Bears In Costa Rica Blog Day 2

I always find it hard to get off of my regular routine, even when I'm on vacation, so I was up at dawn and I'm glad I was.  The breeze here is so pleasant as I type in the courtyard in the RIU Guanacaste...

As I type this, Devin Hester and Johnny Knox have not arrived because they're at the wedding of former Bear, Jason McKie.  The rest of the guys met with the 100 Bears fans who are here last night.  A ton of pictures were taken and autographs signed.  I even found a bunch of Scoreheads, which made me feel welcome as I took the microphone.

I met a Bears fan from Canada, who drove down from Northern Ontario for a Bears game during the season.

***Small News Note***

-In talking with Chester Taylor last night, he was really surprised and a tad bit upset at the report last week that he was getting released.  Even though the veteran RB had a down year last year (2.4ypc) 246 rushing yards,  139 receiving yards, he tells me that he's still on very solid ground with the Bears.

It's so amazing the effect that the sun has on you.  In less than 24 hours in the Costa Rican sun, I already feel refreshed.  It's hard not to feed off the energy of everyone here.  As strange as it sounds, it has me looking forward to Spring & Summer in Chicago.

Watching the players interact with fans is fascinating.  Mainly because there's a transformation that occurs:  Usually fans are so shy around the players.  Even though it's a "fans trip" they don't want to disturb the players.  Then after spending a few seconds talking with the guys, they go from being idols to ordinary people.  Fans get comfortable and start telling the guys their "fan stories".  It's appreciated.  The players get a kick out of how what they do affects a fan's life.

So far so good.  I'm on my way to have a quick breakfast and then host a Football 101 clinic on the beach.  The players are going to run the fans through some of their favorite drills.  I'm imagining a lot of guys back-pedaling and plopping in the sand.

Check in tomorrow for an update on that.  Should be fun, or at least funny...and again as I type this Charles comes by and is met by a fan that wants to take his picture.  He says to lady, "Why don't you get in the picture with me?"  And a memory is made.  Awesome!

Good luck to DePaul today vs. Villanova.