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The Road to Pittsburgh...

Although it is still 11 days until I leave wet Manchester for Pittsburgh, via Paris and New York, the road to Pittsburgh truly started last year....

Monday 11 December 2000 - Mario Lemieux announces in a press conference that he is to return to the NHL and play for the Penguins, the franchise he now owns!!

That is where the road to Pittsburgh began - once I heard that #66 was coming back what was one of those things I planned to do if I ever won big on the lottery, hopefully before Jagr retired or was traded, became suddenly something more urgent, more immediate.  First time around - I didn’t have any realistic chance of seeing him play - I was still at Uni studying and just couldn’t afford it.  But now he was back and the chance was there - the immediacy increased by the doubts in everyone’s mind at the time - will his back hold out beyond this year, will he enjoy playing again enough to stay on next season.... it was a risk I was not willing to take (Mario has now announced he will play at least next year!!) and so the trip was set in motion.

The flight tickets arrived this morning - the game tickets (booked online) will be collected from the Mellon Arena when we arrive and the hotel just ouside of Pittsburgh is booked for the week.  all that remains is to wait for the day!!!

PD - 6/2/2001

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