just thinking
After we had already set a highlight in Week 1 with the season opener in Fehervar, we were at the season openers last season (Raiders at Ravens) and this season. We were also at the very first Munich Ravens game last season. So of course, the first game of a new franchise could be one of those things for us. The Madrid Bravos had already kept us busy in the run-up to the game anyway. There were also a few people there with whom we already had some contact. Besides, we’d never been to Madrid before. Oh, and simply because we wanted to. So … it was clear that we were going to Madrid for Week 2 … a supposedly prestigious duel took place there … Barcelona Dragons at Madrid Bravos. The plan, or rather the idea, was there.
Goals for the trip
Planning our Week 1 was practically the most time-consuming thing we had planned so far. But we also did a lot of research and planning for Week 2. We had a few goals in mind and we really wanted to achieve them.
- Photographing the Madrid Bravos’ first game
- Have a few of our photo autographs signed.
- View Madrid Center
- See more Madrid.
- Travel to Madrid with our complete equipment if possible.
- As cheap as possible … yes, it sounds strange, but it is a goal 😛
ELFant halt
Eine spezielle Herausforderung gibt es immer, wenn ich fliege:
Ich bin einfach in den Dimensionen eigentlich zu „groß“ für die Sitze. Ich brauche immer eine Gurtverlängerung (ja, die gibt es in jedem Fligzeug) und die Sitze mit mehr Beinfreiheit. Die haben wir dann auch gebucht.
The plan
Since it was clear from the outset that we would have to fly, I had actually estimated that the effort would be minimal. In the end, it was all about the price… I thought. Unfortunately (as always) it wasn’t quite that easy. There is no reasonable flight from Stuttgart to Madrid. We quickly found a solution. Dominik (Roman’s brother) lives near Erding. There were also flights from Munich with the relatively cheap Air Europa, but in the end it would have been too tight and too hard to fly directly to Munich and from there. So we decided to drive to Munich on Thursday, spend a day there, sleep comfortably, have breakfast, and finally fly to Madrid on Friday… from Munich airport. We took the Flixbus to Munich. On the way back, we would then travel back to Stuttgart (Flixbus) directly after landing in Munich without an overnight stay. The return journey was a bit out of our budget. Unfortunately, we only got a Business Class return flight. More on this later.
The challenges were different this time:
- Luggage! Normally our photo case is fully loaded with 34 kg. But our equipment is not allowed in the checked baggage. Laptop etc. also had to come along.
- Transfer from the airport to the hotel. Yes, you can certainly get there by public transport, but the suitcase is always a problem.
- Price! Unfortunately, flying is always relatively expensive. Especially if, like us, you’re not sure whether the accreditation will work. We can usually only book quite late.
Bad start
In fact, the start with the Bravos was not really good. Compared to all other franchises in the ELF, the Bravos have a different accreditation system. You first have to register and present various documents. After that, you can use the number you receive to get accredited for the games (which is quite stress-free). Language-wise, it was no problem at all. Maria is a native speaker (Peru). After a few other documents, the Bravos then wanted an “insurance certificate” with guaranteed damage cover for the sum of 250k. We had insurance that covered this and much more, but we didn’t have a letter. The Württembergische kindly issued us with a letter explicitly guaranteeing cover for our photographic work (much higher than we had asked for). But … it was family insurance. And they just issued the letter once … namely for me. That was immediately cause for discussion again. In the end, however, we had a promise from Bravos that we shouldn’t worry and we were happy with that
