We Sell Xmas Trees

Driving home from work the other evening I had to take a detour through Luton town centre and spotted a sight that brought a smile to my face. I knew I'd have to head back in the daylight to get a snap of me next to it! And so I did.

You can buy Christmas Trees at The Windmill pub on Gipsy Lane in Luton

Looking at my Facebook Year in Review 99.9% of the photos show me next to, on, or inside something ridiculous! Long may it continue.

In a little hut at Brynbuga Castle in Usk

Having a whale of a time in Worthing

On some sort of podium in Nottingham

Celebrating Bedfordshire Day

Another day, another mascot

Related blog posts:
- Airdancer
- Christmas
- Christmas Tree
- Wacky Waving Arm-Flailing Inflatable Tube-man

Adventure Golf in Felixstowe, Suffolk

Revisiting the Fantasia Adventure Golf course in Felixstowe.

We were in Felixstowe, Suffolk last weekend and while we didn't manage to have a game of minigolf, we did have our customary look at the Fantasia Adventure Golf course on Sea Road.

The course was the 7th we ever played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. That was way back in November 2006. We've visited the seaside and the course loads of times since then, it's always worth a play.

Looking forward to a game there again in the future.

Related blog posts:
- Felixstowe
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow me and Emily on Twitter. You can also now sign-up to receive our miniature golf newsletter.

Crazy Golf course opening in Saltburn-by-the-Sea

There's a new minigolf course opening in Saltburn-by-the-Sea in 2016! Great news.

The team at UrbanCrazy are building the 10-hole layout that will be located on Saltburn Promenade in North Yorkshire.

We visited Saltburn-by-the-Sea in March 2014. The new Crazy Golf course will be located on a spot on the prom to the right of the famous funicular railway (or to the left if you're looking out to sea)

UrbanCrazy have designed and built many great miniature golf courses and we've managed to play most of them on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. We're looking forward to a return to Yorkshire and Saltburn for a round or two next year.

Playing the UrbanCrazy built Miniature Golf course at Charnwood Golf Centre this summer

We've visited 84 courses this year, including some landmark visits on our tour. We reckon there are around 50 more courses for us to visit - but with new courses opening up who knows when we'll finish!

Emily playing the Peterborough Minigolf course this year. Another great design by UrbanCrazy

Check out the UrbanCrazy website for more info on the business - they hire out portable courses too.

One of UrbanCrazy's temporary Crazy Golf courses was on the foreshore in Bridlington this year. It looked great

Link:
- UrbanCrazy

Related blog posts:
- UrbanCrazy
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow us on Twitter (Richard / Emily). You can sign-up to receive our miniature golf newsletter too.

Gluten free at Honest Burgers in London

A great meal out at Honest Burgers on Pentonville Road.

Even though I have Coeliac Disease I do enjoy eating foods. While living on a strict gluten free diet can be hard going at times I find that I am able to eat a varied diet, albeit mostly on shop bought and made from scratch meals. Not necessarily a bad thing.

What I do miss, and something that impacts on Emily, is the ability to dine out easily. There are so few places offering gluten free meals that are safe and suitable for people with Coeliac Disease.

That's why until yesterday evening the last time I'd eaten a meal outside of my flat was on the 21st September. Almost three months ago!

I've had Coeliac Disease since 2008 and I'm still adventurous in my eating habits, so it's really disappointing that we've not been able to find anywhere suitable to have a breakfast, lunch or dinner on our travels.

So, it was brilliant that last night I got to go out for a meal with Emily and my brother Christopher.

The last place I'd dined out was Honest Burgers on Pentonville Road in London when Emily and I had an Oktoberfest Burger for lunch on Miniature Golf Day. And we returned to try the new special burger on the menu - the XMAS BURGER.

A proper Christmas dinner. Don't forget the beer

It was delicious.

And filling.

Especially when you factor in the tasty Rosemary Fries that come with each burger.

Plus the sides we ordered too - coleslaw, salad, two portions of onion rings (they are massive) and a portion of chicken wings. It was a real feast, served by knowledgeable staff in a nice venue and location.

The Christmas Special Burger consists of a beef burger, smoked bacon, deep fried brie (it's breaded in gluten free crumb and poppy seeds and deep fried in clean oil), cranberry sauce and rocket.

