Travel Diary

Sunday

On Sunday, I got to sleep in for a while. Then it was decision time.

Part of the reason to visit Seattle was to visit friends and perhaps see the Seattle/San Francisco NFL game. It was a Sunday night game but I wasn't worried since I was not getting up at 4am for an early flight. Still, we had to decide to see it live, or on TV. Now, the stadium is easy to reach from town where parking would not be an issue. The main question was how cheap the tickets would be. So, I spent an hour or so refreshing the Stub Hub page to see how low the cost of seats would reach. I think the finally low point was about $248 per ticket--and that was down from $300 earlier in the week. They were nose-bleed seats, but in the center, covered area (this would matter!) and I bought them.

A while later, we were heading to Century Link Stadium for some NFL football.

On the streets, people were all attired in Seattle gear, but there were many 49er fans scattered about. Sure, there was taunting and jeers and cheers, but overall, people there aren't ready to slice anyone's throat for wearing the other team's colors.

The rules of the NFL are changing and one change is what can, or rather, what can NOT be brought into a game. It's almost as bad as pre-flight scans now. The web site didn't say anything about large digital cameras (DSLRs), but I wasn't sure. In the end, I played it safe and did not bring my camera.

Well, lucky thing because it would not have been allowed. Then we would have been in quite a jam.

Once inside, I got my ritualistic ballpark, overpriced beer and we found our seats. While we weren't in the clouds, I got the feeling that they weren't not too much higher in the air. But we had binoculars, and that's vital so far up. Without them, the games basically look like 1980s video football games. “Is that blue and yellow dot the quarterback?” “No, that's a cheerleader.” “Ah.”

Bear in mind that this wasn't just any game. It was between division rivals competing for essentially first place. The winner would have a large advantage later. It was also a game where the noise record would be broken at the NFL's loudest stadium (at the game). So a record-keeper from Guinness (the recording company, not the beer one) was there to record decibels.

And the decibels came. Those people were LOUD.

And they sounded loud even with earplugs in. Those without earplugs just baffle me. It just seems ludicrous to risk future hearing for no good reason. It's like someone saying to someone, “Don't stare at the sun because you're risking your sight,” and then that person says, “Well, it's for a fun cause,” and proceeds to look into the sun. Suum cuique.

I decided my future hearing was more important than listening to crowd noise. Heck, one can still make a lot of noise just the same. Although, why would Terry and I want to make a lot of sound? We were rooting for the 49ers. That said, when tens of thousands of people are yelling, screaming, and cheering, you eventually end up cheering with them. When in Rome. Viva la revolution. That sort of thing.

It was a tough game to watch though. The 49ers were essentially dismantled and their offense and defense crumbled quickly. Perhaps it was partially due to the noise, but they were outplayed by the end of the first quarter and throughout the rest of the game.

We did get a long break in the action though. The heavy rain (Seattle gets a lot of rain--just in case you were wondering) just kept coming down and when the lightning came, they put the game on hold. I never know if they're protecting the fans or players, but either way, we had to wait out the brunt of the storm. That's when it pays to be in the cheap seats. The pricey seats are not covered, but the upper sections have a nice overhang to keep everyone dry. This helps a lot during those games.

Finally, the game resumed--to more of the 49er's demise. By the fourth quarter, it was clear that no comeback was on the horizon. We left early to beat the crowd.

And fell into the crowd that was leaving early to beat the crowd. But still, it wasn't as bad as last year. Getting back to the main streets only took about 15 minutes.

It was a disappointing showing by the 49ers, but the event was still great to be a part of. I don't know if I want to spend $250 for tickets again, but once was fun. Back at home, we all had some food and watched a an unforgettable movie. Can't remember what it was.