Jew Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 With the hot trend on TPR being on-going TR threads, I figured I would add mine to the fray with sporting events. Aside from being a die-hard USC fan and supporting the other local teams (Dodgers, Lakers, Kings), I just enjoy going to sporting events in general. I love seeing all the different arenas/stadiums and the services they provide (I generally like to "pretend to be rich" and buy premium seats off of stubhub/craigslist/scalpers), and being able to watch great players no matter what team they play for. I'll get things started with photos from the 2007 TPR Japan trip... One night while bored in Fukouka, I noticed that our hotel was within a train ride and small walk from the Yahoo! dome. The nice lady at the front desk translated the schedule, and sure enough...there was a game that night. So off we (sadly, I was stuck with Ryan that night) went. Index: Page 1---Japanese Baseball Yahoo! Dome & Tokyo Dome Page 2---Dodger Stadium Dugout Club Page 3---Camelback Ranch (Dodger's Spring Training) Page 4---Courtside @ LA Clippers Game @ Staples Center Page 6---Miami Heat game @ American Airlines Arena Page 7---USC in the Rose Bowl x 3 Page 7---Petco Park Page 8---AT&T Stadium in Dallas (Jerryworld) Page 8---Ranger's Ballpark in Arlington Page 9---Galen Center @ USC Page 9---Suite @ Staples Center Page 10---Staples Center VIP Level Page 10---Shark Tank in San Jose Page 11---AT&T Park in San Francisco Page 13---Citi Field Page 13---Metlife Field Page 14---The Pond Page 15---Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas Page 15---Amway Center Page 15---Levi Stadium (PAC-12 Championship game) Page 16---More Rangers Ballpark Page 18---Husky Stadium (University of Washington) Page 18---Moda Center in Portland Page 18—-Fenway Park Page 19---T-mobile Arena in Las Vegas Page 20—-London Olympic stadium Page 20—-Chase field Page 20---Oakland Alameda Coliseum Page 21—-Amalie arena Page 21---Guaranteed Rate Field Page 22—Wrigley Field Page 23—Truist Park in Atlanta Page 23–T-mobile Park in Seattle The main reason why Japanese baseball rules: Asian chicks with keg backpacks bringing $5 beer to you! Obligatory random action shot They also had the obligatory wacky mascot dancing Any stadium with a 7th inning stretch that features a giant inflatable coke can popping up from behind center field is OK in my book. Even the visitors had an organized cheering section Japanese baseball fans are HARDCORE. Imagine the craziest college student section you've ever seen, then multiply it by 100x, and you get the "cheering section." They had cheers for every batter and situation. They're so hardcore they made me blur my photo. The scoreboard reminds us where we are We really had no idea where our exact seats were, but this was the view from our $10 ticket section. After a short train ride and a 10 minute walk, we had found the place! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenA07 Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 That stadium reminds me of Olympic Stadium where the Expo's used to play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Clinksalot Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 ^ I was just gonna say that. Awesome stuff Joey. I'm like you, I love going to see sporting events, even though I don't get to enough. I was so wanting to go to a Cubs game when we were in Chicago last year, but stupid family stuff got in the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SharkTums Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 "Bored in Japan"!?!?! WTF?!!? Better wording next time, and hopefully no more getting stuck with Ryan! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted February 26, 2009 Author Share Posted February 26, 2009 Bored definitely wasn't the right term. That more accurately described the state of mind I was in at school when writing the TR. I should have said "No one else was interested in going (everyone else went to dinner that night), so I got stuck with Ryan." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gisco Posted February 26, 2009 Share Posted February 26, 2009 Bored definitely wasn't the right term. That more accurately described the state of mind I was in at school when writing the TR. I should have said "No one else was interested in going (everyone else went to dinner that night), so I got stuck with Ryan." Hey, we all got stuck babysitting. It was your turn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
