NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field

The NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field is an event not to be missed – especially for the Ultimate Fan. First, I was able to attend an outdoor hockey game. Second, it was at a new stadium for an NHL game. Third, it was New Year’s Day which is generally reserved for college football. I have been to four bowl games on January 1 – two Rose Bowls (1996 and 2007), the Citrus Bowl (1997) and the Outback Bowl (2003). Fourth, the event was held within one block of where I live.

After attending 345 Chicago Cubs games (287 of those when living less than a block from the stadium) and one minor league baseball game at Wrigley Field this was the first event that split up the usual lonely winter around the neighborhood. Normally, opening day is like the first day of summer camp – total excitement and anticipation for the summer to come, whereas the last game of the season is when all of the “campers” go home for the winter.

Obtaining Tickets
My friend, Mike Holzman, invited me to the game back in the summer after the game was announced. Since he is a full-season ticket holder he had the right to purchase one ticket to the Winter Classic for each full-season ticket. With tickets priced at $325, $225 and $75, we agreed that the $225 seats probably made the most sense. We sat in Section 228 Row 4.

This, of course, left the Ultimate Sports Wife concerned about where she would be sitting. I promised her I would buy her a ticket and took the following steps to get one:

1) In the middle of November, I entered the Chicago Cubs Season Ticket Holder Lottery for Winter Classic tickets. We lost the drawing.
2) During the week of December 15, I started to check stubhub.com to see how much tickets were. Tickets that had been in the mid $200’s in early December and were now in the low $200’s. I told Nicole we would wait until after Christmas to buy her a ticket. I had a feeling ticket prices would drop.
3) On December 22, I received the following email from the Chicago Cubs:

Thank you for your interest in the 2009 Winter Classic at Wrigley Field.

As the installation of the rink is now underway, it has been determined that seats previously unavailable may now be made available for sale. Because you expressed an interest in purchasing tickets by entering the recent drawing, we would like to alert you that such tickets will be made available via tickets.com.

Tickets may be purchased starting at noon CT on Tuesday, December 23 by clicking here to order tickets:

4) I logged onto tickets.com at 11:45 am on December 23 and began refreshing the page every few seconds as the clock approached noon. I thought we may be able to buy a ticket since we were only looking for a single. A minute before noon, I was placed in the virtual waiting room. A few seconds later I was able to purchase ticket. I chose the best available single immediately and received a seat in Club Box Section 8 Row 6 for $75 ($88.75 after tickets.com fees). I purchased the ticket immediately.

Pre Game Festivities
The Ultimate Sports Wife and I went to bed shortly after midnight New Year’s Eve. I woke up at 8 am in order to get ready for the day. Our initial plan had been to meet our neighbors around 10 am, go to the Wrigleyville bars and attend the NHL Winter Classic Spectator Plaza. However, we decided that this would be the one time we would play cornhole in the winter and pulled out our neighbor’s cornhole platforms and bags. An additional perk was that we could heckle all of the Red Wings fans (minus our neighbors) walking in front of our building.

The Game
We walked into Wrigley Field shortly before noon. The pre-game festivities took more than 30 minutes with Bobby Hull, Ted Lindsay, Stan Mikita, Tony Esposito and Denis Savard making appearances. Cubs’ players Ryne Sandberg and Ferguson Jenkins were also in the pre-game festivities to make the connection to Wrigley Field.

The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 6-4. The Blackhawks had a 3-1 lead after the first period but the Red Wings scored 5 unanswered goals. The teams switched sides at the ten minute mark of the third period so neither team would have an advantage if the wind was favoring one side. During the break, Bobby Hull led the fans in “Take Me Out to the Hockey Game.”

Post Game Party
After the game, we had a post game party at our house rather than party with Blackhawks and Red Wings fans at the Wrigleyville bars.

New Year’s Eve: Orlando Magic at Chicago Bulls

In my third consecutive NBA afternoon game, the Orlando Magic embarrassed the Chicago Bulls 113-94. Dwight Howard had a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds, just as he did on Christmas Day and in 23 of his 30 games this season. It was the second Bulls game I have attended on New Year’s Eve – the first coming on December 31, 2001.

