Stadiums & Arenas

[Captain Bryan]

Soldier Field:
I love Chicago. I can't really say the same for this stadium however. It's old, I get it. But the seats are pretty awful, concession prices are pretty crazy. The view from my seat was nice, getting in and out of the stadium was easy, however I got there very early and the game was basically a blowout so people were leaving early.
I like half of the aesthetic of the stadium, but the modern "improvements" they made to it take away from it's character.

 

[ComicChick]

i was able to cross off Fenway and Heinz field this summer. Very cool

 

[Immortalfire]

Last year before Covid hit, I was in Raleigh and saw a Carolina Hurricanes game..their arena is really nice, great fan atmosphere and the place was super easy to get in and out of.

So now I've been to 3 NHL arenas, 4 NFL stadiums and 4 baseball parks

 

[Immortalfire]

Chargers’ old home is being demolished

 

[InCali]

Chargers’ old home is being demolished

View attachment 43072

I went there a couple of times. It was sort of a s***hole. I want to do a road trip someday during baseball season and hit all of the baseball stadiums. I've been to quite a few, but never Fenway or Wrigley (2 I really want to see). The most disappointing was St. Louis. It was just a shade cooler than the sun and the humidity was only about 99.9%. I went to get a beer and the only "premium" beer they had was Michelob.....really? Give me a Fing break.

My girlfriend at the time was a union attorney who knew nothing about sports and I spent half of the time explaining the game to her. She thought people should get more than three strikes because only 3 seemed unfair and thought that the pitcher should be able to throw as many balls as he wanted because home plate was so far away.

 

[Immortalfire]

I paid a visit to Mercedes-Benz stadium this weekend



We call it the Benz.

 

[Captain Bryan]

Visited the Alamodome last weekend to watch the Battlehawks take on the Brahmas.
Was a fun game. Stadium is definitely showing it's age though.

 

[Immortalfire]

It’s 30 years old, therefore should be demolished. ~ NFL logic

 

[ComicChick]

Wrigley Field would like a word lol

 

[Captain Bryan]

Lol pretty much!

 

[Immortalfire]

Hockey arenas I’ve been to

Atlanta


Nashville


Raleigh



Tampa

 

[Babillygunn]

The only MLB stadium I’ve been to is Busch in St Louis. Very nice, but for my money I actually love their AAA team the Louisville Bats stadium: Slugger Field. It’s like seeing a game at a museum.


For NBA, I have been to the old Omni in Atlanta, which was kind of a dump, but I enjoyed it.

I also have amazing memories of going to see USWA and NWA wrestling on Tuesday nights at Louisville Gardens.


Lots of legends in that territory.

 

[Shinobi Shaw]

Fun thread.

As far as MLB stadiums, I’ve been to:

Yankee Stadium
Citi Field/Shea Stadium
(I’m from Brooklyn, go Yanks)

Angel Stadium (the f***ing cleanest, nicest stadium I’ve ever been to)


Dodger Stadium
Minute Maid Park (first time I ever saw a retractable roof and it screwed with my anxiety)
Coors Field (had a lovely clubhouse):


And then as far as arenas, been to:

Staples Center a few times
Ball Arena last year for one of the Nuggets playoff games:

Madison Square Garden a million times probably for wrestling, concerts, shows etc

And Barclays Center in Brooklyn:


Don’t waste your money on liquor at the Barclays though, it’s weak lol.

 

[InCali]

I've got a thing for baseball stadiums.....

Fun thread.

As far as MLB stadiums, I’ve been to:

Yankee Stadium
Citi Field/Shea Stadium
(I’m from Brooklyn, go Yanks)

Angel Stadium (the f***ing cleanest, nicest stadium I’ve ever been to)
View attachment 88210

Dodger Stadium
Minute Maid Park (first time I ever saw a retractable roof and it screwed with my anxiety)
Coors Field (had a lovely clubhouse):
View attachment 88211

And then as far as arenas, been to:

Staples Center a few times
Ball Arena last year for one of the Nuggets playoff games:
View attachment 88212
Madison Square Garden a million times probably for wrestling, concerts, shows etc

And Barclays Center in Brooklyn:
View attachment 88213

Don’t waste your money on liquor at the Barclays though, it’s weak lol.

I've got a thing for baseball stadiums.....and I'm not sure why. I think it's just cool to hang out before the game, watch batting practice (we ain't talkin about a GAME....not a game), throw down a couple beers, peanuts, hot dogs or whatever, and just chill. It's pretty relaxing. Plus the people are a trip. So....where have I been....I might miss a few....


Dodger Stadium
Padres
Anaheim
Old Candlestick and New Giants stadium....Candlestick was freaking GNARLY at night
Oakland Coliseum
Toronto
Milwaukee
Chicago White Sox
Yankee Stadium (new)
Twins.....metrodome before it fell down....

Of ALL the good times, the old Metrodome was the most fun.

Now, you have to use your imagination here. The ceiling looked like a bunch of pillows and it must have made it hard to really track the ball, but here was the fun stuff......

