Author Archives: Nik Bronder

Coors Field: Rockies – Cubs.

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Yesterday on our last day in Colorado Julie and I went to Coors Field for the Rockies – Cubs game.  Neither of us have ever been to Colorado let alone a Rockies game so we made sure to get over to the stadium early and walk around.  There were huge lines at all the gates because of the bobblehead give-away so we decided to check out the Breckinridge Brewery** across the street before the game began.

The weather for the game couldn’t have been better with the temperature at about 70 degrees.  I of course ended up with my typical Spring sunburn.  The game was a back and forth offensive showing with the Rockies breaking a late game tie with 2 outs in the 8th inning.  From what I hear the Rockies have started off as one of the better teams in baseball going 12-3 for the first 3 weeks of the season.

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Side Notes:

* Year of Baseball Stats:
Game No. 2
Stadium Opened: April 26, 1995
Capacity: 50,445
Attendance: 42,212
Food: 1 Foot Long Hebrew National Hot Dog
Beer: 3 Coors Original
Opponent: Chicago Cubs
Pitchers: W: R. Betancourt, L: M. Mateo
Miles From Home: 918.94
Ticket Face Value: $26
Seat Location: Section 318, Row 4, Seat 7

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** Before the game we hung out at Breckinridge Brewing and I had two of the better IPA’s I’ve tasted in a long time:  the 471 IPA and the Lucky U IPA.  Also, the staff at Breckinridge were by far the most accommodating of all the places we visited.  To my surprise Julie had the Vanilla Porter which she enjoyed.

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*** Steven Tyler of Aerosmith is a big Rockies fan.

Boomer Esiason is sitting in front of me at Coors Field -

**** I sat directly behind Boomer Esiason.

Nassau Coliseum: Islanders – Penguins.

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After spending the afternoon at Citi Field, Julie and I headed out to Long Island for the much anticipated Penguins – Islanders game.  We made pretty decent time and were at Nassau Coliseum in time for the National Anthem.  To say our seats were good is an understatement.  The last time we went out the the Coliseum we were probably closer to the glass but not quite center ice and we but this time were were and we were five rows back from the Penguins bench. Best seats I’ve ever had at a sporting event.  The Pens won in the shootout 3-2.

The game started off well with the Penguins taking an early lead and then the fighting began.

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Fights
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The face off right after Mike Rupp’s goal led to a Trevor Gillies – Eric Goddard fight.  Which is great since these are the two who were suspended from the last game for more than 10 games each.  The Islanders fans wear clearly pleased as if some how this was going to swing the game.  It did not and Goddard more than held his own.

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Later in the period Aaron Asham took on Zenon Konopka.

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Spotted on TV

Julie and I got a couple of texts halfway through he second period that we were spotted on TV. I find it pretty amusing that people from three different cities were by chance watching a regional hockey game and spotted us for the 10 seconds were were on the camera. Hilarious.

Shootout

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Marc-Andre Fleury shutdown the Islanders during the shootout and Cris Kunitz was the only Pen to score. It was great to walk away with the victory.

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Side Note:

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* The View From My Seat.
** Blue Point Brewery had a beer stand right outside our section and it was glorious. Toasted Lager… can’t go wrong.
*** The rest of my photographs are here on Flickr.

Mets 2011 Home Opener.

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To kick off my Year of Baseball* Julie and I headed to New York on Friday for the Mets home opener at Citi Field. We got to the stadium a couple hours before gates opened so we could take in the scenery*** and hang out at the stadium bar so we were sure to get a bobble head. The game didn’t really turn out the way we would have wanted with the Nationals winning 6-2., I’ve yet to see a win at Citi Field but I always enjoy the food.

Julie and I actually kept score this time using the Eephus League Official Scorebook which was not nearly as complicated as I expected.

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Side Notes:

* Year of Baseball Stats:
Game No. 1
Stadium Opened: March 29, 2009
Capacity:  41,800
Attendance:  41,075
Food:  Cheese Burger from Shake Shack, Fried Chicken Leg from Blue Smoke,
Beer:  1 Brooklyn Lager, 1 Miller Lite, 3 Budweiser,
Opponent: Washington Nationals
Pitchers: W: J. Zimmermann, L: R. Dickey
Miles From Home: 711.47
Ticket Face Value: $49
Seat Location: Section 424, Row 6, Seat 12

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** The majority of these photographs were taken by Julie and the full set can be found at chicagometsfan.com.

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*** If you’ve never been to Citi Field (or Shea Stadium for that matter) you’re truly missing the ambiance of Flushing, NY.  The street that surrounds the stadium along the outfield is just a series of chop shops.  It’s truly a site to see.

Citi Field home opener: Mets - Nationals - View From My Seat -

**** The View From My Seat.

***** Previous Mets home opener at Shea Stadium back in 2007.