For the annual Guru pilgrimage to the new fulcrum of college football, Charlottesville, the Gurus chose the Thursday night ESPN game against Clemson. Tommy Bowden begged us to select another game, but we spurned his overtures. As to the rumors that ESPN intervened to assure our attendance at this particular contest or that we were paid a handsome fee by ESPN, we cannot comment. An agreement to remain silent is just that. So we headed to the Hook.
The Gurus dusted off the Guru mojo, boarded a Jet Blue flight from Long Beach airport and flew to Virginia to help ensure a win over the kittens of Clemson. Joining us was honorary Guru John Cardoza, a California boy who now heartily embraces the Wahoo Nation. On Thursday morning, October 7, we were on Route 29 headed to Charlottesville. Other than appropriate stops for, well, you know, we only really stopped in Madison County. This stop was part getting back to family roots and part just enjoying some beautiful scenery. We went to the Hebron Lutheran Church in Madison as this church contains original artwork done by Guru Michael’s great grandfather Giuseppe Oddenino, who came from Italy in 1862.
After serving in the Union Army during the Civil War, Giuseppe settled in the Madison area as it reminded him of home in the Piedmont region of northern Italy. Giuseppe’s work can also be found at the Culpeper County Courthouse. His son Luigi followed him from Italy some years later and married a Madison County girl with relatives who served in the Confederacy. Madison residents were apparently more intrigued by Giuseppe’s art than upset about his Union service.
Next stop was the E.A. Clore & Sons furniture business in Madison, which produces beautiful, high-quality pieces. Their operation is nestled in the scenic, rolling hills of Madison County. Both California Johns loved this taste of Virginia countryside as well as our visit to the quaint Madison courthouse.
Next stop: Charlottesville.
The Gurus were soon enjoying the nice new offices of TheSabre.com as we were graciously provided tickets by Matt Welsh . The Sabre folks are working hard to bring a superior product to the internet and they are succeeding. (This probably explains why all our recent columns have been spiked.) With tickets in hand, we got our secret parking pass thanks to the efforts of the mighty bruhoo. Much thanks to Matt Welsh and bruhoo for making our football experience all the sweeter. Before we could partake of the tailgating experience, we were compelled to visit the University Bookstore and Mincers to bring back booty to the fans in California. Thank you, MasterCard.
With gratitude for the great directions we received from the Wilk Hall crew, we found ourselves at the Fontaine Research Center for the world-famous Wilk Hall tailgating party! Now if you haven’t made it to a Wilk Hall tailgate, start making your plans now. The three of us were welcomed with a hospitality you might have thought only John Bunting would get from a Virginia crowd. We couldn’t possibly name all the great people who treated us so well, but a few of the Sabre celebrities who made our visit most delightful were: hoomanchew, DAMhoo, Old Hoo, FlaVaHoo aka WahooFla, MSGHoofan, HooKat, Wahoo Josh, hycohoo, and Gloucester Hoo (our favorite poster on Fridays). Sadly, being old and bereft of a great memory, we don’t remember all the names of the many people we met, but suffice to say they were all fantastic.
Wilk Hall tailgating was highlighted not only by the superior cast of characters, but Dave’s RV, the daiquiri whacker (we’ll leave that one to your imagination), the Wilk Hall banner, Mrs. HooKat’s special deviled eggs, abundant libations, too much food, and a game-day atmosphere that you only find with college football fans. Basking in the Wilk Hall glow we next proceeded to bruhoo’s tailgate only to find that he left to go on “The Walk.” Without being able to ogle bruhoo’s wife, we continued on Matt Welsh ‘s tailgate. Fortunately, Matt’s hot girlfriend made it. Oh yeah, Matt was there, too.
The Gurus took our seats for the game confident in what the outcome would be. When one of the Gurus’ sons, who happened to be in Nevada, heard the Gurus were to be at the Virginia-Clemson game, he laid the 16 points and bet on the ‘Hoos. For tax reasons we cannot reveal the amount of the bet. Needless to say, he is singing the praises of the Gurus – and, of course, Virginia football. Heath Miller deserves the moniker “Big Money” as he was simply awesome. Hagans is a player. Deyon Williams could prove to be the downfield threat that the ‘Hoos have been seeking. And this defense is fun to watch. Hard to say how good a team Clemson might be, but there is no question that Virginia is a very good team.