Obtaining Tickets
In a round about way, I ended up paying $20 for a $110 face value ticket and sat on the first level. However, the process to buying that ticket was unusual. Here is what happened:

1) I had tried to buy a $10 ticket earlier in the season for this game but they said they were sold out.
2) Assuming the $10 seats were sold out, I tried to buy a seat outside of the United Center for $10. However, a scalper had a $70 face value seat and somehow got me to pay $25 for it.
3) Annoyed I had paid so much; I went to the United Center box office and asked them how much their cheapest seat was - $10 the woman tells me.
4) Even more annoyed, I run into the woman scalper who recognizes me and sell the $70 ticket to her partner for $25.
5) I go back to the United Center box office to buy a $10 seat, but now the $10 seats are sold out.
6) Now super annoyed, I find a fan with an extra $110 seat. I offer him $20, he wants $40 but I tell him $20 is the most I will pay. Annoyed with me, he accepts the offer and I walk into the United Center.

It was not the most skilled secondary market session I have had, but I did end up paying a low price for a great seat.

Game #2: Boston Bruins at Atlanta Thrashers

The Falcons game ended around 4:15 pm, meaning I had 45 minutes until the start of the Atlanta Thrashers game. I left the Georgia Dome, walked across the park and was at the Philips Arena within 5 minutes. It was the shortest distance I have had to travel between two venues when attending two games in the same day.

Obtaining Tickets
Before the Falcons game I went to the Philips Arena box office to see if they had $10 tickets available. They did not, so I planned to buy a ticket for $10 or less on the secondary market. Before I approached any scalpers, I found a group of about 10 people and asked if they had an extra ticket. They did and gave me their extra ticket. With my ticket in hand, I went to check out the CNN Center.

CNN Center
The CNN Center was much better than I expected. The CNN Center is directly connected to the Philips Arena and has a large atrium food court. To my surprise, some of the food court restaurants were selling beer. I asked two Thrasher fans where they bought their beer and they directed me to Gorin’s Famous Sandwiches – which sold 32 ounce beers for $5. Around the corner from Gorin’s was Great Wraps which sold 44 ounce beers for $7. Since the CNN Center is connected to Philips Arena this is definitely the place to grab some cheap beer and food before the game rather than spend $7 for a 16 ounce beer in the arena.

NHL Arenas
With yesterday’s attendance at the Atlanta Thrashers game, I have now attended a hockey game at every National League Hockey arena. The first hockey game I attended was on September 28, 1991. The San Jose Sharks, playing in their inaugural season, hosted the New Jersey Devils in a pre-season game at the Cow Palace in Daly City, CA. The first regular season game I attended was a couple of months later when the San Jose Sharks hosted the Edmonton Oilers – also at the Cow Palace.

Since then I have attended 165 more NHL games for a total of 167 and attended games at 38 NHL arenas.

Philips Arena and the Game
Since I had sat in the upper deck at the Atlanta Hawks game a week prior, I decided to sit in the lower level this time around. The concession stands on the first level of Philips Arena resemble that of a food court mixed in with some Irish pubs.

The Boston Bruins defeated the Atlanta Thrashers 2-1 with the tie-breaking goal coming with 6:04 left in the 3rd period.

Post Game Dining
I took MARTA (Atlanta’s version of a subway) back to the W Hotel in Midtown. Nicole and I ate at Spice Market – the restaurant in the W Hotel. Spice Market’s food is inspired by the street life of Southeast Asia. After dinner we hung out in the W Hotel’s bar called the Living Room.

Game #1: St. Louis Rams at Atlanta Falcons

Exactly five years ago, on December 28, 2003, I saw the St. Louis Rams play in Detroit on the final weekend of the season. Five years later, on December 28, 2008, I again saw the St. Louis Rams play on the final weekend of the season. This time they were in Atlanta.

Pre Game Dining
After checking into the W Hotel Midtown, Nicole and I immediately went for Sunday brunch at Einstein’s located at 1077 Juniper St. – about two blocks south of the W Hotel. Einstein’s has won several awards for Best Brunch and Best Outdoor Dining (of course, it was too cold to eat outside), including Best of Gay Atlanta 2008.

