easily trip or sprain your ankle. Especially on the walk back, the lights along the path are lacking. We would definitely do this again, if there is an artist we want to see enough. Now back to our hotel for the night before our 4hr adventure ends.

Everyone working the event was awesome! The grounds are huge. I think the food and bathrooms could…read morebe arranged in a way that isn't such a far walk. Everything was really spread out. Great sound and awesome lineup

This festival is so well run... the community bands together to pull this off. The serve amazing…read moreDeardorf sweet corn. It is all free and you can have as much as you want... I saw people eating upwards of 8 ears a person. I thought that I needed two ears but I could only finish just one... I felt terrible that I took one I could not eat. We got there early so we only had a block and a half waiting line. It moved so quickly. We were through it in less than 10 minutes. By the time we left the line was in excess of 3 or more blocks long. They also had a parade, 5k run and a large craft fair. If corn is not your thing they had a plethora of food and beverage vendors too. In the evening the have bands and a beer garden. There were thousands of people, kids and dogs but it really did not feel like it. Attendees were very respectful. If you are looking for a fun day in August I'd is worth the drive to this small community. This large event is 100% volunteer run! Very impressive!

Based in Des Moines, the Iowa Wolves are the Minnesota Timberwolves' NBA G League affiliate. Since…read morethe team's first season in 2007-08, the Wolves have won the G League championship (2011) in addition to four division championships (2009, 2010, 2011, 2014). Since Iowa doesn't have an NBA team, the Wolves are the state's preeminent pro basketball team. Current Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse coached the Wolves (then known as the Iowa Energy) from 2007 to 2011. He was the coach of the Wolves' 2011 G League (then known as the D-League) championship team. As NBA fans know, Nurse led the Raptors to the NBA championship in 2019. Not only did Nurse spend a lot of time in the G League, but so did several of the players on that 2019 Raptors team. That team is a great example of the development that can happen in the G League, both for players and coaches. The Iowa Energy became the Iowa Wolves in 2017 when the team was purchased by the Minnesota Timberwolves. This has been the trend with old D-League teams -- they get purchased by an NBA team and become exclusive affiliates. Previously, D-League teams could send players to numerous NBA teams. For example, the Iowa Energy has sent players to eight different NBA franchises, from the Miami Heat to the Phoenix Suns. Now, Iowa is tied directly to Minnesota. Speaking of the Phoenix Suns, that's where one of the players from my favorite college basketball team and alma mater, Georgia Tech, was assigned to and recalled from in 2010 by the Iowa Energy. The player was Gani Lawal. Other players from Georgia Tech to play for the Wolves include Marcus Georges-Hunt and Glen Rice Jr. Numerous NBA players once suited up for Iowa. Notables include two-time NBA champion Joel Anthony, Earl Clark, James Johnson, Naz Reid, Tyrus Thomas, Anthony Tolliver, and Damien Wilkins. As an ACC fan, I just want to point out that James Johnson played at Wake Forest and Damien Wilkins at NC State (and Georgia). Another Wake Forest Demon Deacon, Ty Walker, played for Iowa too. The Wolves' arena, Wells Fargo Arena in downtown Des Moines, has a seating capacity of 16,110 for basketball. It used to be the biggest in the G League until Birmingham's Legacy Arena (17,654) overtook it this year (2021). Both are multipurpose arenas not built specifically for their G League tenants, hence their relatively-high seating capacities.

If you dig basketball and want to get up close and personal to the floor and the game the Iowa…read moreWolves are a great opportunity to do just that! Des Moines was ranked the best MINOR League CITY in a America and that's because we have great teams, with great facilities and people who support our home town teams! Iowa Wolves games are super family friendly and fun! They have post game activities for the kids (meet cheerleaders and players) and plenty of great photo ops with Alpha the team mascot! It sometimes get loud, but that just the roar of the WOLVES in all of us!

I attended the inaugural Des Moines Taco Festival yesterday at the Western Gateway Park. Here are…read morea few of my thoughts. I honestly had it in my head that I wasn't going to go, but I was given a general admission ticket. Heather had plans...I didn't have my kids...so I headed down to check it out after the ISU OU game. The 400 lb gorilla in the room. The weather sucked the majority of the day. That being said no one I was among was really complaining about it. This was an all ages event. General admission was $12 and kids 12 and under were free. The Western Gateway Park was completely fenced off. The entrance to the festival was on the East side of the park. Not knowing that I parked on the West end off of 13th and Locust so I had a walk to start my visit with. No biggie. At the entrance the process went well. If you planned on drinking and were over 21 you presented your ID along with your ticket and you were given a wristband to indicate you were of legal age. I don't really drink for the most part, but I got my pink wristband just in case. After entering one of the first tents was setup to buy tokens. Everything was on a token system. One token = $2.00. Non-refundable so be careful not to buy too many tokens... Tacos were $2.00 each. Drinks varied from what I read. I did not partake in Tequila Fest or go into the bar tent yesterday so I have no experience with those aspects of this festival. There were two main areas for the food vendors. A line of trucks running East to West on Grand and a line of tents running North and South along 13th. Vendors typically had two lines going; an order line and a pickup line. After getting through the order line you proceeded to the back of the pickup line to get your food. Rinse and repeat. The lines... First of all I'm the wrong guy to talk about lines. Boot camp pretty much solved that issue for me. Festivals, concerts, amusement parks...just like being in a galley. I'm not a fan of unorganized crowds, but I can stand in a line all day. The lines were established by the people themselves. I saw no one giving direction, but I saw a lot of people helping each other out. Someone would step into the pickup line from the sidewalk and someone else would ask them "Have you ordered yet?". If they answered no they were politely pointed to the ordering line. I wasn't looking at my phone, but I would guess the lines I stood in were about 20 minutes order to pickup. I heard rumors there were times the wait at Mama's Tacos approached an hour. I can't confirm that. The weather was crappy. There was alcohol on site. And the organization was spotty in some areas. And yet everyone I talked to was having a good time. Some of you can probably can guess that I talk a lot...and I seldom stay quiet if an interesting conversation is going on around me... I think I ended up with a pretty good feel of how the people around me were doing. Not all tacos are created equal. Some $2.00 tacos were good sized (shout out to Curbin' Cuisine), and some $2.00 tacos were just sad. One thing I would recommend for the next taco festival... Stalk the pickup lines. Cruise by the people picking up their tacos and take a look at what is being delivered to them. Choose to spend your money wisely. Don't be afraid to walk up to someone and ask where they got something. Typically I approach other men to avoid the appearance I'm hitting on someone...especially when tequila is involved. No lucha wrestling was going on while I was there. The stage for the live bands was positioned well and if it hadn't been raining I bet it would have been utilized more. Because of the weather most of the people weren't in the chairs...they were listening from inside the bar tent. I missed the taco eating contest. Would I go again...with spending my own money for a ticket? I'd have to say yes. But I'd employ the tips I mentioned above. The first two places I hit...I was thinking "Thank God I didn't pay for this ticket." but when I started paying attention and talking to people I wasn't as disappointed with my purchases. There were some fantastic flavor profiles available to try. I had a good time. The people around me made it fun...despite the weather. Of course it was really hard to have a bad day, no matter what happened, after ISU got that W over OU. One additional shout out. To the wonderful woman with Per Mar security who let me slide through the fence when I headed home... Thank you! She shortened my walk back to my car by about four blocks up and back.