The idea for this, the first of “The Lists” list was a no-brainer. As with almost anything in life, the memory of a place often outlives the recollection of what actually brought you there. 

The actual selection process though…not quite the cakewalk I expected. Much of what made an “It’s Game Time Somewhere” Tour venue memorable was the quality of the event that I witnessed there. Consequently, it was tricky separating out environment from experience.

But I persisted. Over my morning coffee I made an initial list of contenders. I had a second cup and identified the finalists, reveling in the memories. Trying in vain to narrow the selection to a Fab Five, I had a third cup. Which then, of course, led to a caffeine-induced sprint of several laps around the well-manicured campus of the IGTS World Headquarters.

Exhausted by this, I had to take a nap. Evidently, this List-making is going to be tougher than I thought.

In struggling to define the selection criteria, I eventually decided to use the “This Is So Cool” test – a yardstick which measures exactly how far into each event’s notes the first reference to how much I’m enjoying my surroundings occurs. Much to my surprise, the International Organization for Standardization is on board with adding the TISC test to their ISO 9000 Standards. We’re currently hashing out the details for the press conference.

In the meantime…

(#8) The Galen Center, Los Angeles:  I know what you’re thinking, and no, this did not make the list because I kind of, sort of follow USC football on occasion. But it certainly didn’t hurt that replicas of every one of the 113 national championship trophies ever earned by USC – as well as team photos of the respective champs – are housed in the lobby of the Galen Center. It’s an impressive historical display, no matter what your feelings about Tommy Trojan may be.

In fact, this venue was chosen because of its incredible design and comfort. If it’s possible to have a building that seats up to 10,258 feel like an intimate luxury movie theatre, this is it. Every seat provides not just great, but perfect sightlines, and the banking and angling of the seating is such that no matter where you are, you feel neither too far away nor too high above the action.

And of course, the cocktail reception that followed the USC vs. Stanford women’s volleyball game wasn’t too tough to stomach either. The only thing that marred the evening was the little scuffle I got into when, six hours after everyone else had gone home, the security guards suggested that I might want to call it a night as well.

(#7) Johnny Unitas Stadium, Towson, MD:  Pristine. Bucolic. Pastoral. Tranquil. I think you get the picture – the place was nice. Despite an unexpected turnout of almost 10,000 raving women’s lacrosse fans for the NCAA Championship game between Maryland and Northwestern, it still had the feeling of a backyard barbeque.

The on-campus football stadium for Towson State University, this relatively new facility was so clean you could have eaten off of the concourse. If you’re inclined to do that sort of thing. It’s exactly the sort of setting that makes non-BCS college football so much more enjoyable than the drunk-fests typically found at a 90,000 seat stadium.       

(#6) Broomstones Curling Club, Wayland, MA:  I’m going to guess that most curling clubs are friendly and inviting, because as I discovered at the U.S. Men’s Senior Nationals, that’s the nature of the sport. But if forced to wager, I’d bet that the crowd at Broomstones regularly medals in Hospitality.

Within two hours of having arrived on-site unannounced, I had been offered free food and drink, a complimentary lesson in curling, and a thorough education on the nuances of the game. Just because I was there. If I lived in Boston, there’s no doubt I’d apply for membership – even though seven different doctors have confirmed that, yes, I am indeed allergic to cold temperatures.   

(#5) Bethesda Center of Excellence, Dickerson, MD:  I arrived early and stayed late at the USA Canoe/Kayak Slalom National Championships, partly because I was enjoying the competition, and partly because I just couldn’t get over the uniqueness of the venue.

Miles and miles (and miles) from any urban center, the BCE whitewater course is a perfect example of how mankind can tweak Mother Nature without upstaging her. A quarter-mile artificial river draws on water heated by the adjacent Mirant Dickerson Power Generating Station, and tumbles into the neighboring Potomac River. The result is a world-class competitive run, in temperatures that allow Olympians and aspiring Olympians the opportunity to train almost year-round.

And not for nothing, it also creates an environment in which pseudo-journalists on eccentric quests can position themselves within feet of the action as paddlers negotiate the challenging course. 

(#4) ARCO Olympic Training Center, Chula Vista, CA:  Tucked onto the backside of a parcel of land that is tucked into a remote corner of a town that is tucked into a remote corner of San Diego County, you’ll find a perfectly groomed and graded archery facility – assuming your Garmin is functioning at peak form.

Built specifically to house (literally, in some cases) U.S. archers with designs on Olympic medals, the venue also hosts competitions like the SoCal Showdown, where I had a front row seat to watch dozens of talented archers test their skills against world-class competition on a day that would make the word “perfect” blush in deference. U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

(#3) Springfield Country Club, Springfield, OR:  It wasn’t a golf tournament that brought me to the Home Office of Green – rather it was the NCAA’s West Regional Cross Country Championships. I had set out for Springfield from Portland’s pre-dawn pitch darkness in a steady rain, with a temperature hovering somewhere in the low 40’s. I expected to be one of…oh, maybe a dozen fans on hand. I was off by a factor of more than 50. They love their running in Oregon, and by the time both the men’s and women’s races had concluded, I was just another of hundreds of exuberant fans wondering “Is that it? Can’t they do it again?” I never even thought about the cold and rain. OK, that was a lie. But I would attend this event again in a heartbeat.

In addition to the drama of the races themselves, the event stands apart in my mind for its vibrant colors. Deep emerald green makes a great backdrop for the kaleidoscope that highlighted the uniforms of 56 different teams. Call me a sucker for colorful.

(#2) Libbey Park, Ojai, CA:  This humble patch of earth in the center of a town that’s nestled in between two Southern California mountain ranges is what the pearly gates of heaven must look like to a tennis player. Perhaps that’s why, except for a few war-time years, The Ojai Tennis Tournament has been played here annually for well over a century. And run almost entirely by volunteers.

My trip to see the Pac-10 Men’s & Women’s Championships actually resulted in attending a phenomenon of civic spirit. And tennis history. The shady path that winds from the front gate to the courts is lined with displays that feature homespun Polaroid pictures (remember those?) of both winner and runner-up of every competition conducted each year since, well, since at least the year that Polaroid cameras were invented. A Wall of Fame lists each of the 85 players who have competed in The Ojai and gone on to win one or more Grand Slam events. You may recognize some of the names:  Pete Sampras, Billie Jean King, Lindsay Davenport, Arthur Ashe, Michael Chang…

(#1) Lamade Stadium, Williamsport, PA:  The home of the Little League World Series. If you can’t immerse yourself in all that is good about sports at Lamade, there is no hope for you. It’s the only place on Earth that even the presence of ESPN can’t ruin.

Consider this:  Target Field, the new home of the Minnesota Twins opened last year to a torrent of press coverage, all of it gushing over virtually every aspect of the custom-designed stadium. Sports Business Journal did an entire Special Report on it. This I had to see. So IGTS Event #49 was scheduled partly to see the Twins and the Detroit Tigers, but mostly to experience Target Field.  

This brand new half-billion dollar stadium didn’t have a prayer of impressing me. For I had traveled to Minneapolis directly from Williamsport, PA.