By dumb and completely undeserved luck, I found myself in the third row for the Minnesota Vikings regular season opener at the brand-spanking-new U.S. Bank Stadium back in September.
This was years ahead of when I thought I would get into the billion-dollar behemoth, because my desire to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars on tickets to a sporting event in which I will still be hundreds and hundreds of feet away from the field is not very high.
But hey, these Vikings tickets were free and I couldn't say no, I had to be there for the spectacle. If you now hate me for coming into them, I don't blame you, and I will gladly join you in those feelings, at least until the hate turns violent, then I'm out.
The only other chance I thought I may have of getting into The Bank before the turn of the new decade was baseball. See, the Vikings old home, the Metrodome, hosted nearly 300 collegiate and high school games per year, of which I played in a few myself as a member of Minneapolis South High School and Augsburg College's baseball teams during my time as a student-athlete.
My post-athlete career (there should be big, strikeout filled quotes around the athlete part) led me back to the Metrodome a few times to do public address, broadcast, and even security jobs (we'll save that story for another blog), and I figured 'you know what, this is the replacement for The Dome, so could they host...might they bring back...??? And then might I be able to slide my way into a gig there?!'
I thought I was pretty sly.
Lo and behold, in just the first year of the stadium's existence, The Bank is housing almost the exact same amount of baseball games the Metrodome did. This is vitally important for high school and college teams that can't afford spring trips or are trying to get in some action before they do go out of state for their non-conference spring training, because, as you may be aware, it can be kind of cold here pretty late into the calendar year, and as you also may be aware, there was no indoor facility in the state large enough to host baseball after the Metrodome was torn down, leaving pre-April games a sparse local opportunity.
So part one of the two-part hope came to fruition; indoor baseball was a thing again in Minnesota, and lo and behold (again!), part two didn't work out too badly either, as just two days into the new Vikings home being open to the diamond dwellers of spring and summer, I found myself there to broadcast my alma mater, Augsburg, in their season-opening games against Jamestown:
Taking a bit of inventory after the game, I realized I've worked gameday in a broadcasting or production role at every major sports venue in the state aside from Target Center. I know, I know, good for me, right? You are SO thrilled. Oh, and I promise I'll try to pop my shoulder back into place after dislocating it patting myself on the back for my work.
But in all seriousness, to be able to be in these types of venues alongside the people that have taken me with them for the broadcasts we have done is a true honor, and a heck of an experience.
Also, a big commendation to the people that planned, and transformed, this colossal funhouse into a baseball-ready facility. It ended up looking a lot like the Metrodome on the inside, except everything is purple instead of blue, but that's a good thing because it means it is ready for the workload. Well done folks, and anyone that hasn't had the chance to check it out, head down there, it's an awesome and cheap way to get in the doors for a place that would otherwise gouge your pocketbook to enter.
I know that's how I would have gotten in had I not been third row at the Vikings regular season...
Sorry, I'll stop bringing it up.