After the game we were soon on Route 64 headed to Richmond, where we turned in at the Omni hotel. A little exercise in the form of a short run on Friday morning after arising was the extent of our ability to enjoy Richmond on this trip. We love Richmond but this trip we had earmarked Colonial Williamsburg for our historical sightseeing adventures. We were not disappointed. Friday, like Thursday, opened with bright sunshine, a hint of fall crispness in the air and if there could be any more perfect weather, the Gurus haven’t seen it. Rolling into Colonial Williamsburg is always like stepping back into time except that our accommodations were undoubtedly better in 2004.
We stayed at the Woodlands hotel, which proved
to be a great hotel with a great location. Our suites were commodious and convenient to the Visitors Center and shuttle bus. After checking in we immediately proceeded to the Visitors Center and purchased our Colonial Williamsburg passes. Lynn was a most gracious host and helped us get dinner reservations as well. We then strolled down Duke of Gloucester street all the way to the College of William & Mary and the Sir Christopher Wren Building, which dates from 1697 and is the oldest academic building in continuous use in the U.S. with classes still being taught there.
Lynn at the Visitors Center also arranged for us to attend a presentation by Bill Barker, who was portraying Thomas Jefferson. Mr. Barker’s interpretation of Thomas Jefferson is nothing short of stupendous. His ability to portray the character of Mr. Jefferson transports you back into time. Seeing his ability to field any question and answer in character is worth the price of admission. The Gurus all agreed that Bill Barker was by far the best historical interpreter we have ever seen.
Later in the day we found ourselves at Christiana Campbell’s Tavern for dinner. This Tavern is reputed to have been George Washington’s favorite when he visited Williamsburg. The fare was superb. After a full day of soaking up the historical offerings of Colonial Williamsburg, Guru John decided to sample the libations in the local drinking taverns while Guru Michael’s sore back compelled him to return to the hotel early. The story of Guru John’s Friday night bar-hopping will not be recounted here.
Some early-morning fog on Saturday did not dampen our spirits, though honorary Guru John found that the Friday night spirits had taken more of a toll than he might wish. Undaunted, all three of us enjoyed the free continental breakfast at the Woodlands and then partook of a tour of the Governor’s Palace. We then enjoyed yet another performance by Bill Barker as Thomas Jefferson before we hit the road to Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in America. The Jamestown Visitors Center is growing in anticipation of the 400th anniversary in 2007. We explored inside the replica Indian huts and the replica boats that Christopher Newport first sailed into Jamestown in 1607. Time did not permit us to fully explore all that Jamestown has to offer and it surely beckons us for a return visit.
Thanks to the beautiful Colonial Parkway, we next enjoyed a delightful ride to Yorktown. The Yorktown battlefield is, as are many battlefields, an inviting place for contemplative thought. Trying to imagine the sounds and sights of that historic battle gave us more reasons to be grateful for all we have as Americans. The sleepy nature of the little village of Yorktown belies the gargantuan event in history which took place there. Soon we were back to Williamsburg to make our dinner reservation at Shield’s Tavern.
Sadly, Friday night’s libations claimed Honorary Guru John, compelling him to stay in the room and miss Saturday night’s activities. The original Gurus enjoyed the fare at Shield’s, not to mention the musicians and a visit from Mr. Shields himself, which all added up to a delightful dining experience. Upon departing from the restaurant, we decided to investigate the Williamsburg Inn so we would know what it would be like to stay in Williamsburg when we had a lot of money. Guru John suggested that we sample the offerings at the bar. A few minutes after sitting down, Colin Farrell walks into the bar.
Guru John knows Colin from his work with Robert Towne, John’s brother-in-law. Colin was in Williamsburg finishing up the filming of a movie in which he portrays Captain John Smith. He recently finished filming the movie “Ask the Dust,” with Robert Towne directing. So yes, the Gurus spent Saturday night throwing them back with Colin Farrell. Regardless of what you may hear about Mr. Farrell, we found him to be a great chap. Our superb bartender, Mark McBride, helped make it a memorable evening.
Sunday morning we were on the road again to Falls Church to visit Guru Michael’s mother and help her with some chores. The Gurus are good boys to their mothers. Before you knew it, we were landing back in California with a storehouse of marvelous memories and even more excitement about our next pilgrimage.
Go Hoos!
