Denver, again

I got into Denver a week ago. When I landed at DIA, it was almost 80 degrees. On Sunday, I woke up to a significant snowfall - a couple inches of white carpet on the ground. It stuck, covered lawns - not just a few flakes dusting the ground. Most of the snow melted during the afternoon, but there was still a pile on the edges of Mile High during the Broncos game. There was even a brief moment late in the game when a few more flakes started to fall, which gave some energy to the crowd (even though it'd warmed up during the day, it was a cold night).

Ever since, it's been in the 60s or 70s. No winter trip here, although the snow was a nice taste of what I'm not going to get in D.C., where I'm told the winters tend to be cold, wet and gray rather than colder, crisp and snow-filled.

Not that I've taken advantage of the weather. Monday and Tuesday were spent staring at computer screens trying to get World Series tickets for the games this weekend, which turned into an exercise in frustration. So no tickets for me, unless something completely unforeseen happens. However, I will be making my way into downtown Denver to see some of the craziness and hopefully see at least one Rockies win before heading back to D.C.

Denver

I left the friendly confines of D.C. this weekend, heading west to Denver.

Originally, the trip was to see friends and go to the Broncos game Sunday night (which turned out to be a good choice; the Broncos pulled out a last-minute win). But since the Rockies made the World Series, I extended the trip to stay in Denver for the games.

This morning, the World Series tix went on sale. Or were supposed to. The online-only sales were completely ineffective as the servers were jammed. A few hours ago the team announced they were suspending sales (after they reportedly sold just a few hundred of the nearly 60,000 available today) and will restart sales "later."

I didn't hold out much hope to get tickets regardless; I just wanted to be in the city while the games were going on. But I can't decide if this helps or hurts my chances - since I've got nothing to do but sit at the computer all week, I've got more flexibility to deal with these online problems than most. So perhaps I'll get Series tickets after all.

Coors Field

In honor of the Rockies' World Series run, another in my intermittent series:

I don't remember the first time I saw a game at Coors Field. I'd guess it was in spring of 1998, or possibly the year before. I'd guess I've probably been to more games in Coors than anywhere except the old Busch Stadium, since I tended to stop in Denver on my way back and forth between home and school when I was in college.

I know for sure I was in Coors for the
1998 All-Star game and Home Run Derby. We sat in the very top row deep above right field for the All Star game. I don't remember much about the game itself. I do remember a few moments from the Derby - Mark McGuire hitting a ball 500 feet off the front of the Rockpile center-field bleachers, Ken Griffey Jr. coming out after he'd announced he wouldn't be competing, a few Jim Thome home runs landing just one section away from us.

Coors gained notoriety for the thin air and home runs (and now the humidor) but the stadium itself doesn't get enough mention.

Sure, it's just one more of the retro-wave parks (and when I was in Cleveland, Jacobs Field seemed to be a near-exact copy, with a white stone exterior instead of brick). But Coors has character and a sense of place.

The stadium's location was near-perfect. It sits on the edge of downtown. A walk to the park is through LoDo (lower downtown) amid bars, lofts and a crowd of fans. But being on the edge of downtown (behind the park are railroad tracks and the interstate) means the large parking lots behind and below the stadium don't break up the landscape.

The best touch, however, was the decision not to add upper decks above the left field seating, giving a clear view of the Rockies past the scoreboard. The row of purple seats in the upper decks, marking one mile above sea level, are a nice touch as well.

The stadium is spacious and clean, without an over-abundant feeling of shiny, plastic surfaces you can get with some of the newest parks. And I've heard tell you can pick up some Rocky Mountain Oysters if you look hard enough, although I've never found the particular concession stand.

Until the last month or so, the Rockies have rarely been a team which seemed destined for greatness, although they were rarely completely lousy. The consistent mediocraty brought the crowds down from the record highs of the first few years, but the crowd at the games is generally knowledgeable and quick to cheer. I'm sure the atmosphere this weekend will be electric (although if Colorado drops Game 3 it'll be a pretty fatalistic crowd on Sunday). I'd like to be among the throngs inside, but if I have to make do with being part of the throngs outside it won't be so bad.

working

Obviously, I've gotten out of the habit of posting. My apologies to anyone who might care.

I haven't left the District in a while or gone anywhere particularly interesting. I have, however, actually earned a very small amount of cash the past two weeks, thanks to some work with the AP and one with the Washington Post.

Not that they're high-status gigs. They're stuff like this. But it beats not making any money, I suppose. And we'll see if I can build it up.