Game 13 of 122

Game 13 of 122

Washington Capitals at The Verizon Center (vs New Jersey Devils):

As a Pittsburgh Penguins fan, I’m not supposed to like the Washington Capitals as the Pens / Caps has become a huge rivalry and each team boasts league superstars (Sidney Crosby for the Pens and Alex Ovechkin for the Caps – no contest from my point of view – Sid the Kid is the man), but when we lived in the DC area, we went to a lot of Caps games and kind of became fans, but only when they are not playing the Penguins.

He is no Sid the Kid

As part of our holiday visit with Deb’s family (read more about it in the Ravens blog), we snuck in a Capitals’ game with Deb’s cousin Heather and her husband Danny.

Heather and Danny

I didn’t get any pictures of the outside of the building because we simply took the Metro (subway) to the game, which stops right under the Verizon Center.  I was able to get some pretty good seats off of Stubhub for the four of us – behind the goal the Caps shoot at two of three periods during the game.

View from seats.

The Capitals won a blowout, 5-1. 

The Verizon Center is extremely convenient to get to and I will be back again sometime in the future as it is the same arena where the Washington Wizards play (I thought about trying to get in a Wizards game while I was there, but that seemed a bit much with everything else going on for the holidays).  I mentioned in my Penguin’s blog about how loud the Constellation Energy Arenas was.  Compared to that, this game was very quite; however, someone mentioned to me that it might be due to the fact that we were sitting so high at the Pens game and the sound bounces off the ceiling and feels much louder….I’m not an engineer, but that kind of makes sense.

I cheered for the Capitals while at the game, but refused to participate in the “we want Pittsburgh” chant toward the end of the game.  I did mention to Deb that maybe they should be careful what they wish for…..as it turns out, two nights later the Pens beat the Capitals – HA HA…Merry Christmas!  They will meet again on New Year’s Day in the Winter Classic – outdoor game being hosted at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh this time.

All in all, a very eventful trip and two more games checked off the list.  This ends my 2010 season with 13 games completed and $230 donated for cancer research (1 point for every point scored).  As of now, I have nothing official on the schedule, but am always looking for suggestions, company and places to go. 

Record:  8-5.  I have now seen 4 wins in a row by the home team.

Official Box Score of the Game

To learn about my fund-raising efforts, visit:  http://www.firstgiving.com/christopherapel

Game 12 of 122

Game 12 of 122

Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium (vs New Orleans Saints):

The weekend before Christmas, the family traveled to Maryland to visit Deb’s sister’s family and her parents.  In four days, we managed to pack in a lot of activities, including a Baltimore Raven’s game, trip to Colonial Williamsburg to visit Deb’s 97 year-old grandmother, visit to the Smithsonian’s Air & Space museum with Deb’s parents and nieces, and a Washington Capitals game (click for more on that game) with Deb’s cousin and husband.

We were lucky enough to be able to watch the Raven’s game from a private suite, compliments of my brother-in-law, Jeremy.  I attended the game with Deb, her sister Karen, Jeremy and about 20 others in the suite.  I also attended the Baltimore Orioles game with Jeremy back in May to kick off my sports tour.  This was not my first Raven’s game, but the first time it counts toward my goal and the seats were much nicer than the last time I was there.

Inside the suite.

Jeremy and Karen

This game provided me the opportunity to watch my 2^nd favorite NFL team (next to the Steelers of course) – anyone playing the Baltimore Ravens.  Their opponent for this game was the New Orleans Saints – current Super Bowl champs – and many people think this matchup was a preview of this year’s Super Bowl….let’s hope not. 

I had mentioned in a previous blog how easy it is to start cheering for the home team; but, there is no part of me that will ever cheer for the Ravens.  However, surrounded by Ravens’ fans, I only quietly cheered for the Saints.  I thought it might be a little disrespectful to cheer against the favorite team of the folks that provided us with such great seats, plus I preferred not to get in a fight.

Ray Lewis pregame dance - ridiculous!

For the Ravens (and the Steelers), this was a very import game and one that could end up determining the AFC North Champion.  Unfortunately for Steelers fans, the Ravens won a great game (and the Steelers lost later that day).  It was a well played game that came down to the last few minutes, but I left disappointed with the Raven’s 30-24 victory.

View from seats - purple everywhere!

The ballpark has way too much purple for me, but is a very good venue for watching a game.  The weather was warm enough that we sat outside the suite the entire game and enjoyed the action from our seats, which offered great views of the field (we didn’t even need to watch the three TVs provided).  As for the food, no trip to Maryland is complete without eating some crab cakes, which were delicious in the suite.

Thanks Jeremy for the opportunity to attend the game, but I still hate the Ravens.

Record:  7-5, but this is one game I would have preferred the home team lost.

Official Box Score of the Game

To learn about my fund-raising efforts, visit:  http://www.firstgiving.com/christopherapel

Raising Money

I've mentioned in my first posting (http://apeltour.blogspot.com/2010/09/purpose-of-this-project-goal.html) that my mission is to raise money for cancer research through the Jimmy V foundation.  Unfortunately various family members have battled cancer over a period of many years, including my father, uncle and mother-in-law.  All of them have beaten cancer as a result of improvements in treatment, better detection methods and the prayers of others.  I truly believe one day we will find a cure and the money donated will pave the way to make that happen. 

Recently my uncle was diagnosed with brain cancer and will begin battling cancer for the 2nd time.  You can follow his progress at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/winapel.  This recent development only brings to light how quickly lives can change as a result of cancer and the impact it can have on the individual, family members and friends.  We welcome your thoughts and prayers.

My mission is to simply raise awareness and to do my small part to someday find a cure.

Money can be donated at:  http://www.firstgiving.com/christopherapel

Jimmy V Week

This week, ESPN remembers the life of coach Jim Valvano and continues to promote the mission of his foundation to support and fund cancer research.

I'm sure all of our lives have been impacted in some way by this disease and I encourage all of us to consider a donation.  For more details, go to http://www.jimmyv.org/about-us.html.  Donations can be made directly from the Jimmy V Foundation website.

However, if you do feel the need to donate, I would appreciate it if you used the following link below to make your donation as part of my overall efforts to raise money for cancer research.

http://www.firstgiving.com/christopherapel

To read more about my mission to support the Jimmy V Foundation, go to http://apeltour.blogspot.com/

Thanks,
Chris