Best Of

“The young man steps up to the Gateway Grizzlies ticket counter...” “What a great family that guy’s got, Joe. You can tell just by looking at ’em. Beautiful wife, two smiling kids.” “He steps up to the counter and — wait a minute. Can you believe this, Dave? He’s asking for four seats on... More >>

You feel powerful sitting in a place like Lester's Sports Bar & Grill. It's not so much that you're invariably sitting next to a few seven-figure-salaried Claytonians. That's a given. The joint's owned by Busch's Grove proprietor Lester Miller, after all, and even rainmakers get a burger yen. No,... More >>

A list of the quotes, malapropisms and non sequiturs that have made Mike Shannon both the most maddening and the most endearing radio play-by-play guy in baseball would be too long for even this supersize edition of the RFT to publish. (We swear we heard him opining about the 1970s TV... More >>

Few Cardinals fans will forget that hot night of August 9, when Rick Ankiel, who hadn't appeared in a major-league game for nearly three years, strode to the plate in the seventh inning against San Diego and uncorked a three-run blast to seal the game for the Redbirds. A goose bump-inducing... More >>

It's not the widest smile on the team. That belongs to Yadier Molina, who's had a lot to smile about lately. But So Taguchi's smile reflects two qualities that are rare in professional baseball today: silence and innocence. Because he speaks so little, watching So play ball is like watching a... More >>

Baseball's a game of revered statistics. Home runs. Batting average. Hit-by-pitches. The higher the numbers are, the better your player is — unless we're talking about ERA. Pitchers fear the high earned-run average, and rightly so. If the other team's scoring that many runs off you, you... More >>

Do we have a certain fondness for the man known as "Jammer?" You might say so. He's been a St. Louis Blue his entire professional career, and every time he puts on that sweater, he represents the city proudly. Mayers is never going to lead the team in points, but he's got some moves on the ice... More >>

You still see a lot of Kurt Warner jerseys around town. Way too many. OK, sure, the guy won a Super Bowl, but what's he doing these days? Riding the pine for the freakin' Arizona Cardinals. Meanwhile, Marc Bulger puts up good season after good season. In 2006, he threw for 4,301 yards and 24... More >>

All right, so he's a career minus-12 — that's not so good. But, he was only minus-2 last season, which means he's improving the defensive aspect of his game. Either that or he scored goals in bunches last year, helping to offset his defensive lapses. And look at that: 27 goals, 25 assists,... More >>

Yes, if you go by the book the Laurie family's sale of the St. Louis Blues to Dave Checketts is a 2006 maneuver. But while its relevance as a business transaction is old news, the sale's impact on the "product" St. Louisans can expect to see on the ice is a current event. (Speaking of current... More >>

An all-state hoopster during his days at Gateway Tech, Randal Falker has continued his dominant play for the Salukis of Southern Illinois University Carbondale. As a sophomore Falker's explosive rebounding and shot-blocking won him MVP honors at the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. Then as... More >>

It's amazing that Balance Bar is the only corporate do-gooder to date to sponsor Kerri Morgan. A triathlete, a track star and the mainstay of the St. Louis Rugby Rams, Kerri "kicks it" like no other quadriplegic. By day the 32-year-old St. Joseph's Academy graduate teaches occupational therapy at... More >>

Parkway South High School lost its big fish this past spring: Standout swimmer Liz Smith is now lapping her peers out in Palo Alto, California, at Stanford University, competing on the top-ranked team in NCAA Division I swimming. Smith, who specializes in breaststroke and individual medley, was... More >>

Spring and fall bring large numbers of migrating birds — and bird watchers — to Tower Grove Park. The park, which has a long history as a migratory-bird "trap," offers several prime locations for viewing, but local birders say the Robert and Martha Gaddy Wild Bird Garden in the... More >>

Hiking is generally not an activity for instant-gratification types. Except at Castlewood State Park. Less than ten minutes past the trailhead, you're atop a ridge overlooking the Meramec River Valley — nothing but treetops and river for miles . Separate trails keep bikers from interrupting... More >>