Between innings, they had a blimp flying around inside the stadium. The wolf mascot had this little bazooka type thing that shot out.....you'll never guess.....plastic wrapped packages of some kind of processed meat (I guess that's a big business in Minneapolis). So, the wolf mascot would shoot these meat packages at the blimp flying around and, if it hits it, the crowd goes WILD!!! If it misses (or hits), the meat packages fall in the stands and you have a scramble as crazy as if someone hit a foul ball. The people there were really cool. I met some guy in a bar who drove a limo and he took me and my friends on a half hour tour for about $40. About 6 of us hop in, had a beer and got a tour. He said there were two seasons in Minneapolis.....winter and construction. Super nice guy.

 

[Shinobi Shaw]

I've got a thing for baseball stadiums.....

I've got a thing for baseball stadiums.....and I'm not sure why. I think it's just cool to hang out before the game, watch batting practice (we ain't talkin about a GAME....not a game), throw down a couple beers, peanuts, hot dogs or whatever, and just chill. It's pretty relaxing. Plus the people are a trip. So....where have I been....I might miss a few....


Dodger Stadium
Padres
Anaheim
Old Candlestick and New Giants stadium....Candlestick was freaking GNARLY at night
Oakland Coliseum
Toronto
Milwaukee
Chicago White Sox
Yankee Stadium (new)
Twins.....metrodome before it fell down....

Of ALL the good times, the old Metrodome was the most fun.

Now, you have to use your imagination here. The ceiling looked like a bunch of pillows and it must have made it hard to really track the ball, but here was the fun stuff......

Between innings, they had a blimp flying around inside the stadium. The wolf mascot had this little bazooka type thing that shot out.....you'll never guess.....plastic wrapped packages of some kind of processed meat (I guess that's a big business in Minneapolis). So, the wolf mascot would shoot these meat packages at the blimp flying around and, if it hits it, the crowd goes WILD!!! If it misses (or hits), the meat packages fall in the stands and you have a scramble as crazy as if someone hit a foul ball. The people there were really cool. I met some guy in a bar who drove a limo and he took me and my friends on a half hour tour for about $40. About 6 of us hop in, had a beer and got a tour. He said there were two seasons in Minneapolis.....winter and construction. Super nice guy.

LOL @ the wolf mascot story. That’s wild!

I’m with you man. Stadium food is good as hell, it’s worth spending your life’s savings for some beers and a big ass hot dog lol. Angel Stadium had great food.

But yeah baseball is much more fun seeing it at the ballpark. The energy, the people, the trash talking, all fun.

 

[Immortalfire]

I’ve been to all three Braves’ stadiums

Ballpark at Arlington

Candlestick Park (coldest baseball game I’ve ever seen in my life)

 

[Immortalfire]

For NBA, I have been to the old Omni in Atlanta, which was kind of a dump, but I enjoyed it.

Even as a Georgia native, I never got to go to the Omni, but you are correct; the place was falling apart by the time it was 20 years old. Design flaws and southern heat brought its end.

 

[InCali]

I’ve been to all three Braves’ stadiums

Ballpark at Arlington

Candlestick Park (coldest baseball game I’ve ever seen in my life)

Yeah.....I went there a few times at night games and the freaking wind was unfreaking believable. It's right on the bay and at night......baby bring your windbreaker and whatever fits under it. LOL

I was at the earthquake series at the Stick. I was a big A's fan and my girlfriend and I got pretty good tickets between home and 1st base under the deck. I remember when the earthquake hit, I looked up and thought "EF it, I probably stand a better chance getting hurt if I run than getting crushed by a trillion pounds of concrete."

After things settled down, the fans start singing "We will we will rock you".....lol Queen would have appreciated it. We had a room near Burlingame a few miles south of the stadium and it took us about 3 hours to get there. No power and everything was a mess. When we got to the hotel (The Clarion IIRC), they told us they couldn't check anyone in. I told them they could and, further, that they "would". When they disagreed, I planted myself on the most comfortable couch in the lobby and wished them a good night. I mean, what were they gonna do? Call the police and tell them that a customer who bought a room for the night wouldn't leave and was sleeping in the lobby? LOL

So, the guy looks at me and after a while brings me a key to a room so I go in and turn on the light so I know when the power comes back on (it was around 3AM). They were saying that both roads back into Santa Cruz (basically the 17 and the 1) were closed and there's no way to get back in. So, I tell Maggie that we're going shopping at the local Safeway and heading back. We bought about $300 worth of food and water (and maybe just a "little" bit of alcohol) and headed back down Hwy 1. You see, I noticed on the way up that at Waddell Creek where the road had closed that there were several earthmovers parked off to the side and figured that would be the first place they'd clear. They had cleared it and it was smooth sailing back into Santa Cruz.

When I got home to the westside of Santa Cruz, there's about 8 surfers/hippies/low lifes (aka my friends) hanging out on my front porch. There was no power, but we had a BBQ and gas. The town was shut down, I didn't have to go to work, and we had about a 3 day party courtesy of me......good times.

