| Originally not one of the stops on our 2014 leg, Coors Field was added when I was asked to stand up in my cousin Blake's wedding, to which I excitedly said "yes" to. Long story short…the wedding was epic…the cast of guys was solid as any…and most importantly…my cuz got married. After a quick stint in the beautiful ski resort town of Breckenridge for the wedding festivities, Kim and I made our way to Denver where we stayed at a pretty sweet DoubleTree Hotel (thank you Groupon)! Once in the Coors Field area, we found parking to be a breeze and the shuttle (wish we knew about it coming into the park) to be quite helpful since the walk seemed to be a mile from our place in the official Coors Field lot. Upon entering we were greeted by friendly staff and a clean ballpark upon first impression, which did not change as we went along. Since this was our first "official" out of town park, we tried our best to establish some standard operating procedures that would hopefully translate to the future parks. For instance, we made it a priority to arrive at the park as soon as the first set of gates opened, which is usually 2 - 2 1/2 hours prior to first pitch. This way we could make the most of our time with various photo opps before the park became "packed to the gills". We also anticipated that we would take a separate guided tour of each ballpark facility, if it worked out with scheduling. Sadly, we were unable to secure tour tickets for Coors Field due to the fact that no tours were being given the two days we were in town. Nonetheless, we set a pattern where we would systematically work our way down from the upper decks (not forgetting to capture a behind home plate aerial shot of the entire park) to the lower bowl, attempting to experience and capture each unique part of the park. Coors recently had some renovations done to the upper deck where several thousand seats were removed to make way for what they now refer to as The Rooftop, an engaging, social experience now open in its first season. On The Rooftop, fans, or simply those interested in hanging out, can find a plethora of hip hangout spots to choose from, some overlooking the live action on the field and some set off toward the back of the structure. If you are in the mood to grab a bite and a beverage at one of the stunning bars up top, while benefiting from a prime aerial view of the action below, then find one of the many available areas and have at it. If you are one of those strange "fans" that prefers to pay for a game ticket and then sit and watch the game on a television set, well then there are plenty of places for you to do so. Pop a squat on the wicker furniture under the draped outdoor area and listen to the DJ spin all kinds of fresh mixes (is that how you even say that?) during the pre-game festivities. One knock that we have against Coors Field is that we both felt it has so many extra-curriculars, that it takes away from the game itself. Coors Field is still a beautiful park for the avid baseball fan, as evidenced by the naturesque display of trees, red rocks and the small pond/fountain that sits out in dead away center field. And lets not forget the absolutely breathtaking view of God's majestic creation in the white-capped Rocky Mountains, which can be seen from the first base and right field seats. To help you remember where you are, Coors Field made it a point to put in a whole row of purple seats in the upper deck (row 20) to signify that you are in fact a mile high! If general admission is your kind of thing, then you can find a spot in what Coors Field cleverly refers to as the Rockpile. These bleacher seats go for a very family friendly price of just $4 and offer a rather spectacular view of the action from center field. The park also offers a small playground area for kids to play and a more adult option in the Blue Moon Brewing Co. at the Sandlot, located inside the park as well. Once we finally made it to our seats and actually stopped looking like tourists, Kim and I sat down to partake in a deliciously spicy elk brat. This was our first encounter with such game, however, it was quite tasty and it got us out of having to try the Rocky Mountain oysters. After sitting down I quickly reverted back to a little kid when I saw Troy Tulowitki warming up. MLB's finest player during the first half of the 2014 season, Tulowitki was quite a joy to see in person, along with the up and coming stud on my fantasy team, Charlie Blackmon. Kim thought it cool as well, as she has heard me speak of many of these guys in the past. Both of us really enjoyed the ballpark, in fact it had me thinking for awhile that I liked it better than Turner Filed, which is equally a beautiful park, however, the Braves' home won out because Turner Field carries with it a more authentic baseball feel. Its a good thing we liked the park as much as we did, because the Rockies played terrible today. Committing four errors on the day, one extremely rare play in allowing three baserunners to score on a wild pitch; it appeared that a change in management was in order. Its been awhile since I've seen such sloppy baseball. Ryan Braun and his Brewers had the Rockies number, putting up 9 runs on the home team. In a park where the air is thinner than any other in the majors, it is expected that balls leave the yard at a rather frequent pace. Overall, this was a great experience for the both of us. Within two hours of being in Colorado, Kim was sold and ready to move there, which is very very uncharacteristic of my homegrown Georgia girl. Nonetheless, both our eyebrows perked up when we realized that this would be a pretty amazing place to permanently reside (plus, I'm ready for a hockey team again!). |