It was honestly a very tasty burger. I love the theming the team at Honest Burgers add to their specials too

We ordered so much food I had the meat sweats, not helped by the very insulating Christmas jumper I was wearing. In fact I had to strip down to my t-shirt in order to finish the food. It was nice to be full and bloated by excess, rather than the discomfort, pain and illness caused by eating gluten!

The only gripe I have about Honest Burgers is that they charge you an extra £1 to get a gluten free bun. A small price to pay I suppose to ensure that you don't get cross-contaminated, but still a tax of sorts on those afflicted by Coeliac Disease.

Apart from that I cannot wait for my next meal out. Let's hope it's not another three months until I feel safe enough to venture out for some food.

Related blog posts:
- Gluten Free
- Coeliac
- A gluten free meal at Honest Burgers in London

Links:
- Honest Burgers website
- Honest Burgers on Twitter
- Honest Burgers on Facebook

New look from Green's Gluten Free Beer

A gluten free beer update from Green's.

I haven't blogged about gluten free stuff for a little while - it's not been intentional, but life as a busy coeliac hasn't left me with much time of late. And it's not like my Coeliac Disease is going away any time soon so there'll be plenty of time for me to post on one of my favourite subjects.

The prompt for this blog post was the receipt of a box of gluten free beer from Green's! It was a very pleasant surprise. I'm looking forward to drinking them over the Christmas period.

The Green's range - visit the Green's website for more info on the eight gluten free beers

I've tried the beers before and at the first Herts & Beds Coeliac Food Fayre I attended I enjoyed sampling the wide-range Green's produce. It's always nice to have a choice.

Green's tell me they'll be closed over the Christmas break, but if you're in need of a fix of some more booze over the festive season you can still get hold of bottles at Ocado, Sainsbury's and Pizza Express.

Check out the Green's website for more info. You can buy the full range of Green's gluten free beers in their online shop.

I've blogged about gluten free beer, ale and lager a fair bit before (I am a fan of a tipple) - and a few years ago I got some of Green's beer flavoured mustard! Check out the links below for more gluten free related blog posts.

Links:
- Green's website
- Green's online shop
- Green's on Twitter
- Green's on Facebook

Related blog posts:
- Gluten free
- Coeliac
- Gluten free beer

Minigolf report - Gottfried’s complete season at Star City

Report from the final event of the minigolf season.

Leagrave Minigolfers Richard and Emily Gottfried teed-off in the final event of the 2015 British Minigolf Association (BMGA) Tour season on Sunday 6th December at the Star City Open competition held at the Adventure Island Mini Golf centre at Star City in Birmingham.

Richard scored a three-round total of 108 (par), having shot rounds 37, 36 and 35 to finish in 16th place in the 34-player field.

Richard making a putt at Star City

Emily scored a three-round total 113 (+5) after rounds of 36, 38 and 39 to finish in 23rd place overall.

Emily in action at Adventure Island Mini Golf

The Star City Open tournament was played over three 18-hole rounds on the Lost Hut Trail course at the Adventure Island Mini Golf venue, and was won Oxford’s Michael Smith.

With the 2015 season over the pair have completed their ninth-year as BMGA Tour players. Richard finished the year in 17th place of 115 places in the BMGA Official Strokeplay Order of Merit Rankings, with Emily in 32nd position.

Link:

- Adventure Island Mini Golf website

BMGA minigolf rankings for 2015

British Minigolf Association tour ranking lists for the 2015 season.

Details of Richard and Emily Gottfried's rankings in the BMGA Strokeplay Order of Merit for 2014-2015.

Update 1: Following the BMGA British Masters at Splash Point Mini Golf in Worthing

Richard Gottfried = 17th
Emily Gottfried = 30th
Of 75 places.

Update 2: Following the BMGA British Championships at Hastings Adventure Golf

Richard Gottfried = 19th
Emily Gottfried = 36th
Of 77 places.

Update 3: Following the Scottish Open at Adventure Golf Island in Dunfermline, Fife
Richard Gottfried = 19th
Emily Gottfried = 36th
Of 77 places.

