Up North / Bob's Blog
Detroit Tigers In The Republic
A line of eager Detroit Tigers fans snaked through our Traverse City store and down Front Street yesterday afternoon, hoping for the chance to snap a selfie with soon-to-be Hall of Famer Alan Trammell and pitchers Shane Greene and Daniel Stumpf as the Detroit Tigers Winter Caravan rolled into Northern Michigan. The three players happily served up free samples of cherry pie, ice cream and Sour Cherry Patches for about 30 minutes, while chatting with fans and posing for photos. The spirited event culminated with Jordan Field, Tigers Director of Player Relations, presenting Bob Sutherland with a beautiful framed jersey sporting the name "Cherry Republic" and the number 30 to represent our 30th year in business. Thanks, Tigers, for making the trek up north to meet some of your biggest fans, and GO TIGERS!
Here's a look of
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Hockey on Little Glen Lake
As we have been driving back and forth between our Glen Arbor HQ and our Empire Warehouse fulfilling orders, our staff has been driving by perfect ice on Little Glen Lake. The ice has been smooth as glass and hard as diamonds across the entire lake. We knew it wouldn't be thick, but we thought it was time to kick off a beloved winter activity -- ice skating. So yesterday, a few of us pulled away from work early and I grabbed my boys and Steph and we skated in the wind protected lee of the Sleeping Bear Dunes.
The ice wasn't thick -- maybe 4 inches on average. All of us were worried about breaking thru at first. Luckily, Little Glen Lake is very shallow, so busting through the ice would only mean a soaked foot.
There is that time each December when winter truly feels here in all it's icy brittle cold, and a couple days ago it was single digits and windy as a ship-sinking gale. It would be a natural time to hunker down for the next 5 months. But to live up north, you have to fight that urge to hunker down which causes nothing but cabin fever. And in these fun little December activities outside come that moment when we accept winter -- the good and the bad.
I think this afternoon skate was that moment for several of us. It is going to be a great winter up north. You should come up and join us!
