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Published: August 6th 2007
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The Annual Sister Picture
Couldn't take it on the field this year though :( Although I do get to take a number of exotic trips, I've found that there are still a lot of exciting things to do much closer to home. And so you can see how great the Garden State is, I'll make sure to blog about any special events right here in NJ (at least those that I'm attending!).
On Saturday, I headed to Giants' Stadium for my third annual draft party. Now, you may say, if you're not a follower of college football and the draft, "So what?" I'm not into the draft myself, but it's definitely a fun day. When else can you wander around a football stadium with almost no restrictions for $25?
After spending a short while on line just outside the stadium, we headed in through Gate D. I felt like a latecomer arriving at ten thirty, for the eleven am party. After all, the hardcore people were there much earlier for the annual 5k run, which my sister and I promise each other that we'll do every year. Yeah, so that hasn't happened yet. Next year, I swear! And of course, what good would a football-related event be without tailgating? I've never tailgated myself
(I've only ever been to two professional football games and it's not as though tailgating is that popular with hockey fans), so this is not really my scene. But people were hanging out in their cars, drinking and eating already at ten thirty. They had their day SET.
So anyway, although we certainly were not the first people there, we got inside relatively quickly. The first thing you want to do is get on line for autographs. Otherwise, you'll probably be there all day, which is only useful if you plan to stay to see the Giants' draft pick, or particularly enjoy waiting in line doing nothing. This year, they finally gave us a schedule of who would be appearing, and we learned that Brandon Jacobs (aka the next Tiki Barber), would be appearing first in the stadium club. Good stuff. I had at least heard of Brandon, so I was happy to be on line for his autograph. Usually, I have no idea who we're waiting for, and the autographs remain sitting in my "to save" folder (and truthfully, that's what happened this year too, but at least I know who Brandon Jacobs is!). We waited in line
for an hour, but the pleasant weather outside made it a manageable wait. The first year my sister and I went, we waited on line for two and a half hours - and only because we didn't have a full understanding of how long the line was until we'd already been waiting for over an hour, and by that time, we were in it for the long haul. That year, they had most of the players autographing at the same time, so you would get four autographs at a time (good, true, but not worth the wait by any means). Shaun O'Hara (for those of you football fans out there, he's the very talented Giants' center) was there, but I didn't know who he was at the time either. He was very excited to ask me what high school I was attending. Yes, I was 25 at the time. I explained I wasn't in high school, and after we went through the fact that I was also not in college anymore, I think he was thoroughly confused. But the whole episode tickled me. This looking young for my age thing will come in handy in the next couple of years!
Finally, we arrived at the autograph table. Brandon was first, and I learned later that my sister actually told him that he would need to work hard to be the next Tiki Barber because the Giants' need his help. She's hilarious. We also met Charles Way, a retired Giants' player who was super nice to everyone waiting in line.
Then, since the waiting was over, we needed a new plan.
We decided to go to the "bubble" to get some food. For those of you unfamiliar with the layout of Giants' stadium, the "bubble" is just as it sounds, a large grey dome that houses the Giants' practice field, and on draft day, serves as the main location for those watching the draft, and where all the food is located, as well as where the kids can practice their football skills. As soon as we arrived, we realized we had been followed by Brandon Jacobs and Charles Way, who were going to be doing live radio interviews from inside the bubble with WFAN. A crowd gathered to see them again, including us, but we soon lost interest and wandered off to eat some lunch. I had a
healthy meal of a soft pretzel and a brownie, along with my staple, Pepsi. Two more football players came in to give their radio interviews, and suddenly there was a commotion over by the platform. One of the earlybirds, who had been pre-gaming out in the parking lot, had gotten a hold of the question microphone and was giving a diatribe about the great state of NJ. We continued to see him throughout the afternoon, including right as I left when he was standing at his car - luckily only having another drink and getting ready to drive anywhere!
Following our lunch, we decided to head to the locker room - the field was inaccessible this year because of repairs, which was too bad. If nothing else, I have to say that walking out on to the field and looking up into the stands is a pretty cool experience, even for a non-fan. The locker rooms are pretty cool too. Miraculously, there was no line this year to get inside. My sister was mostly looking to determine whether the team had put up a plaque for Tiki (they hadn't) but we also got a kick out of seeing everyone's
personal items, and mail, or lack thereof. RW McQuarters is seriously into his personal products, and has a TON of them - at least twice as much as any other player. And Brandon Jacobs has a lot of pictures of his baby, which was very sweet to see. We also saw that Jeremy Shockey was showing his pride in the US military, with some of the various things he's been involved with - yay Jeremy! That was the extent of the excitement in there - the first year, we heard someone in the shower! Well, this year, we did notice that the Giants have yoga on Thursday mornings. And I say, good for them!
Next, it was on to the press box. My nemesis.
But it's not for the reasons you would think - I have nothing against sports writers, and in fact, had friends who were sports writers in college. No, the problem is that it's higher than all of the seats in the stadium. And once, only once, have I climbed into the third tier at Giants' stadium and it scared the crap out of me. But I was willing to give it another shot. We took an elevator up to the top which looked to the outside (ah, how I love those elevators), and this was the most difficult part for me. I desperately hate stepping over the gap between the elevator and the building - just makes me nervous! But once I was in, it wasn't too bad - I was surprised. I could even walk close to the windows and it didn't feel too high. I'm not sure if it was because it was enclosed, or because I'm getting over the fear by going to much taller places. It will remain to be seen!
After visiting the press box, we had exhausted our options for the party. We took a break by the large blow up Giant outside and enjoyed some sun before it was time to head home. Since the Giants had a low pick in the draft, we didn't want to stick around - and since most of us weren't particularly drawn to being there for that reason anyway, it was a good decision. The only time I have been there for a pick was the year that the Giants traded to get Eli Manning. Despite reports that his acquisition was met with cheers, for those of us in line for autographs in the bar, there was nothing but booing. With the draft taking place in NYC, Eli was able to head right out to the arena, and I was certainly glad that we had left by then!
All in all, an enjoyable afternoon once again, and a definite recommendation for anyone looking for something to do at the end of April in New Jersey!
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