Update 4: Following the Splash Point Open at Splash Point Mini Golf in Worthing
Richard Gottfried = 15th
Emily Gottfried = 31st
Of 81 places.

Update 5: Following the Welsh Open at Treetop Adventure Golf in Cardiff
Richard Gottfried = 15th
Emily Gottfried = 31st
Of 92 places.

Update 6: Following the BMGA British Open at Strokes Adventure Golf in Margate
Richard Gottfried = 18th
Emily Gottfried = 34th
Of 92 places.

Update 7: Following the CEMGC Open at Dunton Hills in West Horndon
Richard Gottfried = 16th
Emily Gottfried = 35th
Of 96 places.

Update 8: Following the World Crazy Golf Championships at Hastings Adventure Golf in Hastings
Richard Gottfried = 15th
Emily Gottfried = 32nd
Of 113 places.

Update 9: Following the Kent Open at Lost Island Encounter Adventure Golf in Chiselhurst
Richard Gottfried = 16th
Emily Gottfried = 32nd
Of 115 places.

Update 10: Following the Star City Open at Adventure Island Mini Golf in Birmingham
Richard Gottfried = 17th
Emily Gottfried = 32nd
Of 115 places.

Notes:
- Eight tournaments over a two-year period count towards a player’s total number of ranking points.
- The way the rankings are calculated changed for the 2015 season and an overview of the new system can be found on the BMGA website.

Link:
- British Minigolf Association

Related blog posts:
- Rankings
- UK Mini Golf Competitions in 2015
- Richard Gottfried player profile
- Emily Gottfried player profile
- End of minigolf season report for 2014
- End of 2014 minigolf season BMGA rankings

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow Richard and Emily on Twitter. You can also now sign-up to receive our miniature golf newsletter.

Crazy Golf in London - Clarence Way, Camden

A look at the Crazy Golf course in Camden.

Back in 2012 the Crazy Golf course in Clarence Way, Camden became the 303rd course played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. However, we had first visited the course in October 2009 and in the time between we'd seen only a handful of people playing the layout.

Emily doesn't work a million miles away from the Crazy Golf course in Camden and snapped this photo of the course this evening. Ironically she has never putted on the course

There is a bit of a dearth of permanent Minigolf, Crazy Golf and Adventure Golf courses in London. We've visited most of the capital's courses on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, and it's pleasing to see a few new permanent courses and a number of pop-up Crazy Golf courses opening in London.

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Camden
- Minigolf Course Visit - Clarence Way Crazy Golf in Camden, London
- Finally Playing the Camden Crazy Golf Course
- Minigolf and Crazy Golf courses in and around London

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow me and Emily on Twitter. You can also now sign-up to receive our miniature golf newsletter.

Playing the Arnold Palmer Putting Course in Whitby

A revisit to the Arnold Palmer Crazy Golf course in Whitby.

We originally visited the Arnold Palmer Putting Course in Whitby in March 2014 and earlier this year had the opportunity to return to the seaside town. Luckily the course was open to play this time!

Playing hole 1

It's a brilliant 9-hole Crazy Golf course with some classic Arnold Palmer obstacles including the Windmill and Waterwheel.

We had a fun and competitive round which ended in a draw after we both shot rounds of 20.

One round was certainly not enough for me though and I had to have another crack at the LUCKY LAST HOLE for a chance to WIN A FREE GAME PASS.

The Lucky 10th Hole

Luckily for me I managed the feat! The 'no expiry' free game card looks amazing and I won't be cashing it in as it's gone straight into my collection of miniature golf stuff.

Another FREE GAME PASS for the collection

My second round was a clean 16 (-2). Nice.

What should be an easy ace opportunity

You can find the Arnold Palmer Putting Course on North Terrace of the West Cliff in Whitby. It's well worth a visit.



The course was the 545th visited overall on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and became the 385th played.

Emily on the 4th

Related blog posts:
- Arnold Palmer Minigolf Putting Course in Whitby
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour - Courses Visited List
- Whitby
- Arnold Palmer

Video:
- Crazy Golf at the Arnold Palmer Putting Course in Whitby

Link:
- Arnold Palmer Putting Course on VisitWhitby.com

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow me and Emily on Twitter. You can also now sign-up to receive our miniature golf newsletter.

