The Trickster from Kooza

Every two years San Diego gets a little more exciting as the creative wizards from Cirque du Soleil set up the Gran Chapiteau (French for Big Top) at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. In 2010 they are bringing the traveling show Kooza from February 25 to March 14.

Click Here to get your tickets before they are available to the general public and you receive $10 off.

Act fast, as the presale ends on November 7.

Kooza gives you a great reason to make it a long weekend and come on down to San Diego to enjoy the show and the city.

Kooza has all the amazing acrobatics and theatrics you would expect from Cirque, but I am really interested in seeing an act called the “Wheel of Death.”

Bowl Game representative Laura delaMontaigne talks to the Fox 5 morning crew

Question of the day, what does wiener dog racing have to do with college football? Find out this Saturday at the 13th annual Wienerschnitzel Wiener Nationals at Qualcomm Stadium. The competition is actually a fund-raiser and awareness-building event for the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl & the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl games played in San Diego every December.

Early this morning fifteen hopeful wiener dogs and their owners held exhibition heats for the local Fox morning show. Many of the dogs looked better than they actually ran, all suited up with capes and even racing goggles.

The real action starts at 8:00am Saturday at Qualcomm Stadium. The 16 fastest dogs advance to the semi-finals which will be held during a Padres game at PETCO Park on September 1st.

If you think your dachshund has the goods, visit the Bowl Games Association website for entry details and register online.

Families taking in the fun

Summer nights in San Diego are meant to be enjoyed outdoors. Last week we joined a couple of other families, bundled up our kids and took in a Free Movie in the Park at Viejas Casino & Outlet Center in Alpine, about 35 miles east of downtown right off Interstate 8.

The beautiful Viejas Outlet Center has a big park right in the center of all the shops where they show great family movies on Tuesdays in the summer. Tuesday August 18th is the final installment of the series, with August Rush as the feature at 8pm.

Here’s what you need to know.

• Price: Free
• Shoppers - Arrive early to enjoy the farmers market and great outlet center savings
• Food – We bought dinner from the food court, which has plenty of options
• For the lawn – Bring some blankets and low-sitting lawn chairs (so as not to obstruct the views of those behind you)
• Snacks – We brought some sweets, you can bring in whatever you like except for alcohol
• Weather – It’s San Diego! It will get down to about 65, so a light jacket will be plenty

Many of my favorite memories growing up a sports fan in San Diego were watching Holiday Bowl games. Players like Barry Sanders, Steve Young, and Jim McMahon have turned in memorable performances at these games, so you’re likely to see a future NFL star on the field.

Tickets for the 32nd annual Pacific Life Holiday Bowl go on sale to the general public Friday, August 7th at 10 a.m. Tickets also can be purchased online at www.PacificLifeHolidayBowl.com, through TicketMaster at (619) 220-TIXS, or at any TicketMaster outlet.  Ticket prices increase $10 on November 1st so don’t delay.

The game kicks off at 5 p.m., Wednesday, December 30th at Qualcomm Stadium. The game matches teams from the Pacific-10 and Big 12 Conferences. The 2008 game featured a 42-31 Oregon Ducks victory over the Oklahoma State Cowboys in front of 59,106 fans and an ESPN national television audience.

Five of the last six games have sold out.

Par 4 #11 at Salt Creek

Saturday I took advantage of the warm summer weather and got out to Salt Creek Golf Club. This great links-style course is nestled into the foothills of Chula Vista, a suburb about 25 minutes from Downtown San Diego.

Golf for Normal People
I love the fact that the course is a challenge, and it is an authentic golf experience, but there is no pretense at Salt Creek. There are no snooty members, no overzealous Tiger wannabe’s, just working people who love the game and want a fun and challenging course they can afford.

Course Honors
Make no mistake though, this is a serious golf course, Golf Digest gave them 4 ½ Stars in their Best Places to Play 2008-2009. There is also a massive all-grass driving range with lights so you can hit balls until the wee-hours.

If you get a tee time after the morning haze lifts hole #1’s tee-box offers great views all the way to the Pacific Ocean and the Coronado Islands.

Rates
Rates vary from $35 – to- $95, if you call the club (619 482-4666) and mention that you saw this blog they will give you a special deal! Be sure to also look for great last minute specials, and the Players Club, a great value.

How to Get There
From the north it is best to use the new toll-road. It’s $3 each way and exact change is required. It was also loaded with cops, so don’t think your $6 just bought you a pass on the autobahn.

Conditions Right Now
Superintendent Rob Browns deserves some love for keeping the course in such great shape during the warm dry days of a San Diego summer. The course is in amazing condition.

How I Scored
Not a scorecard I want to frame, that’s for certain. Let’s put it this way, I went to the beach the following day and I can’t tell which location had me in more sand.

I had to scramble up a good back nine to break 100, and it seems like I was hitting out of a bunker on every other hole, but that’s links golf for you.

The signature #4 at Sycuan

One of the most overlooked aspects of San Diego is our abundance of great golf courses. Despite perfect weather and an amazing selection of courses we are still not given our due credit as a golf destination.

I recently played a few rounds at the course where I learned the game, Sycuan Resort. The course is in great shape right now with the greens and fairways all in excellent condition.