The mass-transit agency that serves Madison County, Illinois, began converting rail beds to bike trails in the early 1990s. Madison County Transit now has 85 miles of trails, and it's still building. You can travel from the Missouri side of the Mississippi River to Grafton to Edwardsville and on... More >>

St. Louis has more than its share of charming places in which to throw down a blanket and enjoy lunch. But for our wine and cheese, none compares to Laumeier Sculpture Park. Nestled off Watson Road in the wedge between Interstates 44 and 270, this bucolic cultural gem is the perfect place to set... More >>

Wheeling through St. Louis on a bike gets easier every year thanks to Bike St. Louis (www.bikestlouis.org) and its partners. Clean and clear routes take you from the south side to downtown, from the Chain of Rocks Bridge to Forest Park to the University City Loop. Whether you're rocking the bike... More >>

Sure, there's a lounge. There's also a game room, a small snack shop — hell, there's even a banquet room. But make no mistake about it: Step into Tropicana Lanes, and you'd better be ready to bowl. Opened in 1959 — the same year Hawaii entered the United States — the place is... More >>

Grant's Trail takes the things in life you take for granted, like the invention of the wheel, the wind in your hair and semi-picturesque wildlife scences with cattails and creeks, and distributes them along six paved miles. Trailnet (www.trailnet.org) paved the way for the two-lane foot-friendly... More >>

Most serious runners would not consider a place where the longest loop is four miles a good place to jog, but they would, and do, make an exception for Queeny Park. If you live in West St. Louis County, Queeny Park could easily become your default jogging place. If not, it's a worthwhile getaway.... More >>

Arch rivals Kirkwood (63122) and Webster Groves (63119) high schools, which claim to maintain the longest-running football rivalry west of the Mississippi River, have squared off on Thanksgiving for 100 years. For a quarter-century the spirit week leading up to the event has included an... More >>

"The Lake Saint Louis Triathlon has a very happy feel to it," says a regular competitor in the metro area's longest-running triathlon. "The people that live there are out in their front yards giving you water and cheering you on, and the folks who run it are extremely organized. They have... More >>

It's the Ides of March, and the thought of running the gauntlet through yet another St. Paddy's Day parade seems rather pathetic — until you notice a case of beer in the fridge and a green dress in the closet. Why not run a few miles, say, drinking the beer and wearing the dress? You proceed... More >>

More cheerleader than drill sergeant, Nicole Nester has a motto that goes: "Do it big or stay in bed!" Her running-intensive Sunrise Fitness Camp meets four days a week from 5:45 a.m. to 6:45 a.m. Equal parts fun and tough, Nester manages to draw 30 to 40 people to each workout, a regimen she... More >>

The peeling wooden signs and rustic shelters harken back to a simpler time in swimming-pool history, back when anyone could go to any pool for a reasonable price, and every pool was a neighborhood one. At Springdale, honest-to-goodness smiling people in money aprons and floppy hats collect your... More >>

Just off Interstate 44 opposite the Chrysler plant in Fenton, you'll see the decades-old marquee with mismatched letters announcing some band you've never heard of playing at the Stratford Bar & Grill — a dark, dank place that's also hosted WWE events. The low, shabby cluster of buildings... More >>

Sunken amid the rolling hills of Willmore Park, the manmade South Lake proves that public parks are good for more than just public drunkenness and public sex (though examples of both activities might occasionally be encountered here). Anglers of all stripes set up on the shore or the concrete... More >>

Six or seven years ago, Valley Park's American Legion Post 439 had run out of funds to host its Sunday meat shoots (a 30- or 60-year-old tradition, depending on whom you ask). Three years later the post was back in the black and able to resume the shoots, but it was only this past winter that, as... More >>

There is skeet shooting, there is trap shooting, and then, bless us, there's sporting clays. For the first two, you stand in a fixed position and shoot clay pigeons launched across your field of vision (skeet) or away from you (trap). Sporting clays offers the best of both worlds: The shooter... More >>

