A few months ago I had an insurance question I knew I could get an answer to by calling one of my Minnesota friends. During that conversation my former golf group’s annual golf trip to northern Minnesota came up – that annual trip is one of the things I miss about being in Minnesota, so I asked when and where it was. As the conversation continued I was encouraged to clear my calendar for the three days and join the group for the golf outing.
It didn’t take too long to decide to commit to the trip. A flight was booked, a car was rented and the wait started.
One of the first things that didn’t work out was when I was concerned that the vehicle I rented might not be big enough for my golf clubs and luggage. I made a call to the rental company and learned that I’d pay a $50 fee to cancel the reservation because I booked the rental through the airline – even though there was over a month left before I would pick up the car. To make a long story short I decided I’d keep the reservation and hope to upgrade to a bigger vehicle when I picked it up.
The trip didn’t go as smoothly as others I’d taken; the flight was delayed due to weather and when we approached Minneapolis we had to circle Eau Claire, Wisconsin for almost a half hour because the airport was resurfacing a runway and airplanes were forced to wait. Once we were on the ground and I had my luggage I found the car rental check-in area to see there were 16 people in line ahead of me. Only one person was working the desk and the average rental process was about seven minutes, so I figured I was going to be there for another hour. When I was sixth in line the lady at the desk informed us she was closing the line and we’d have to proceed “upstairs” to where keys were picked up so we could continue with our reservation.
Once “upstairs,” I asked the agent dealing with my reservation if there was a chance I could get a larger vehicle. I was told that wouldn’t be a problem and the cost would be $25. I made sure to ask if it was $25 per day and was told it was a flat charge. The first night I didn’t make it to Cold Spring until 11 p.m.
The second day the group headed north to the Gull Lake area to start our golfing. The courses are very nice, but the first day and a half we were restricted to cart paths only so there was much more walking than I was ready for – it’s still painful to walk, so the extra steps weren’t welcomed, but there was no choice if we wanted to play our game.
The outing was three days with three 18-hole rounds. Food, lodging, and golf were included in the package, which was a pretty good deal if you live in Minnesota and don’t have the expense of travel involved. After the golfing was done I spent some time visiting family and headed to the Twin Cities area for one more night before flying back to Florida.
What did I learn during this outing? First, I will never book a rental car through the airline again. Second, trying to sleep in three beds that are strange to me is not good for my back. And finally, I wish I would have had a few more days to visit more people because I’m not sure when I’ll get back up north.
I enjoyed golfing with the guys I’ve golfed with for nearly 40 years, we had a lot of fun getting together again. It would be much easier to repeat the visit if Florida were closer to Minnesota – but it’s not, and Florida is where I call home now.
Have A Good Week!
