Rusty, who is 15 years old, is a budding baseball star at Theodore Roosevelt High School in Gary, Ind., in large part because when he was a child, I tied his right arm behind his back to make him learn how to pitch lefty. As a reward for making A-B honor roll, I told Rusty he could pick our family vacation this summer. To everyone's surprise, he chose the National Baseball Hall of Fame instead of traditional favorite Wally World -- where his sister Audrey was killed in a tragic log flume accident. The following is my planning for the trip on June 1-3 from Gary to Cooperstown, N.Y.
Transportation
- Times have been tough at the chemical company this year, so I was looking for the most cost-effective way to plan the weekend. The first step was to find inexpensi
ve transportation for the four of us. I began by trying to find a flight out of Gary on Orbitz. This was a very frustrating experience. Having booked through Orbitz before, I thought I'd have no problem, but I underestimated the fact that there are no major airports near Cooperstown. After browsing through the hundreds of airport codes on the site, I decided to go to Google Maps to search for airports in and around Cooperstown. The closest was in the county outside Utica, but it was not listed by Orbitz. So, again on Google Maps, I found out that Albany was about 1.5 hours away in driving time and Syracuse was about 2 hours. But after searching for flights to those cities, Orbitz told me there were no flights found and that I needed to change one or more of my search criteria. I had no idea if the problem was that the Gary airport stinks, that the other airports stink, that all flights are booked or that flights don't go from Gary to those places on the weekend. I made one last ditch attempt to get a flight to Buffalo, but once that failed, I gave up on the flight plan. - I then went to Plan B -- renting a car. I think the Wagonqueen Family Truckster has seen one too many road trip over the years and won't be able to make it to Cooperstown. And though I've always been fond of red Ferraris, I decided to look for something more comfortable that would be alright for Grandma's bad knees. After doing a Google search for rental cars in Gary, I found out that there is an Enterprise location right downtown on Grant Street. So I went to the sponsored link for Enterprise Rent-A-Car. I did a search for a luxury car to rent on Friday and return Sunday, but because the store is closed on Sunday, I had to settle for returning it bright and early Monday. Unfortunately, there were no luxury vehicles available but Enterprise's site really made picking out a car easy. I was immediately sent to a page that showed all the types of vehicles available for the trip, complete with pictures and prices. I decided to go with a minivan. It will cost just under $200, which is a little more than I wanted to pay but much less than air travel. With room to seat 7, a van will allow Grandma and Rusty to stretch out more than a full-sized sedan would. I selected the van and reserved online with little delay.
- After already pulling up a Google map of Cooperstown to find nearby airports, I stuck with it over Mapquest to get directions. I love using Google maps because they give you the point-by-point directions in the bar on the left and a beautiful map in the middle that can be easily manipulated. The ability to grab and move the map with the hand tool, zoom in or out on the map and look at a satellite view really sets Google apart from Mapquest. By zooming in on Cooperstown, I realized that Frankfort, N.Y., is nearby and on the way from Gary. My cousin Eddie just happens to live in Frankfort and though staying with his family of hicks can be annoying, it would save us a few hundred dollars on renting multiple hotel rooms. So I easily rerouted my map to Frankfort and also printed out directions for the 50-minute trip from Eddie's house to the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
- After checking out the map, I realize that we're going to have rides of over 11 hours on Friday and Sunday. The long drive should be fine for Rusty, because he has an iPod to listen to and a PSP to play, and Grandma, because she does not go anywhere without her crochet gear. Beverly, on the other hand, doesn't have any such hobbies and gets very bored on long rides. So I decided to look for some audio books for her to listen to on the ride. I remembered that Cracker Barrel has an audio book rental program, so I decided to look it up. According to the Web site, you purchase a book on tape or CD at regular price ($9.99 to $48.00) and
then return it to any Cracker Barrel location to get a refund of the purchase price, minus $3.49 for each week you have it. That sounds like a pretty good deal to me, and Beverly loves some Nora Roberts books. I clicked on the "Closest Cracker Barrel" link in the left navigation bar and quickly found a location in Merrillville that we can hit for a nice breakfast Friday before getting on the road...and boy does Grandma ever love her some country-style breakfast at Cracker Barrel!