French foot soldiers are said to have developed the art of parkour while running, jumping and launching their bodies through the jungle canopies of Vietnam. Four decades later the acrobatic "sport" is all the rage among junior-high boys the world over. There are two things any pubescent thrill... More >>

You might think the regular bocce players at a neighborhood joint in a staunchly ethnic section of town would look askance at outsiders. Not so at Alderman Joe Vollmer's Milo's Tavern on the Hill. "People have been doing it for years, yes, but if you and three of your friends wanted to make a... More >>

St. Louis has a slew of rugby clubs, but only one — the St. Louis Bombers — claims bragging rights to membership in the USA Rugby Super League, the national circuit for club teams. And though it took four and a half decades to get there, Bombers coach Ron Laszewski couldn't be more... More >>

This past spring the National Park Service imposed new rules banning Jell-O shots, beer bongs and kegs from the dozens of rivers and tributaries that crisscross southern Missouri. The regulations, it is hoped, will put an end to the public drunkenness, noise and litter that have turned these... More >>

We know the word gym strikes fear and confusion into your being. Seriously, what is that, aside from the three-credit blow-off class you were forced to complete in high school? Heck, climbing the stairs to our office is a grueling enough workout to meet our daily quota; and hell, three out of... More >>

They may be located in very suburban Richmond Heights, but the basketball courts at the A.B. Green Athletic Complex have a decidedly urban feel. If you've got game, this is the place to go to get in on some serious ballin'. And if you ain't got game, this is the place to sit and watch some... More >>

While TV viewers flock to golf, NASCAR and (c'mon!) poker, tennis gets very little respect in the U.S. Still, people actually do play tennis in St. Louis. A few more in west county than in south city, to be sure — all the more reason to get your racquet on at Tower Grove Park. With day... More >>

Possibly the single most difficult challenge in sports, one that leads many to call Tiger Woods the world's greatest athlete — greater than any basketball, baseball, football, tennis or soccer player, greater than Lance Armstrong (who, in seven consecutive years, won a race equivalent to... More >>

Cory Spinks works out here regularly, and his trainer-manager Kevin Cunningham spends his time only on pros. So why does the Marquette Rec Center have such a big rep? Veteran trainer Joe Dunlap, his newer coaching protégé Danny McGinnist, and a collection of hard-working young men... More >>

Quick! What's the only public golf course within 100 miles of St. Louis that boasts bentgrass? Here's a hint: It's a links-style course that meanders east of the Mississippi River, with wooden bridges, quaint lakes, wood-tie bunkers and the occasional giant cottonwood. Yep, with handsome views of... More >>

Renowned for his course designs (the ne plus ultra being Shadow Creek in Las Vegas — you can't afford to play it), Tom Fazio has left his imprimatur on only one course in the St. Louis region: Missouri Bluffs. "Tree Tops," the 235-acre course's signature hole, offers golfers the best... More >>

The driving range at Family Golf Center is everything a driving range should be: well tended, with new turf and clearly labeled distance markers. But the Family Golf Center's driving range has something more: a second story. That's right. Hitting your nine-iron is always more fun when you're... More >>

Pardon me if I sound grumpy, but life ain't easy for your average putt-putt windmill. Every day I spin and spin and spin, and if I do my job well, some sugar-addled, snot-nosed brat is gonna smack a golf ball off one of my blades. And for who knows how long, that was all anyone asked from a... More >>

We know how it is: You've been meaning to take that monthlong golfing tour of Augusta National, Winged Foot and Bellerive Country Club before hopping the pond and playing St. Andrews — but you've just been too busy. In fact, your schedule's hectic enough that you're lucky to squeeze in nine... More >>

Step into the Solar Yoga Center and you get the feeling you're entering a parallel universe. The year is 1971. Yoga — thanks to the Beatles, Mia Farrow and countless hippie disciples — is all the rage in America. The 5th Dimension's "Age of Aquarius" is burning up the charts. And on a... More >>