Here we are at Centennial Field in Burlington, and believe it when we say “wtf are we doing here!”

First if all, getting from Buffalo to Burlington is one big clusterf**k. Heading down the I-90 towards Albany is easy enough, but once you point the car northwards and veer off the Northway, things get a bit dicey. The views of Lake George and Lake Champlain are bucolic and breathtaking, but for the 90 mile or so drive through this beautiful piece of country it is a winding two lanes with plenty of obstructions, slowdowns, and scant few chances to pass the slowpokes. We left Amherst at 6 AM and arrived at the ballpark just after the first pitch.

Centennial Field is every bit of the old NY-Penn League, much closer on the opulence meter to Oneonta than Brooklyn. It is tucked away in a residential neighborhood adjacent to the University of Vermont campus, and foreboding signs warn people not to park on the side streets. There are only a few parking spaces right at the ballpark, but a satellite lot about a mile away and a free shuttle service ferries people to the stadium. (We flashed our Bisons credential and they let us park beyond the centerfield fence, square in the midst of Danny Carnevale territory Ohhhhh..My Cadillac!!!)

Concrete risers with wooden seats, paint peeling, a wooden grandstand roof, your bare bones scoreboard listing “home” and “guest”, self standing concession stands outside the grandstand along an asphalt concourse. This venue is among the oldest in the NAPBL and it really shows. But if you pine for the baseball experience of days gone by, Centennial Field is baseball nirvana.

Amongst the ballpark dreck concession offerings is one neat treat, and it’s a dessert - “Chessters” is a frozen custard sandwich, with vanilla ice cream packed in between two chocolate chip cookies. Thumbs up for that! Otherwise, the pizza was actually pretty good here, while the boiled frankfurters on a bun were truly forgettable.

Being the only day game of the entire Lake Monsters season, it was a pretty full house and plenty of kids in the stands, and this game went 14 innings before Brooklyn took the lead for good with a two out RBI single, and held on to win the game 5-4. Yes we stayed for the entire game, even though our eyes were drooping a bit after the cock a doodle doo departure and the long ride.

We’re at the Sheraton right near the ballpark, and we actually got upgraded to a “club room” which means access to this nice lounge with free munchies and beverages and internet access. Sweet!

So we’re gonna rest up a bit and maybe head into downtown Burlington later tonight to tip a couple.

Tomorrow we got a ride through the beautiful hills of New Hampshire and Vermont as we make our way to Portland, Maine for Day 2 of the tour. Do we do the 250 mile trip mostly via interstate, or the 190 mile drive through winding hills and roads? We’ll make that call as we depart.

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