- While the trip to the Baseball Hall of Fame is something Rusty and I have wanted to do all our lives, it does present a bit of a problem for Grandma and Beverly. Grandma grew up in Cincinnati and has been a huge Reds fan all her life. The problem is, she has refused to step foot inside the Baseball Hall of Fame until Pete Rose's lifetime ban for gambling on the sport is overturned and he is voted into the Hall. That being said, Beverly hates all sports and would much rather spend her day on a shopping trip than staring at dusty old baseball equipment. So we decided that Beverly and Grandma could drop Rusty and myself off at the Hall at 8 a.m. Saturday and pick us up at 1 p.m. after enjoying a day in Cooperstown together. A Google search of Cooperstown turned up the village's Chamber of Commerce. Apparently, Cooperstown is nicknamed the "Village of Museums," so I click
ed the "What to See & Do" link to find out what museums were available for the ladies. The Chamber of Commerce features a very quaint design, complete with vintage post cards of the village, that really creates an emotional small-town feel. But scrolling through the museum list (with entries like the Hero's of Baseball Wax Museum and the Northeast Classic Car Museum), I didn't see anything that would really work for Beverly and Grandma. Luckily, the Chamber of Commerce site had a navigation bar at the top of the page that dropped down to reveal links to many helpful pages, including one labeled "Where to Shop." Below the postcard image, there seemed to be an exhaustive list of all the stores in and around Cooperstown with addresses, phone numbers and links to Web sites if they had them. The one thing lacking on this page was a brief description of each shop. Most, like Sam Smith's Boatyard and Boat Rentals, were pretty self explainatory, but I have no idea what The Owl and Moon is, and there was no Web site listed for it. - On the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce site, I found a link to Essential Elements Day Spa and Boutique on Main Street, which looked like a great place for G
randma and Beverly to spend some time. After browsing a complete list of services and prices, I decided that Beverly should get a 90-minute Full Body Massage (which includes Swedish, Deep Tissue and Shiatsu) and Grandma, who is a little more fragile, should get a 90-minute Theraputic Massage to help with those aching knees. The total cost for the two messages will be $175. The font color on the navigation bar made it difficult to see, but I found the "Make an Appointment" link and followed it to a simple form. I filled it out and the ladies were set for an appointment from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. in a manner of seconds. - Beverly and Grandma will still have about three hours to kill before getting us from the museum, so after returning to the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce site, I found some shopping they could do. There are numerous craft and antique shops along Main Street that they can explore after their massages. Once they are done with the shops on Main Street, they will have to drive three miles north of Cooperstown to visit Heartworks Quilts & Fabrics, "One of the top 10 quilt shops in the USA!!" Grandma should be able to find all sorts of quilt designs and fabrics, and will be able to bring it all home thanks to the ample room in our minivan. Though the Heartworks Web site isn't exactly the most elaborate in the world, it does tell about products, quilting classes, directions and even a newsletter you can sign up to receive. It also has a lovely quilt theme throughout, with colorful navigation bars made to look like quilt pieces. I was a little bit turned off by the extremely large font size on the "What's New" page, but it makes perfect sense when you think about the store's clientele. Once Grandma gets done picking out her patterns, I'm sure it will be time to pick us up from the Hall of Fame.
