Well, waiting 2 and a half weeks between post number 99 and 100 isn't really all that cool, and for that, I apologize, but I just feel like my life has been a complete whirl-wind this month....today is September 29th and I did the quick math and realized that I've been in the U.S. for 11 of those days...
The trip to Vegas as I stated over and over again was amazing and I can't wait to go back there.....then, I started working with Steve Ryan and everyone else involved with Ultimate Tours (http://www.ultimatetours.ca/) as we've made two weekend trips in a row to Buffalo to catch the games against Tampa Bay and the disaster that was the Saints game yesterday...
Not a great time for Bills fans yesterday when the only points of the game are executed on a trick play, in case you missed it, the punter, Brian Moorman, passes it to a defensive lineman in Ryan Denney on a fake field goal and connects for a 20 yard touchdown pass....I think we got spoiled with 33 points the week before in a win against Tampa....
But back to the experience of attending the game....everyone told me that it was like nothing I've ever been to, but for whatever reason, I still had doubt....I had seen the different videos from NFL Films and had heard the various stories about legendary tailgaiting with huge barbeques and tons o' drinking, but I needed to experience it myself in order to be blown away...
It's nothing like you will ever get at any sporting event in Ottawa or even Canada (although I've heard a Saskatchewan Roughriders game is as good as you will get in Canada)....the laws here sort of get in the way of having 70 thousand people all drink and party on lawns and parking lots hours before a Sens game or.....or.....right, we don't have anything else....
And out of 70 thousand people in the stands, I'll estimate that at least 45 thousand people have some sort of Bills jersey on for the game, whether it be a T.O jersey or Marshawn Lynch or Lee Evans....put that into terms at an NHL game here....for a crowd of 20 thousand, you would need to see 13 thousand people in Sens jerseys.....not happening!
It's giving me the urge to check out some other NFL stadiums for the following season....one that I've always wanted to check out was the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum.....yes yes, I know that I hit that stadium when I did the baseball tour, but it's a lot more tame for baseball.....I want to see it when it's packed full with Raider Nation with war paint and skulls all over the place!
I'd love to see Lambeau Field as well.....I can do without the games in December and January and I couldn't really care less about how the Packers do on a week to week basis, but I've heard so many great things about the fans, their passion for the team and how friendly of a place it is....I feel like I have to get there at some point...
Conversely, I'd love to see an Eagles game because I'm curious to see how Philly fans treat the ups and downs of a football game.....I got a chance to experience Philly fan when I saw the Phillies in April, but a baseball game in April doesn't conjure up the same emotion as an NFL game in November or December does when playoff spots are won and lost on single plays....
One can only dream and I've done more travelling in 6 months than most people do in their life times, so I guess I won't get too much sympathy....we'll get there eventually! Just like the planned trips to Ibiza and Europ....I hate my sister for that! She toured all of Europe while I toured the baseball stadiums...
I do want to get some things off my chest about how the NFL is shaping up after Week 3....lots of surprises, both good and bad, but it's already been a wacky year! But much like the motto of the TV show Big Brother, expect the unexpected.....that reminds me, I need to watch the premiere of Amazing Race on the PVR.....
Now I'm rambling.....Until tomorrow, time for some sleep.... :-)