Mini Golf in London at Birdies Crazy Golf Club

Playing at a new London mini golf course in Waterloo.

Playing the loop-di-loop at Birdies Crazy Golf Club

On Tuesday 10th November we visited the latest Mini Golf course to arrive in London - Birdies Crazy Golf Club.

The three hole on a ramp double pipe obstacle on the third

You can find the 9-hole miniature golf course tucked away in The Vaults underneath Waterloo station.

The first hole features real sand bunkers

Birdies Crazy Golf Club is open six nights a week until the 20th December, with a round of Crazy Golf costing £9 per person, per round.



In addition to the underground minigolf course, food and drink is available from the Caddy Shack clubhouse. On our visit we enjoyed a couple of 'Glory Hole' cocktails there!

The loop-di-loop fourth hole, with one of the two bars in the background - they've got a good range of golf-themed cocktails on offer. The 'Glory Hole' was particularly pleasing!

We really enjoyed our visit and game of Crazy Golf. When we first arrived the venue was heaving and the course packed with Crazy Mini Golfers. Before we left I had a second round on the well designed minigolf course.

A busy Birdies

One of our favourite holes. We actually saw one player get their ball to stay on the top of the ramp, and another land in the area below the holes!

The course has a par of 23 and in our match-up I scored an 18(-5) to Emily's 22(-1). In my solo round I shot a 17 (or a 16 if you count the hole-in-one on the 7th hole as a -1!).

What an achievement!

The Birdies Crazy Golf Club course is nice and playable and I'd love to go back and try to better my score.

Birdies Crazy Golf Club is well worth a visit

It'd be a great location for a minigolf tournament too - perfect for any weather conditions, a tricky and testing course, fun obstacles, a bar, hot dogs and another bar!

You can get Hot Dogs there too

The new London Crazy Golf course became the 672nd visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and the 390th we've played.

The scene of our 672nd minigolf course visit since 2006

Each of the nine holes at Birdies has a 'pro' tip from Tiger Would, here's a selection of them.

  

Birdies Crazy Golf Club has been launched by the team behind the Underground Film Club. Check out the links below for more info, opening times and to buy tickets.

Links:
- Birdies Crazy Golf website
- Birdies Crazy Golf on Twitter
- Birdies Crazy Golf on Facebook

Related blog posts:
- Minigolf and Crazy Golf courses in and around London
- Indoor Minigolf, Crazy Golf and Adventure Golf courses
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour - List and links for all Miniature Golf courses visited to date
- Mini Golf Clubs in the UK

Videos:
- Minigolf at Birdies Crazy Golf Club in Waterloo, London (1 of 2)
- Minigolf at Birdies Crazy Golf Club in Waterloo, London (2 of 2)

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow me and Emily on Twitter. You can also now sign-up to receive our miniature golf newsletter.

A Millport Crazy Golf postcard from the Isle of Cumbrae

Last year we visited the lovely little Isle of Cumbrae to play the Crazy Golf course in Millport, the island's only town. It's a great island to visit and just a short ferry voyage from Largs.

As a big collector of minigolf postcards I had to snap up this brilliant Valentine's "Silveresque" style postcard that shows the Crazy Golf course.

Crazy Golf, Millport, Isle of Cumbrae. A Valentine's "Silveresque" 3059V Style Postcard, published by Valentine & Sons Ltd. Dundee and London. Postally used at 4.15pm on the 4th June 1964 and mailed from Millport itself

The Millport Crazy Golf course was the 339th course played and 564th visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. If you take a look at the course photos below you'll see that the course has changed very little since the 1960's. You can still see the very same hole layouts and obstacles!

Emily playing the three tunnel hole that you can see on the postcard

The toughest hole on the course was there in 1964 and it's still there now. You can see it in the background of the postcard

The double humps hole and the ramp & three holes hole can be clearly seen on the postcard

You can still purchase postcards of the course from one of the shops in Millport. We bought a stack of them to post to friends and family on our holiday.

Link:
- Millport Crazy Golf

Related blog posts:
- Postcard
- Postcards
- Crazy Golf in Millport on the Isle of Cumbrae
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow me and Emily on Twitter. You can also now sign-up to receive our miniature golf newsletter.