Games 19 & 20 - Denver

It was Spring Break in Louisville and Deb decided to take the kids to Rochester, NY for the week to visit her parents.  I know - Rochester, NY and Spring Break - I did just use those two phrases in the same sentence.  Nonetheless, I figured that since I was already driving them to the airport and would be alone for the weekend, I should find somewhere to go for a few games.  After carefully studying the schedules, I decided on Denver, CO.  A college buddy of mine (Raleigh Peters) lived in Denver so I sent him a note saying that I would be in town, but had yet to book a hotel or get tickets for any games.  As it turns out, he was kind enough to allow me to stay at his house and he already had tickets to a Rockies game on Saturday night.  Perfect!

 After watching Deb and the kids board their plane, I headed off to Denver a few minutes later.  I was shocked at the weather in Colorado - 84 degrees and sunny.  Coors Field (yes, we did have some Coors Light beer - I figured it was a must) is a very nice venue and if you sit on the 1st base side, you can actually see the real Rockies.  If you are wondering why I am wearing a Kentucky shirt in this picture, they were playing in the Final Four that night, but lost to UConn by 1....long story, but I blamed Raleigh.

Mile-high seats (purple row)

Obviously in the mile high thin air, the ball travels further; therefore, the dimensions of the ball park are very large.  There is a row of purple seats in the upper deck that mark exactly 5,280 (one mile) above sea level.  It truly is a beautiful ball park.  One of the unique features is a water fountain in the outfield.  Unfortunately I did not get any pictures of it because they turn it off for the games....I imagine it is a rather significant distraction to the batter.

The weather was perfect and we attended the game in short-sleeve shirts, not bad for a early April game in Colorado.  Raleigh provided the seats....12th row down the 3rd base line.  One thing I don't understand is why a ballpark designed for baseball only still does not angle the seats to face home plate.  Don't get me wrong, the seats were great, but you had to turn your head to the right to watch each pitch.  As Raleigh noted, it is kind of like stepping up to a tee-box that aligns you out of bounds.  Of course it is the beginning of the season so fans are extremely excited about a new season and a lot of experts predict the Rockies could win the division.  There was one incredible diving catch just in front of us that did make ESPN Top 10 plays of the day.  The Rockies beat the Diamondbacks 3-1.

Official box score of the game.

What a dramatic change in weather Sunday turned out to be.  From 80s and sunny to 30s and snowy....it was a good thing that we went to the baseball game on Saturday night because the Sunday game was actually snowed out.  Sunday afternoon we traveled just outside Denver to Red Rocks Amphitheatre, which I highly recommend seeing in person.  My pictures do not do it justice.  What an incredible setting for a concert. 


Sunday night, Raleigh was kind enough to lend me his car so that I could attend the Colorado Avalanche game.  This was the first game I have attended by myself, but with 122 games on the schedule, it was sure to happen at some point.  Personally, I'm shocked I made it through 19 games without going by myself.  I still had a great time at the Pepsi Center (home of both the Avalanche and Nuggets, who I will have to see at a later date).  I was impressed with the facility, especially the large concourses in the lower level so that there is a lot of room to move around without feeling crowded.  The technology, especially for the overhead and side scoreboards does seem a bit outdated, but other than that, a great venue for a hockey game.

I spent a good portion of my time in the 2nd period checking out the views from other seats.  Although the Avalanche are well out of the playoff hunt, the turnout for the game was very good, but I did manage to find an empty seat in the upper deck just to see what it was like.  I also had a little fun getting my picture taken (as you can see above).  It was a very intense game with a lot of action, but little scoring.  The Calgary Flames ended up winning 2-1, but not without some drama as the Avalanche scored with 5 minutes to go, but couldn't tie it up late in the game with an empty net.

Official box score of the game.

Record of home games of the teams I have seen play:  12-8.  As of now, I do not have anything on the schedule.  If anyone is interested in a game, please let me know.  I am particularly looking for NBA games because although I am ahead of my 15 year schedule, I could use a few more basketball games.

 

Thanks Raleigh (and Laura).

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