This post originally appeared in my Blotch blog at the Fort Worth Weekly. To read it on the Weekly's site, go here : http://www.fwweekly.com/2015/06/23/sports-stuff-you-should-do/. I wrote it to appeal to those in Fort Worth-Dallas, but the tips will enhance anyone's sporting life.
You look to this space for sports insight. Today, we’ve decided to offer information you can use to enhance your sports life. Herein lies a bevy of experiences anyone would enjoy.
Sit on the Glass at a Pro Hockey Game
OK, I don’t mean actually “on” the glass. One slip and all the king’s horses and all the king’s men would have no chance of reassembling you. We use the term “on the glass” to mean seats next to the plexiglass mounted on the dasher boards that surround the ice. In other words, you can get no closer to the game unless you’re a player, official, or rogue Ice Girl. Now, I don’t consider these seats the best in the house. It’s often hard to see what’s happening at the other end of the rink and you may have to crane your neck to see replays. But the first time some hulking power forward finishes a check in your face, you’ll agree that you really needed to do this at least once in your life. These seats lean toward the expensive side of the ledger, so you’ll need to raid the piggy bank or do unsavory favors for the right people. Luckily you have both NHL and minor league hockey options in North Texas.
OK, I don’t mean actually “on” the glass. One slip and all the king’s horses and all the king’s men would have no chance of reassembling you. We use the term “on the glass” to mean seats next to the plexiglass mounted on the dasher boards that surround the ice. In other words, you can get no closer to the game unless you’re a player, official, or rogue Ice Girl. Now, I don’t consider these seats the best in the house. It’s often hard to see what’s happening at the other end of the rink and you may have to crane your neck to see replays. But the first time some hulking power forward finishes a check in your face, you’ll agree that you really needed to do this at least once in your life. These seats lean toward the expensive side of the ledger, so you’ll need to raid the piggy bank or do unsavory favors for the right people. Luckily you have both NHL and minor league hockey options in North Texas.
Go to a Sports Bar at an Off-Peak Time
We all think to meet buddies at a sports bar for the big game, but libations and bar food go well with multiple big screens in the middle of the afternoon, too. Thanks to the proliferation of sports channels and availability of international programming, you can almost always find one or more live games on the tube(s) no matter what time you stroll in. You get your drinks quickly and usually have your choice of where to sit. The next time you call in sick because you’re ticked off at the boss, don’t stay at home. Enjoy your holiday with some day baseball, Europa League soccer, or early-round LPGA golf.
We all think to meet buddies at a sports bar for the big game, but libations and bar food go well with multiple big screens in the middle of the afternoon, too. Thanks to the proliferation of sports channels and availability of international programming, you can almost always find one or more live games on the tube(s) no matter what time you stroll in. You get your drinks quickly and usually have your choice of where to sit. The next time you call in sick because you’re ticked off at the boss, don’t stay at home. Enjoy your holiday with some day baseball, Europa League soccer, or early-round LPGA golf.
Read One (or Two) Book(s) About the Fort Worth Cats
If you live in Fort Worth and you like sports, you should know about the legendary Fort Worth Cats baseball team. The revived Cats franchise made a real effort to celebrate its history, but with them regrettably out of the picture now, you’ll need another source to learn about the team that dominated the Texas League in the 1920s and employed the likes of Duke Snider and Maury Wills in the 1950s. Luckily two informative books exist on the subject:
If you live in Fort Worth and you like sports, you should know about the legendary Fort Worth Cats baseball team. The revived Cats franchise made a real effort to celebrate its history, but with them regrettably out of the picture now, you’ll need another source to learn about the team that dominated the Texas League in the 1920s and employed the likes of Duke Snider and Maury Wills in the 1950s. Luckily two informative books exist on the subject:
When Panthers Roared: The Fort Worth Cats and Minor League Baseball by Jeff Guinn and Bobby Bragan
Baseball in Fort Worth by Mark Presswood and J. Chris Holaday
Attend a Rugby Match
You may not know the rules. In fact, if you fake it and tell someone you know the rules, you’ll give yourself away because they call them “laws.” It doesn’t matter. Go and watch people run and hit each other and then enjoy the socializing afterward. The rugby culture encourages players who just beat the heck out of each other to share fellowship and a cold (or at least room-temperature) beverage after the match. I’m not sure any other sport duplicates that rugby ethos.
You may not know the rules. In fact, if you fake it and tell someone you know the rules, you’ll give yourself away because they call them “laws.” It doesn’t matter. Go and watch people run and hit each other and then enjoy the socializing afterward. The rugby culture encourages players who just beat the heck out of each other to share fellowship and a cold (or at least room-temperature) beverage after the match. I’m not sure any other sport duplicates that rugby ethos.
Find Your Tennis Racquet
Go hit a few balls around, even off a backboard or the walls of a nearby church (watch the stained glass windows) or office building. You need some exercise and the U.S. needs you to discover a hidden talent so someone can win Grand Slam tournaments when Serena retires.
Go hit a few balls around, even off a backboard or the walls of a nearby church (watch the stained glass windows) or office building. You need some exercise and the U.S. needs you to discover a hidden talent so someone can win Grand Slam tournaments when Serena retires.
Go See Some Sporting Event at AT&T StadiumLook, it doesn’t have to be a Cowboys game, but it does need to be an event where they turn on the video screen. That TV is just enormous and it’s big and, um, it’s really, really big. You need to see it.
Eat Some Crazy Food
Sports venues have added all sorts of Kong-sized creations to their menus and you should try one. I’m not saying you have to finish a 2-foot-long chili cheese dog by yourself (although I promise I would still respect you afterward). Split it with your girlfriend or boyfriend or both. At all costs, make sure you get a selfie proving your gastronomic moxie.
Sports venues have added all sorts of Kong-sized creations to their menus and you should try one. I’m not saying you have to finish a 2-foot-long chili cheese dog by yourself (although I promise I would still respect you afterward). Split it with your girlfriend or boyfriend or both. At all costs, make sure you get a selfie proving your gastronomic moxie.
Develop a Superstition
I once created a whole ad campaign based on how fun it is to participate in this activity. If your team has won five in a row, something you’ve done may well have fueled the streak. Figure out what seemingly mundane act has pleased the sports gods and continue to do it until the luck has seeped out of it. Eat corn dogs for every meal, wear the ballcap to prom, re-enact the same one-night stand no matter what he looked like the next morning –– do whatever it takes. We’re counting on you.
I once created a whole ad campaign based on how fun it is to participate in this activity. If your team has won five in a row, something you’ve done may well have fueled the streak. Figure out what seemingly mundane act has pleased the sports gods and continue to do it until the luck has seeped out of it. Eat corn dogs for every meal, wear the ballcap to prom, re-enact the same one-night stand no matter what he looked like the next morning –– do whatever it takes. We’re counting on you.
You can accomplish all of these feats within the area. Feel free to suggest your own in the comments section or on social media. Please restrict your recommendations to activities that are either legal or totally worth the minimum sentence.
Rush Olson has spent two decades
directing creative efforts for sports teams and broadcasters. He currently
creates ad campaigns and related creative projects for sports entities through
his company, Rush Olson Creative & Sports.
RushOlson.com
Linkedin.com/company/rush-olson-creative-&-sports
Facebook.com/RushOlsonCreativeandSports
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