65skylark Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 Awesome pictures Joey! Most sports are more fun to watch live, but none so much so a baseball. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebl Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 The U.S. could use more inflatable stuff for the 7th Inning Stretch in ballparks here. The one at Dodger Stadium would say, "Thank you for coiming...drive safely" because people start leaving then! This looked pretty cool, though. Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted February 28, 2009 Author Share Posted February 28, 2009 Here's the rest of the photos from the 2007 TPR Japan trip... For my second Japanese baseball experience, we (Dan, Jeff, and Non German Tom) went to the "world famous" Tokyo Dome. The Yomiuri Giants are like the Yankees of Japan (not to be confused with the Giants of MLB, who suck ass), so we were told to get our tickets in advance as all their games are sell outs. The stadium itself was pretty underwhelming...the coolest part was them deciding to open a side door for us while exiting, which being inside a pressurized building meant it felt like being shot out of canon (having not been to any of the air-supported dome in the U.S., this was a surprise)... If you are a baseball fan in Japan during the Japan League season, I highly recommend making time to check out a game. It's very different than MLB, with all the fans really into the game and the emphasis more on small ball/fundamentals. I used the website www.japanball.com to do research and buy tickets. Sticking with baseball, next up will be a Dodgers vs. Braves game from the Dugout Club seats. Here's a video of the visiting team (Hiroshima Carp) cheering section. Unlike sports in the U.S. the cheering sections were totally respectful of each other and didn't try to interrupt or anything. It was weird! The video was taken from my digital camera, so the audio quality sort of sucks. [coastertube]http://www.themeparkreview.com/coastertube/play.php?vid=MVI_9706_egs3[/coastertube] Now on to the photos... Random bonus photo: the exterior of the Nagoya Dome. Dan and I missed seeing a game here by about an hour. The bullpen area The scoreboard The best shot we could get of the view from behind home plate. They were worse than Dodger Stadium when it comes to being in places you don't belong... Random shot of the outfield Of all the teams to steal your name from, why did they have to pick THAT one? On the bright side, these Giants have actually bothered to win a few titles since 1954... (The home team cheering section was the entire right field bleacher section) The visitors cheering section This is the view $50 gets you Welcome to Tokyo Dome City, home of the Tokyo Dome and some roller coasters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisZer0 Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 Joey, excellent TR man, I dig the Japanese Baseball Fan, as they're loyal to their team, eventhough they win or lose...Unlike the MLB in the US, j-ball encourages the noisesticks and the rowdy fan. Just curious, did ya put away a bowl of noodles while ya watched the game?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted February 28, 2009 Author Share Posted February 28, 2009 ^Sure did! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisZer0 Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 ^^ Kosher I hope, as everything in ramen is either pork laden or has shellfish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wood Dragon 1988 Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 That bright green astroturf brought back good memories of 2002. I remember progressively getting more and more mad when stadiums riped that stuff out and put in various ugly shades of field turf. I'm used to the field turf now, but I still liked to watch pro baseball being played with bouncy-balls. I know the stuff sucks, but it is part of baseball history whether people like it or not. And it was just so.....bright and shinny! Anyway, great TR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
packfanlv Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 When we were in Tokyo, my wife son and I bought what we thought were seats for the Tokyo Giants game only to go inside of the dome to find out that we were stuck in the standing section in the back with about a thousand other people. It was just too hot and cramped in the back. I can't imagine spending a whole game there. Even though they have a no refunds policy, they were nice enough to give us our money back for the tickets, since the game hadn't even started yet. We also managed to warn a couple of American businessmen who were about to make the same mistake as us! Next time I will buy my tickets ahead of time. Thanks for the pictures Joey! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted February 28, 2009 Author Share Posted February 28, 2009 ^As I mentioned above, I highly recommend the website www.japanball.com for buying Japanese baseball tickets. I had read that Giants tickets were the hardest to come by, so I had no problem paying a little bit extra for the "service" fee to be guaranteed decent tickets delivered straight to our hotel. The guy was also real helpful in answering any questions I had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