 

[Immortalfire]

Yeah.....I went there a few times at night games and the freaking wind was unfreaking believable. It's right on the bay and at night......baby bring your windbreaker and whatever fits under it. LOL

My experience, it was the middle of August and 90 degrees, but driving into San Francisco from where I was staying at the time, it dropped to the mid 50s. Definitely an anomaly to this southern boy

 

[InCali]

My experience, it was the middle of August and 90 degrees, but driving into San Francisco from where I was staying at the time, it dropped to the mid 50s. Definitely an anomaly to this southern boy

Lived in the city way back in the day, but was raised in SoCal. So, the G's and Dodgers generally got scheduled for the end of the year, so it musta been late September. Dude, it was BRUTAL. A lot of people were, like, EF this S***.....I'm outta here. I stayed, but my beer was getting blown out of my cup by the wind gusts.....that's just WRONG.

In retrospect, it was fun. LOL

 

[Immortalfire]

NFL stadiums I’ve been to

Georgia Dome


The Benz


Charlotte



Jacksonville

 

[Shinobi Shaw]

I want to go to a NFL game so bad.

Never been to a football game in my life. Here in NYC, a lot of our schools didnt have football teams and when I went to college in CT, we didn't have a team either.

 

[Captain Bryan]

Of ALL the good times, the old Metrodome was the most fun.

Now, you have to use your imagination here. The ceiling looked like a bunch of pillows and it must have made it hard to really track the ball, but here was the fun stuff......

Between innings, they had a blimp flying around inside the stadium. The wolf mascot had this little bazooka type thing that shot out.....you'll never guess.....plastic wrapped packages of some kind of processed meat (I guess that's a big business in Minneapolis). So, the wolf mascot would shoot these meat packages at the blimp flying around and, if it hits it, the crowd goes WILD!!! If it misses (or hits), the meat packages fall in the stands and you have a scramble as crazy as if someone hit a foul ball. The people there were really cool. I met some guy in a bar who drove a limo and he took me and my friends on a half hour tour for about $40. About 6 of us hop in, had a beer and got a tour. He said there were two seasons in Minneapolis.....winter and construction. Super nice guy.

As someone who grew up in Minnesota I have fond memories of the Dome. It was a dump toward the end but it was always fun.
I really miss the blimp, they used it for all kinds of gimmicks. It would sometimes drop t-shirts, gift cards, etc. I believe at one point they strapped a camera to it and it would fly around giving you a pretty unique view of the stadium.

I'll admit I don't remember them shooting processed meat but I wouldn't be surprised if that happened. I'm guessing it was spam since that's made here. I remember they used to throw hotdogs (Dome dogs.. they were delicious.) into the stands sometimes as well.


My fondest memory of the Dome was leaving though.. since they needed to use air pressure to keep the roof inflated that meant that they needed to keep the building sealed to maintain that pressure. Most of the doors to get in and out were revolving doors, they did have normal doors but they were usually closed.

Occasionally you'd find one area that had them open, and you'd be able to exit from there. Usually once you got close enough to the door the wind would basically just throw you out.

 

[Captain Bryan]

I want to go to a NFL game so bad.

Never been to a football game in my life. Here in NYC, a lot of our schools didnt have football teams and when I went to college in CT, we didn't have a team either.

One thing I will say about watching Football live is that the game just seems to go by so much faster.
Every time I go to a live game it just seems to fly by. I think it's because there's so much to pay attention to even when play isn't happening, instead of when you watch on TV and it cuts to commercial whenever there's down time.

 

[InCali]

As someone who grew up in Minnesota I have fond memories of the Dome. It was a dump toward the end but it was always fun.
I really miss the blimp, they used it for all kinds of gimmicks. It would sometimes drop t-shirts, gift cards, etc. I believe at one point they strapped a camera to it and it would fly around giving you a pretty unique view of the stadium.

I'll admit I don't remember them shooting processed meat but I wouldn't be surprised if that happened. I'm guessing it was spam since that's made here. I remember they used to throw hotdogs (Dome dogs.. they were delicious.) into the stands sometimes as well.


My fondest memory of the Dome was leaving though.. since they needed to use air pressure to keep the roof inflated that meant that they needed to keep the building sealed to maintain that pressure. Most of the doors to get in and out were revolving doors, they did have normal doors but they were usually closed.

Occasionally you'd find one area that had them open, and you'd be able to exit from there. Usually once you got close enough to the door the wind would basically just throw you out.

That might have been my favorite game ever. I actually wrote a story about it. Having just been there once, I thought they did it all the time. It was probably some promotional thing, but it was one of the most bizarro things I'd ever seen; baseball game of not. It's lucky for me that I hadn't taken some kind of hallucinogenic. It was weird enough without them.

Spam (ugh)......That doesn't explain why people wanted the packages of meat......maybe because the people knew that they'd be okay for at least a few weeks without refrigerating them. LOL

EDIT: Come to think of it, I think the blimp was also dropping spam (or whatever) into the stands. I'll have to see if I can find my story somewhere. It was quite some time ago.