Obtaining Tickets
After brunch I walked back to the hotel and took the free shuttle service the W Hotel was offering. They drove me directly to the Georgia Dome. Scalpers had plenty of tickets so I started the negotiating process. I offered $20 for a ticket that had a $65 face value. That offer was not accepted. I found another ticket that had a $25 face value and offered $10. That offer was turned down as well. Eventually, I had offered $40 for the $65 ticket to one scalper and $25 for the $25 ticket to another. My $25 offer was turned down and after walking away multiple times, the other scalper finally accepted my $40 offer.

The Game
My seat was 6 rows up in the upper deck and on the 40 yard line. The $25 seats at the Georgia Dome are behind the end zone. The Atlanta Falcons defeated the St. Louis Rams 31-27 in a back and forth game which saw the lead change seven times. Michael Turner rushed for 208 yards which is the most rushing yards I have ever witnessed. Before this game, I had seen 12 running backs rush for over 150 yards:

208 yards - Michael Turner 12/28/2008
201 yards - Ryan Grant 01/12/2008
188 yards - Barry Sanders 12/04/1994
187 yards - Garrison Hearst 09/06/1998
176 yards - Ahman Green 09/29/2003
173 yards - Anthony Thomas 12/16/2001
171 yards - Clinton Portis 10/17/2004
170 yards - Robert Smith 10/15/2000
164 yards - James Stewart 12/17/2000
160 yards - Anthony Thomas 01/06/2002
159 yards - Travis Henry 10/13/2002
157 yards - Ronnie Brown 11/05/2006
154 yards - Derrick Ward 12/02/2007

There was one questionable replay call during the game. Michael Turner broke a 70-yard run, but lost the ball inside of the Rams’ 5 yard line when he was hit from behind by Rams’ cornerback Ron Bartell. Bartell recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchback. One official called the ball down and another official called it a fumble. The officials huddled and ruled Turner had fumbled before he hit the ground. Of course, the play was reviewed and replays on the video board showed that Michael Turner’s knee had hit the ground before the ball was fumbled. However, referee Walt Anderson upheld the ruling on the field. Go figure.

After that Falcons fans booed Anderson with every call until, which seemed simultaneous, Jerious Norwood scored the winning touchdown and the scoreboard showed that the New Orleans Saints had taken a one point lead over the Carolina Panthers. The Georgia Dome erupted. If the Saints had beaten the Panthers, the Falcons would have clinched the number two seed – giving them a home game and a first round bye. Instead, the Panthers won their game which sent the Falcons to Phoenix for a first-round game against the Cardinals.

Doubleheader Day in Atlanta

Today I am planning to attend the Atlanta Falcons game at the Georgia Dome and the Atlanta Thrashers game at Philips Arena. We left Nicole’s family’s home shortly after 5:00 am and arrived at the W Hotel Midtown shortly after 11 am. The Falcons game kicks off at 1 pm and the Thrashers game starts at 5 pm.

The irony with today’s doubleheader is that I have never seen either of these teams play at home and these are the only two teams I have not seen play at home. At the end of the day, I will have seen every professional sports team of the 4 major sports (MLB, NBA, NFL and NHL) at home including attending a game at all 30 NHL arenas.

Champ Sports Bowl: Wisconsin vs. Florida St.

The Champs Sports Bowl is the eighth bowl game I have attended. The other seven bowl games include: three Rose Bowls, the Citrus Bowl, the Outback Bowl, the Alamo Bowl and the Emerald Bowl. Northwestern, my alma mater, played in three of those bowl games. The other bowl games were either conveniently located to where I worked or where family lived.

Last night’s Champs Sports Bowl was no exception. As I have already stated, we are visiting Nicole’s family for the holidays in the Villages, FL. Although the Villages are not located near any major city, the town is located within a 1 to 3 hour drive from many major sporting events in central and north Florida. The cities include Jacksonville, Gainesville, Daytona Beach, Orlando, Tampa and St. Petersburg. This does not include the multiple spring training sites also within that radius.

