Thanks to the site, I was able to attend Dr. Robert Leonard’s celebrity bartending event on Tuesday night. Dr. Leonard is the founder and chief surgeon of Leonard Hair Transplant Associates and New England’s primary hair restoration doctor. He has helped a number of high-profile athletes including Wes Welker, Rob Ninkovich, Sebastian Vollmer, and Chris Gronkowski.
The aforementioned four are the “faces” of Leonard Hair Transplants and were the celebrity bartenders for the evening. It was my first experience like this, and it was extremely worthwhile. I really had an unbelievable time not only meeting the players, but other media members as well. Dr. Leonard also gave me hope for my own personal hair longevity, as he refuted my original thought that the gene is strictly from your grandfather on your mother’s side, in which case I’d probably be bald already. He did mention however that I still could be screwed, so we exchanged contact information.
I was hoping to get a little more individual time with the guys, but it was a regimented event, with a segment of signing autographs and taking pictures for the first half of the night and bartending for the second half. Over the course of the evening, I made several observations…
Observation #1: Sebastian Vollmer is freaking huge. For perspective sake, that’s me in the middle (se below) and I’m 6’1 200+ pounds. While the other guys would be fairly tough to pick out of a crowd if you weren’t familiar with their face, Sebastian sticks out like “The Hound” in Game of Thrones. Whatever height/weight “Seabass” is listed at, he’s absolutely all of it. His hand essentially absorbed mine as we shook, but he seems like the nicest guy on the planet, off the field that is.
Observation #2: Chris Gronk’s mannerisms, humor and voice are identical to Rob’s. When I asked him how the “Gronk Party Cruise” was, he answered, “It was crazy, everything you could imagine really…and more.” His expression as he proudly blurt out “and more” was so enigmatic I was afraid to ask a follow up question on the cruise. I immediately regretted not doing so…
Luckily, I was able to get a piece of football substance from Chris when I asked him about the landscape of the game, its transition to a passing league, and how it affects his position, fullback. Chris responded, “It has definitely affected us (fullbacks). Teams are opting for those big tight ends now, like you see on the Patriots, with Rob and the other guys. They can do a little more in the receiving game in most cases.” Chris and I agreed that the Pats undoubtedly missed injured fullback James Develin last season, especially during the winter: “Oh yeah, he’s a bad ass. You need that toughness. He plays with an edge.”
Observation #3: While Gronkowski was going with strictly Miller Lites, Nink and Welker were diving into some interesting pineapple cocktails. Stress on the plural. I can confirm these drinks packed a punch, because by the time Wes was serving drinks behind the bar, he had a nice glaze over his eyes reminiscent of your favorite doughnut. I was able to snag a quick picture with Wes, pre-glaze:
Observation #4: Tom E. Curran from CSN and Rob “Hardy” Poole from 98.5 the Sports Hub are really approachable guys, and I enjoyed meeting both very much.
I asked Hardy where his co-worker and everybody’s favorite broadcaster Scott Zolak was, and he responded, “Oh come on man, you really think we want ‘Zo driving home from this thing?!”
Curran reiterated to me his disgust with Dictator Goodell and how he’s handled you know what. He guessed Tommy B has a ‘50/50’ chance to suit up week 1, but admitted the entire thing is a crapshoot at this point. This was before we heard of the 2nd circuit’s decision, however, so his tune unfortunately may now have changed with this new information.
Overall, it really was an incredible experience and one that I’m very thankful for. Down the line, if you’re starting to lose your hair, call up Dr. Leonard at 1-800-GET-HAIR, or visit his website: https://www.hairdr.com/
Who knows? You might see me there!
