Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
In his column '¡Ask a Mexican!'
, OC Weekly
columnist Gustavo Arellano tackles such
questions as why Mexicans swim with their clothes on, alongside weighty social issues in-
volving immigrants' rights. Read it at
www.ocweekly.com
.
Sports
California has more professional sports teams than any other state, and loyalties to NFL
football, NBA basketball and major-league baseball teams run deep. If you doubt that
Californians get excited about pro sports, go ahead and just try to find tickets before they
sell out for an Oakland Raiders or San Diego Chargers football, San Francisco Giants or
LA Dodgers baseball, LA Lakers basketball or LA Kings hockey game.
According to a recent study, Californians are less likely to be couch potatoes than other
Americans. Nevertheless, when Californian teams play against one another, the streets are
deserted and all eyes glued to the tube. The biggest grudge matches are between the San
Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders football teams, the San Francisco Giants and LA
Dodgers baseball teams, and the LA Lakers and LA Clippers basketball teams. California
college sports rivalries are equally fierce, especially UC Berkeley's Cal Bears versus the
Stanford University Cardinals and the USC Trojans versus UCLA Bruins.
Tickets are easier to get for San Diego Padres and Anaheim Angels major-league base-
ball games. To see small but dedicated crowds of hometown fans (and score cheaper tick-
ets too), watch women's pro basketball in LA, men's pro basketball in Sacramento, pro
hockey in Anaheim and San Jose or pro soccer in San Jose and LA. Or catch minor-league
baseball teams up and down the state, especially the Sacramento River Cats.
Except for championship play-offs, the regular season for major-league baseball runs
from April to September, NFL football from September to January, NBA basketball from
October to April, WNBA basketball from May to August, NHL ice hockey from October
to April, and major-league soccer from April to October.
The roaring Grand Prix, a Formula 1 race, takes over the streets of Long Beach, just
south of LA, every April. Inland at Bakersfield, NASCAR and other auto-racing events
take place year round. In San Diego County, Del Mar boasts the state's ritziest horse-racing
track, while LA County's historic Santa Anita Racetrack featured in the classic Marx
Brothers movie
A Day at the Races
and the short-lived HBO series
Luck
.
