NEWBURYPORT — Tomorrow around 4 a.m., when just about everyone else in the city is asleep, Tim Meleedy and his 10-year-old son, Ryan, along with a family friend, will slide into their car and begin their roughly 1,000-mile journey to Indianapolis to watch the New England Patriots battle the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLVI.
It will be the third Super Bowl trip for the 40-year Meleedy, who saw the Patriots lose to the Green Bay Packers in the Louisiana Super Dome in 1997 and then witnessed the Pats defeat the St. Louis Rams in New Orleans in 2002 for their first NFL title in franchise history.
But this Super Bowl, win or lose, is likely to be the most memorable, as it will be Meleedy's first with his son.
Meleedy said his son has become a mega Patriots fan, having followed the team since he was in diapers. And now with Ryan old enough to appreciate the game in all its splendor, Meleedy said he will be living it through his eyes, as well.
"He's on cloud nine," said Meleedy, who lives on Frances Drive.
Meleedy, a New England Patriots season ticket-holder for 20 years or so, said he missed out on snagging seats to the Super Bowl through a special lottery. So, instead, he went the route of many others.
"This time, I bit the bullet and used a ticket broker," Meleedy said.
Meleedy, vice president of operations for a medical company in Woburn, said the trip to Indianapolis will take them about 17 hours. Unable to find lodging within the host city, Meleedy and his son will be staying in nearby Bloomington, Ind., about 45 minutes outside the Indianapolis city limits.
A Patriots fan since he was 5, Meleedy said he was going into the game not exactly confident the Patriots would win their fourth Super Bowl. He said the Giants provide a tough match-up for the Pats, having already defeated quarterback Tom Brady and company during the regular season.
"I did not want to see them; I think they're (the Giants) the hot team. I just don't like watching the Giants," Meleedy said. "It could go either way."
So far, Meleedy's greatest moment as a Patriots fan came watching his team defeat the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI while sitting next to the families of several Patriots players. Meleedy said he was actually holding the hands of then-place kicker Adam Vinatieri's family when the clutch kicker won the Super Bowl for the team on a last-second field goal.
"It was just unbelievable," Meleedy said. "I'm still in shock to this day. Ten years later, it's surreal."
Meleedy's love for the Patriots came from his father, who passed on his devotion to the team. He and his dad, who was often seen sporting the jersey of former quarterback Steve Grogan, attended many games together over the years.
His father passed away in 2008, only 10 days after the Patriots' stunning loss to the Giants in Super Bowl XLII in Arizona. Meleedy said the comment often made by his family is that his father died of a broken heart.
"Hopefully, with some prayers and a new generation at the game, we can turn the tables on the Giants," Meleedy said.
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