I left the house around 2:45 pm and arrived at the Florida Citrus bowl shortly after 4 pm. As I was looking for a parking lot that had spots, I noticed fans with their fingers in the air. Since I just wrote about why fans generally hold fingers in the air, I became a little nervous about the prospects of buying a ticket. I thought that perhaps Florida St. fans ended up driving from Tallahassee for the game and sold the stadium out.

I parked for free on some shady lawn where other fans were parking and walked quickly to the Florida Citrus Bowl. On the way, I could see that the stadium was definitely not sold out. The upper deck was almost empty. I talked with a few fans on the way and they were all looking for tickets under face value or free – not a normal occurrence in my experience for so many fans looking to buy tickets through the secondary market.

Obtaining Tickets
As I got to the box office a few scalpers had extra seats but wanted more than face value. Their reasoning was that these seats were on the lower level or in the club level. Thus, fans who wanted a good seat would pay more for those seats, which made sense to me. However, I did not care where I sat. Since tickets were $60 from the box office, I knew I would not have to pay more than that. I offered a few scalpers $30 but they said no. I even increased my offer to $40 but was still told no. Instead, I decided to wait. As I waited a fan with about 10-15 extra tickets showed up and offered his tickets for sale at $20 each. I was the first on the scene and paid him $20 for a single. Other fans followed suit.

The Game
Instead of sitting in my lower level seat, I chose to sit in the upper deck since it was less crowded.

Florida St. defeated Wisconsin 42-13 in a game that was relatively close at halftime with Florida St. leading 14-3. However, Florida St. scored 3 touchdowns within 5 minutes at the end of the 3rd quarter and beginning of the 4th quarter to take a 35-6 lead.

Florida Citrus Bowl
This was the second time I attended a bowl game at the Florida Citrus Bowl. The first being the Citrus Bowl on January 1, 1997 when Tennessee defeated Northwestern 48-28. Not much has changed with the stadium from what I remember. The main difference with the stadium is that it has temporary carnival style food vendors rather than permanent concession stands.

Christmas Day Magic in Orlando

In my first Christmas Day sporting event, the Orlando Magic defeated the New Orleans Hornets handily 88-68. They began the game on an 8-0 run and never looked back.

Under normal circumstances I would never attend a game on Christmas Day. However, I was able to attend the game today since Nicole’s family eats a big dinner and opens presents on Christmas Eve. Christmas Day is left to sitting around, relaxing and eating another big dinner. With no plans to visit with any relatives and dinner scheduled for 7 pm, I had plenty of time to make the noon tip off at Amway Arena. I left Nicole’s family’s house around 10 am and arrived at the Amway Arena parking lot at 11:30 am. I paid $10 to park and then looked to buy a ticket.

Obtaining Tickets
I expected to pay around $10 for the game. However, as I left the parking structure, two scalpers approached me immediately. The first guy wanted $60 for upper level seats. I told them I only wanted to pay $10 and the second scalper offered me an upper level ticket for $20. I balked at the price but finally agreed to pay for a couple of reasons:

First, I noticed a few fans with their fingers in the air (meaning they were looking to buy tickets as opposed to selling tickets). Ticket Buying Tip: Fans holding their fingers in the air means two things: 1) For high demand events – scalpers also do not have any tickets, so they need find an extra ticket from another fan; 2) In the case of today’s game, there is a gap between what the scalpers are charging and what fans are willing to pay. In both cases, it will be hard to find a seat for $10 or less.

Second, it was Christmas Day and I felt like giving the scalper what he wanted rather than negotiate $5 or $10 off (especially since it was already a reasonable price).

The ticket had $10 printed as the face value. However, I was sitting next to a group who must have received group pricing because after looking at a seating chart, I realized that the game day price for my seat was $22. Thus, I still paid less than what I would have at the window. Plus, with the cheapest ticket at the ticket window being $141 the ticket window was not really a viable option.

Milestones
Chris Paul failed to record a steal in the game, which snapped his NBA-record 108-consecutive-game streak with at least one steal.