State Motto: Go on vacation leave on probation.

Everything: hitchhiking / vending at concerts on State Parks (Saratoga / Jones Beach) is illegal in New York, but they never incarcerate anybody except for the most heinous crimes.
They do write a lotta tickets and issue a lotta warrants tho...

Heck, I almost got arrested for indecent exposure at SPAC because I got out of a car
(I DIDN"T DO IT - LET ME MAKE THAT PERFECLY CLEAR) I GOT OUT OF THE CAR AND WAS WALKING TOWARD THE SHOW WHEN THIS COP COMES UP TO ME W / HIS BILLY CLUB DRAWN and SAYS "YOU WERE FLASHING CHICKS WEREN'CHA?"
Me: I DID NOT!
HIM: SOME WOMAN COMPLAINED ABOUT YOU.
ME: I JUST GOT HERE 30 seconds ago...
HIM: BULLSHIT YOU'RE UNDER ARREST.
(I'm thinking the whole time to myself - he's crazy, if I was running around naked women wouldn't be COMPLAINING - drooling a little *maybe* but * not* complaining...;) )

Then he blackmails me into signing a disorderly conduct summons, which, in order to get thrown out, I had to come back a month later; and in order to pay my expenses, I had to vend a little & *BAM* got nailed for that too, of course...

Even tho the U.S. SUPREME Court declared vending on Parkland "free speech" in 1989...
His NAME, by the way, was "KANE".
And when I found the guy he mistook me for and presented him, he said he would send a letter of error to the judge but he DIDN'T...

Anyhoo that's my NY Saratoga adventure in a nutshelll along w / doing pretty well at the track there (NY has a 1 dollar minimum bet ). So a day at the races is REALLY cheap if you just stick to the minimums...
Like 30 dollars including beer...

TRAVEL ADVICE
Remeber that NYC Link at ?, you might need it...but the easist way to travel northbound (toward Albany on I-87) hands down out of NYC is as follows:
Take the subway to 242nd St & Van Cortlandt Park up in the Bronx
(not as scary is it sounds HONEST! + the Burger King across the street has Dr. Pepper, a rarity in New York - $1.50)
Then take the bee-line Westchester bus to 'Tarrytown' - $1.10.
Get off by the "Tappan Zee" bridge - near a Shell station and an EDWARDS Supermarket
Stand where the sidewalk ends - it might take a while but you will eventually get a ride, try to get at least to Saugerties - because it has a northbound ONLY entry before the toll booth, or go service plaza to service plaza if you can...
You MIGHT get booted off the plaza on the I-90 portion of the thru way, then again YOU MIGHT NOT, it's up to the cop...
TAKE a CHANCE...
YOU are always alright behind tollbooths but some places you might be there forever..

THE thruway is "FREE" thru Buffalo and Albany - Buffalo mass transit goes to good spots before the toll plazas in both directions...
Plus, they go to Niagara Falls so you don't hafta hitch there...

NOW THIS IS HELPFUL:
At the junction of I-90 & I-87 on the thruway is a "CARPOOL waiting structure" that looks like a bus shelter next to a bank of telephones.
(ALL TRAFFIC HAS TO GO THRU HERE!)
Make a sign that says "WEST or SOUTH" and you should catch out pretty quick + you have a valid defense should the cops dick w / you.
"Well if I can't stand here, why is this structure here?"

A neat place w / good rich ice cream and *REAL* chili (tho they call it hotdog sauce) - STEWART'S shops.
They are situated at key exits...
The Mobil station on the south side of Plattsburgh (near Canada) has showers available, and the Mobil station on I-87 3 miles north of I-90 has friendly folks.

Oh yeah, The New York Times doesn't have comics, the post has very FEW (but a good racing section)
So the New York Daily News is Rob's fave...(comics and decent racing coverage..)

BELMONT STAKES IS 1st or 2nd weekend in june...
Take the subway to Jamiaca and then catch the bus ($6.00 roundtrip) $8.50 on LIRR.

Oh yeah, in the basement of Penn Station is a great cheap breakfast joint - look for the only store in the station that sells 1 liter dr.peppers - it's in the LIRR section somewhere.

Also MADISON SQUARE GARDEN IS upstairs in Penn Station

From Jersey, if you take the PATH train, you'll be a block away...(+ the only fountain dr.pepper I know of in Manhattan is near the garden in a Taco Bell (HI DAVE!) near the path station

THE LEGENDARY ROB ENDORSES "MCSORLEY'S OLD ALE HOUSE" brewing beer since the 1800's and keeping chicks out 'til the 60's!
One dark & one light $3.00 - the cheepest draft beer in NYC.
It's in the village - take the subway...
(I got stood up there once by some chick that used me for her own needs and then left my heart lying by the side of Rt 3, and I spent 30 dollars waiting...
AND I GAVE YOUR ROSE TO THE WAITRESS!)
I HOPE YOUR SATISFIED!
Never talkin' to HER again...
Rob...
Not that I'm insulted but I'm INSULTED!

On a lighter note, anybody ever went to the Outer Banks of NORTH CAROLINA?
I have. I'll tell you all about it sometime...

AVG CROSSING N / S: NYC to Canada 8 hrs to 2 days (AVOID HOLIDAY WEEKENDS IN NY)
Mass. to Erie Pennsyslvania (SAME)
Lower Tier to Penn via Binghamton 6 hrs to 1 day
Via P. Jervis - Scranton, PA area 4 -10 hrs...
COOLNESS FACTOR: 75

NOTES:

La Gaurdia now has local bus service - THE M60
The world's largest e-mail board is in timessquare@joeboxer.com.
NYC main library on 42nd St has 'net now (2 terminals) 30 min limit...

NYC update: bee-line fare (Westchester County to Bronx 242nd St subway station) now $1.40
(Metro north fare same trip= $5.50) (no bee-line after 6pm weekdays)...
TOWN HALL CONCERT PLACE is on 43 St between 6th and 7th Aves (near Times Square)
Exit 95 in CT is a GOOD NYC JUMP OFF POINT - Don't cross the Tappan Zee bridge tho, or you'll HAVE TO COME BACK...

Write to Legendary Rob.