packfanlv Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 ^Thanks for the advice. Our decision to visit was a last second thing, but I will definitely not show up there without tickets in hand next time. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted March 5, 2009 Author Share Posted March 5, 2009 Instead of paying attention in class, I am updating this thread.... Todays update is a Dodgers vs. Braves game from last season enjoyed from the Dugout club. If you are a baseball fan in L.A. with some cash to spare, I highly recommend using craigslist to score some Dugout club tickets for under face value. It's all you can eat and non-alcoholically drink, has a private lounge you can hang out in afterwards, offers the best seats in the house, and offers the opportunity to meet players as they are entering/exiting the clubhouse and dugouts before and after the game. The Critic is an awesome cartoon. The best pitching duo in the history of baseball. The absolute best part of the Dugout Club. Random gourmet food stations. There's also a lounge that stays open for about an hour after the game. Many visiting players choose to hang out here. The restaurant part of the Dugout Club. How could I not take this picture? Random action shot/view of rest of the field The view of home plate from our seats During batting practice, you can practically be on the field and meet any players that are willing to chat. I talked to Mark Texiera for a few minutes...nice guy. Too bad he's a Yankee now. This is how close you can get to the visitors dugout. The Dodgers are so fan friendly they don't let you get this close to the Dodgers dugout (because that means standing around Frank McCourt's seats in the dugout club), but I guess this is a good consolation prize. Some of you may remember that the Dodgers used to have a museum on the club level. They moved most of the cool stuff from that museum down to the dugout club. Including this thing. I really don't know what it is because it's been so long since the Dodgers have been close to winning one. And with McCourt in charge, that's not likely to change. =( Visiting players are not so lucky: they have to use the aforementioned hallway to get to their clubhouse. Brian McCann was awesome. Chipper Jones and most the other Braves? Not so much. James Loney was one of the players who chose to use that door. And actually stayed to talk to everyone and sign autographs. Unlike Mike Piazza, who blew me off as a kid outside the players parking lot before a game because "he was late" while his roommate at the time Eric Karros took time to talk and sign for me. Therefore, James Loney is my new favorite dodger. You enter the dugout club using the same hallway players can possibly use (they have an entrance on the other side too). How exciting. The field level was remodeled to look as bland as possible. Which sucks. This, however, does not. As much as I hate Frank McCourt, this is one of the better things he has done (after being shamed into doing it by the media, but whatever): people can now hang out in the outfield to catch battting practice balls and increase their chances at getting an autograph Dodger Stadium is now the 3rd oldest stadium in baseball. And that guys head totally ruined my picture. Oh well. Obligatory "NOTED" photo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebl Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 Nice report, Joey. One of the things I like about what's been done to Dodger Stadium is the return of its original pastel seat color pattern. That looks much better. Red seats don't belong at Dodger Stadium because red is the color of another Los Angeles team... I did get to visit Dodger Stadium last year for the first time since 1985. Hopefully I can get to a game this year, too, and I'd like to go to one down at the stadium where another Los Angeles team plays... Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisZer0 Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 Joey, John Freaking Lovitz..thats pretty kickass man...I also enjoyed the TR as well, pretty dang cool.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenA07 Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 Great pictures, I've never sat that close and would eventually love to put myself down in that section. Last season was actually the first year since the 1995 season that I didn't make it to at least one Dodger game. Hopefully that is not something that becomes a trend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeemerBoy Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 Great thread, Joey. That second shot (of Dodger Stadium), regardless of some guy's head, is a really nice one. Out of curiosity, what'd you have to fork over for that seat? And one more thing, I've heard countless reports from people in Georgia about Chipper being a prick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted March 5, 2009 Author Share Posted March 5, 2009 ^$350 for a pair of tickets+parking pass. Not bad considering the face value is $400/ticket. That's why craigslist is so awesome for tickets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Clinksalot Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 Cool stuff Joey. I SO want to do that sometime, just once is enough. And that's not bad for Dugout club considering I paid $150 for two "reserve" seats for the NLCS Game 3 last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeemerBoy Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 ^^ Thanks. Yeah, that's actually really good considering all that you got for it. I'm assuming the prices are a bit higher when the Cubs, Mets, etc. are in town though? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted March 6, 2009 Author Share Posted March 6, 2009 ^Yup. This was a Tuesday night game against the Braves. Prices for the "premium" game are usually go for pretty close to face value on craigslist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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