- After getting the ladies squared away for the morning, I began researching what Rusty and I would do. One look at the National Baseball Hall of Fame Web site and I was instantly connected emotionally. Besides the photos of baseball greats like Cal Ripken Jr., Tony Gwynn, Babe Ruth and Jackie Robinson, everything is presented in red, white and blue. The museum logo especially taps into a sense of nationalistic pride by displaying stars and stripes behind the image of a baseball...the only thing more American would be to add a slice of apple pie. Along the navigation bar and on the right side, I was immediately drawn to the "Plan Your Visit" link. When I scrolled my mouse over the link, the star beside it morphed into a baseball...nice touch. One of the first things I noticed on the "Plan Your Trip" page was the hours of operation...it doesn't open until 9 a.m. Luckily, the number to Essential Elements Day Spa was easy to find on their Web site, and I called to push Beverly and Grandma's appointment back to 9:30. I decided to keep our meeting time at 1 p.m., giving the boys four hours to explore the museum. The Web site is packed with information, including a downloadable floor plan with explainations of the collections in each room. There is also helpful advice, like to bring a camera with a good flash because lighting is low to preserve the collections and to bring gloves and a ball to have a catch in some open field areas. After clicking on the "Hours and Admission" link, I found out that we'd have to purchase two adult tickets for a total of $29. The Web site pushes you to become a member at numerous locations, but after reading about all that it entails, membership does not sound cost effective for a one-time visitor. Under the "Frequently Asked Questions" link, I find a question about the average time it takes a visitor to make it through the Hall. It states that a casual fan can make it through in half a day while an extreme devote can spend two days and still not be satisfied. After considering Rusty's ADHD, I believe our four-hour visit should be just enough time. I was unable to find any information on the site about tour guides or audio tours, so I suppose I might purchase the 65-page guide book for $6.95 so we can accurately direct our own tour. Overall, though, I think the Hall of Fame's Web site is a wonderful resource for visitors and I plan on consulting it again before I go to learn more about the specific collections.
- In order to find an adequate lunch location for the Griswold's, I returned to the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce site and clicked on the "Where to Eat" link. Though McDonald's of Cooperstown sounded delicious, I was most intrigued by a place called Mama's Kitchen in nearby Roseboom, N.Y. Unfortunately, there was no link to a Web site for Mama's Kitchen. A Google search didn't turn up a site nor a
review for Mama's Kitchen, but I did find a brief article about Patty Mallillo (aka Mama) opening up her diner in the aftermath of a blizzard in February. While it sounded heartwarming, I couldn't rely on the article to tell me how good her comfort food really was, so I moved on. Back at the Chamber of Commerce site, I went on to the link for Christophers Restaurant and Country Lodge - no apostrophe. The Web site boasted about the mountains of food and "World Famous Desert," but was lacking a menu link. The reviews at TripAdviser were pretty good, and the restaurant is built like a log cabing with wood carved bears and a "talking moose," so I decided that it's the way to go despite its lacking Web site. The Griswolds should have full bellies after an enjoyable day when they make the drive back to cousin Eddie's house before leaving for Gary on Sunday morning.
- Although I was impressed by the Baseball Hall of Fame Web site during this exercise, I'd have to say the best example of interaction design came with Enterprise Rent-A-Car.
They seem to know that the only reason most people come to the site is to reserve a car, so the centerpiece of the homepage is a reservation form. When you input information into the form, it is immediately responsive (unlike Orbitz, which took a while to bring back results), producing a new page with results. Because when I searched there were no luxury vehicles available, it was smart enough to return a page listing all the cars that were available...and I trusted that it was an accurate representation of what was in stock. By simply having a bar that featured photos of the available cars and their prices, I had a pleasurable experience. I felt like I knew what I was getting every step of the way, unlike with the Orbitz Web site.
- Out of the sites I searched, the worst for interaction would have to be the one for Christophers Restuarant. I still chose the restaurant for lunch because of the country motif and good reviews on other sites, but its site was totally lacking. It boasted of huge portions and thick and juicy steaks, but without pictures and a menu on the site, how can I trust it? And I don't think anyone would believe their "World Famous Deserts" are actually heard of outside of Oneonta, N.Y. It certainly is not smart, the only thing you can get by clicking on things are 8 (that's right, 8) photographs of the outside of the building taken from different angles. Besides the obvious menu problem, it is a lodge too, and you can't check rates or make reservations online. Surprisingly, they did list a non-toll-free phone number you can call for reservations. There is no real responsiveness because there really is nothing to interact with on this site. Really, the only pleasurable thing is the log clipart that runs all the way down the left side of the page.
