hoopsgalore

I have United Club card, but my domestic travel is [almost] exclusively United from ORD -> SFO, LAX, LGA, and DCA. Annual fee has been worth it for me because of work, but may not fit others. I would very much make your determination on routes and frequency before pushing yourself into a Club card for lounge access.

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two passes for the United lounges.

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As a heads up, it very much depends where you travel but many United hubs (e.g. ORD) won't accept these one-time passes very often. Lounges have been extremely overcrowded as-is.

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College Collin Sexton almost beat a team while going 3 on 5 or some nonsense for an extended period of time. I think Shai, Jalen, Chet and Caruso would win the NCCA Tournament rather easily tbh.

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That was against Minnesota in 2017. Alabama was down, like, 15 and had to go 3-on-5 for over 10 minutes. Cut the lead to three and ended up losing by 5. Sexton had 40. Bizarre game. I sort of remember it.

OKC 4-on-5 is more likely to absolutely wipe most college teams than lose to them.

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Wisconsin

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Intriguing team, for sure. Struggled to start the year with a bunch of new faces learning to play alongside Blackwell and Winter. Once Boyd and Blackwell figured it out, they became arguably the best backcourt in the country. They have some incredible wins and a couple head scratching losses. Gard plays five out and Wisconsin absolutely launches threes. Winter has been out the last few games and they were able to beat Illinois and take Michigan down to the literal last second. Winter will be healthy for the Tournament.

Pick Wisconsin with caution. Guards reign supreme in March and Wisconsin has that, but things have been tough if threes aren't falling... They become susceptible because they struggle to find points elsewhere.

You'll give yourself a stroke watching Wisconsin today and thinking back to the Bo Ryan era :lol:

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Hello! Would you happen to know the nearest train to Ignotz’s and Bruna’s? TIA.

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Cheers to you going to one of those two - Both are fantastic and, in my opinion, offer the best Italian in city. You can grab the Pink Line to Damen or Western, but I think walking from Western is a couple minutes faster.

As quick aside, taking the Pink Line allows you to check out Pilsen, as well. One of the more historic neighborhoods in Chicago - Heavily gentrified, but a lot of great restaurants and bars. Predominately Hispanic neighborhood today, but there is a sizable Czech population, too.

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Hoops, we need to get your Chicago thread stickied.

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:lol: Getting to be that time of year when the Chicago questions start coming through!

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Sheffields (start here for the great beer list), Sluggers, Bernie's, Murphy's FTW. Keep it old school

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Lol I get it but Wrigley has objectively turned into a smaller version of Nashville. Hattie B's was the final nail. Baseball season will always be nostalgic but most of the city hates Wrigleyville otherwise these days.

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Following and appreciate all this information as well, we plan to go towards the middle/end of June for about 4-5 days in Chicago (River North), Cubs game, drinking and eating around the area, then Amtrak to Milwaukee for about 4 days, Brewers game and eating drinking, Summerfest for a day then Amtrak back to Chicago for a day then fly back out of O'Hare.
From everything is read we should be able to use public transportation for everything except the Amtrak. Blue Line from O'Hare to downtown, Redline to Wrigley Field, area is safe and walkable.

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Blue Line from ORD, yes, and you'll get off at Clark/Lake if your hotel is in River North. Important to know: When you get off the train, exit towards Lake and Thompson Center. There are signs going the other way (towards Wells) that tell you not to bring luggage up there. Somehow, people fail to read this and I see it every day when I go to work. The walkthrough turnstiles on the Wells side are not always open and you won't be able to fit luggage through the caged turnstile.

If you're eating and drinking around Chicago, highly recommend you read my Chicago guide thread. I linked it on first page, but has almost anything you need, including neighborhoods to visit. Wrigley is a great time and Wrigleyville is generally pretty fun during the season. It's lost a lot of its charm, though. Has completely turned into a small version of Nashville.

Sounds like you'll be in Milwaukee, as well, for a few days. I've said it before, but it might be the best bar and tavern city in the country. If you like bloodies, check out Wicked Hop and Sobelmans. For neighborhoods, make it a point to go to Bay View, Lower East Side, Third Ward / Walker's Point, and Brewery District. Between Brewers game, exploring neighborhoods, and Summerfest, you'll be pretty well covered.

Should also be known that Chicago has well over 200 neighborhoods outside of The Loop, West Loop, and River North. If OP has time to kill while his wife is busy, there's plenty more to check out. Can get pretty stale being in The Loop and River North for more than a couple days, but I will follow your Crying Tiger and Gus' reviews.

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The chicago metro and train map is basically made so that everything goes into the city, then changes lanes, and goes back out to their destination.

Anyone from the north or west will have to go into the city first and then back out south. Now sure, maybe they'll have some direct trains from some destinations.

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I am very aware how the CTA and Metra works in a city I've lived for the last 15 years :lol:

I'm not entirely sure what you're contending from my post. I acknowledged there would be additional planning from the city's residents on the north and northwest side, in addition to the North Shore and NW suburbs.

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But as Indiana has shown anyone can turn it around.

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Going into last season, Indiana had the most losses in FBS history, never had a Heisman winner, and their seven blue-chips ranked behind the likes of Boston College and Purdue. They are a unicorn - What they've accomplished is unprecedented at its absolute, and it's nice when a billionaire is willing to significantly contribute to those efforts.

I'd probably push back against "anyone" being able to turn it around like Indiana.

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A tremendous amount if bears fans live in the loop and have no cars. This should be interesting

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The Loop is just 1% of Chicago's population + Hammond emphasized the Metra SSL, which runs directly from Millennium Station. If anything, people living in The Loop (and River North) will have a far easier commute on the Metra than anyone else in the city. For anyone planning on public transportation from the north side, NW suburbs, and North Shore, that'll take a bit more planning. Even then, a huge number of Bears fans drive to Soldier Field and park in the North Garage, Waldron Deck, and South Lot closer to McCormick. That group will drive to Hammond, too. From a pure transportation logistics lens, this isn't going to be a maze for people to figure out.