Greetings From London

I'm in the air somewhere over northwestern Ontario as you read this as I make my way to London via Toronto on airplanes today. London, as you know from reading this blog, is the home to Western University and the U SPORTS National Women's Ice Hockey Championship from March 15-18, and I am looking forward to seeing how the Manitoba Bisons fare as UMFM assumes the responsibility of broadcasting the Bisons' games once more. There's a pile of stuff I need to get done today, so I'm into London early in order to accomplish all those goals.

One of the things I like to do if I arrive early to an event is to explore the surroundings. I want to visit Western University to get acclimatized with things like parking and where we'll be setting up for broadcasts. Things like that seem so inconsequential, but they can turn out to be enormous problems if, say, the Mustangs play in a medal game. With time to kill before I check in to my hotel, I can knock that stuff off the list of "to-do" early.

I also like to find a good "greasy spoon"-style restaurant where good, inexpensive food can be obtained in case of the travel munchies. I won't have a kitchen at my disposal, so I've already started to make a small list of places that I want to check out. These include Piping Kettles Soup Company, Shawarma House, and Helen's Fast Food, but we'll see what else pops up on the list in the next day or two as I seek local recommendations.

The last thing I like to do, thanks to having a rental car for the four days, is get a general sense of layout of the city so I know where key things are like the tournament's host hotel, some key landmarks, and some fun stuff to do to fill time when games aren't being played. I might check out a few of the local craft breweries tomorrow before the games start, and stuff like that is a great way to find out a ton about the local city and culture.

All of this, however, could change depending on situations, but I am excited to be on my way to London. Expect updates on this blog of everything I get up to in the next few days, and make sure you have your radio tuned to 101.5 FM or hit up UMFM.com to hear how the Bisons are doing in their games.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!