Observations of a trip to the LA Coliseum for a USC football game:
Avoiding the traffic by taking the public bus, minimum $25 parking far from the stadium that increases in price as you get closer to the stadium, half drunk youth outside the stadium, crowds dressed in burnt blood red, guy in front standing up hollering as if would affect the opposition, incessant playing of the Trojan fight song, old men following rituals they would be embarrassed to do outside of the confines of SC, the feel of the band penetrating the atmosphere without electronic amplification, the clarity and brightness of the football field, the color "crimson" and the calculated profits off of the sales of university paraphernalia, security measures of metal detectors, clear tote bags, and baggage search (only one bottled water per person unopened), university success in athletics continually played between breaks, the crowd silence at the opposition scoring, did I meant the incessant playing of the fight song? the announcer who sounds like the Dodger stadium guy, large stadium TVs for those too far away to see or have a guy directly in front constantly rising to stand and block my view during critical plays, what ever happened to the Jumbotron?, a lone elderly man standing with two fingers sideways shaking to the beat of the incessant you know what, no instant replay when it goes against SC, a sound system bass that reverberates throughout the whole stadium beneath your feet, concession hawkers that need a lesson from their counterparts at the the Chavez Ravine, leaving at halftime to catch the bus back, walking through the deserted tossed remnants of pre game tailgating, waiting at the bus stop atop the 110 freeway between 10 lanes of cars exceeding the speed limit, running into two couples that we know from Torrance at the bus stop, what is it about older folks leaving early to beat the rush? USC beat Colorado 31 to 20. In all, a nice night in Southern California. Go Huskies.
Avoiding the traffic by taking the public bus, minimum $25 parking far from the stadium that increases in price as you get closer to the stadium, half drunk youth outside the stadium, crowds dressed in burnt blood red, guy in front standing up hollering as if would affect the opposition, incessant playing of the Trojan fight song, old men following rituals they would be embarrassed to do outside of the confines of SC, the feel of the band penetrating the atmosphere without electronic amplification, the clarity and brightness of the football field, the color "crimson" and the calculated profits off of the sales of university paraphernalia, security measures of metal detectors, clear tote bags, and baggage search (only one bottled water per person unopened), university success in athletics continually played between breaks, the crowd silence at the opposition scoring, did I meant the incessant playing of the fight song? the announcer who sounds like the Dodger stadium guy, large stadium TVs for those too far away to see or have a guy directly in front constantly rising to stand and block my view during critical plays, what ever happened to the Jumbotron?, a lone elderly man standing with two fingers sideways shaking to the beat of the incessant you know what, no instant replay when it goes against SC, a sound system bass that reverberates throughout the whole stadium beneath your feet, concession hawkers that need a lesson from their counterparts at the the Chavez Ravine, leaving at halftime to catch the bus back, walking through the deserted tossed remnants of pre game tailgating, waiting at the bus stop atop the 110 freeway between 10 lanes of cars exceeding the speed limit, running into two couples that we know from Torrance at the bus stop, what is it about older folks leaving early to beat the rush? USC beat Colorado 31 to 20. In all, a nice night in Southern California. Go Huskies.
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