The weather in San Diego has also been ideal for golf lately with temperatures in the upper 60’s at most of the inland courses and a nice little layer of clouds to keep us from getting farmer tans.

My cousin recently decided to take a contracting job in Baghdad, so I decided to treat him to perhaps his last round of golf ever a fun sendoff on the links.

We teed it up on my favorite track there, Willow Glen, which features two great signature holes on four and twelve.

The par 3 #12 on Willow Glen

I’m a 21 handicapper, so I guess you could call me an average golfer and for me this course is a great challenge, but also manageable.

I had two memorable holes on my most recent outing.

• #4 – Par 4, 323 yards

The signature hole on Willow Glen has an extremely elevated tee box, with an approach shot over water.

For me it was a 5-iron off the tee, which landed in the short stuff. Then came the part where my game gets tricky. I launched a sand wedge onto the upper tier of the green, which was not where the flag was that day.

Luckily I managed a miraculous 20 foot downhill put to make par. I tried to act like I make 20-footers all the time, but there was a Tiger-esque fist-pump that slipped out.

• #11 – Par 4, 372 yards

The other highlight of the day was a birdie on #11. It is a fairly tame 372 yard par four,  but it gets a whole lot tougher when you knock your drive into the sand 180 yards from the hole like I did.

The good part of that lie was that I got to use my rescue 5 which sits in the bag most of the time.  I managed to pick it clean and land it 2 feet from the cup, then made the birdie put.

Sycuan is a haven for our neighbors in Arizona and L.A. because they offer two championship courses, plus a great executive course, all alongside a 100 room hotel with a relaxing spa and a casino just down the road.

Sycuan is also ideal for tournaments with 54 holes they can accommodate virtually any size group. The banquet facilities are top notch as well.

Who can resist wings, fried s'mores, fried veggies & kabobs?

The San Diego County Fair opens on Friday June 12th and runs through through July 5th.

I’ve been going to the fair since I was a kid, but now that I’m a little older there are two things that get me out to the Del Mar Fairgrounds: food & concerts. This year the fair has loaded up on both.

The theme for 2009 is Music Mania and the fine folks at the fair have brought in some big name acts.

I’m secretly excited fairly certain my wife will drag me out to see Kelly Clarkson close out the fair with her July 5^th show on the big grandstand stage.

Also playing are American Idol season six top two David Cook and David Archuleta.

For those over 13, there is also a nice mix of artists like Loretta Lynn, Clint Black, Brett Michaels, the B-52s, and San Diego’s own Switchfoot.

Remember that the grandstand concerts require an additional ticket in addition to your fair entrance.

The only place where cream puffs & beer can coexist

I was fortunate enough to get out to media day last week for a little tasting session of fair food.

I sacrificed my third week on the South Beach Diet to splurge on a sampling of the following:

• 1 deep fried s’more
• 1 serving fried zucchini & chicken strips
• 1 cream puff
• 2 beers
• 1 cinnamon roll
• 1 kabob
• 1 BBQ beef sandwich
• 2 servings of BBQ corn with butter
• 1 serving hot wings

It wasn’t all bad though. My wife stayed true to the plan with a kabob, corn and some BBQ beef, so there are some non-indulgent offerings that are still delicious, but who can resist fried Twinkies?

Tickets: Adults: $13.00, Ages 62 and older: $7.00; Ages 6-12: $7.00; Ages 5 and younger: Free

Two Dollar Tuesdays Kids 12 & under are free every Tuesday. On June 16 Fair admission is just $2.00, with special tickets available only at Albertsons.

Soaking it in on our own private beach.

Every smart husband circles two dates on the calendar each year. Not the Super Bowl and your fantasy baseball draft, I’m talking about the smart husbands.

Those two dates would be your wedding anniversary & your wife’s birthday, cavemen!

I am usually pretty good at lining up great getaways and dinners, but this year I outdid myself and you can too.

I surprised my bride with a weekend birthday getaway at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club this year and she could not have been more thrilled.

You can book a room like a regular hotel, but most guests are Club members who pay for some sweet conveniences. Perks like a private beach, tennis courts, & a 9-hole executive golf course. This place is so exclusive that they actually manicure the beach every morning before the sun comes up. The sand is raked, chairs are arranged and staff is at the ready to get you pretty much anything you need.

The group next to us put their whole setup, chairs, tables, reading material, snacks etc a little to close to shore & when the tide swept in the staff raced to the rescue and pulled all the iPods and Louis Vuitton bags to safety. We saw the staff bring out bocce ball sets, umbrellas & beach toys to anyone who simply asked for them.

The coolest thing you can do is have them bring you a BBQ ready for grillmaster wanna-be’s to make dinner for the family. Charcoal, and even all the ingredients for dinner are right there for you.

The great thing is that you don’t have to be a high roller to stay there. There are more specials than ever right now, and if you book off peak season (winter, spring and fall) you can get great deals too.

The Beach Club is a fabulous way to enjoy the beach a little more exclusively than most. Right next door is the La Jolla Shores Hotel which is where we stayed for our anniversary last year and had a great time.

The only drawback now is setting the bar too high, what am I going to do next year?