A Super Saturday for Sports in Los Angeles

If only I lived in Los Angeles. It’s a lamentation that comes from the depths of my fansmanship. Growing up, I used to think it would be cool to live on Stadium Way and walk to Dodger game every night. A boy can have a dream, right?

More recently, the want of living closer to Chavez Ravine has waned and the SLO life I live becomes more and more appealing. But for one day, the lure of Los Angeles was back with a vengeance.

If I lived in Southern California, I wouldn’t have to drive three and a half hours to go to a Dodgers/Lakers/UCLA/Kings/Galaxy, etc… game. But I don’t live in LA. I live in SLO Town.

I live in a place that you have to make the most of your big-city sporting experiences. To get to a Dodgers game, you have to leave early in the morning and plan to be home late at night. And that’s for a day-game.

This past Saturday, the Fansmanship crew along with Friend of Fansmanship (FOF), Evan, attended the Dodgers-Angels game in Anaheim and the Galaxy game vs. the Vancouver Whitecaps directly afterwards. The weather in mid-June was perfect and so were the two Los Angeles teams.

Throughout the game, vendors stopped right in front of us and people were generally in the way. Good for people-watching. Not as good for baseball-watching. Photo by Owen Main

Compared to stadiums I’ve been to, Angels Stadium was generally unimpressive — probably in the bottom 25-30% of ballparks in baseball. There is a press box in an awkward place (right behind home plate), the people from the upper level were all standing in the concourse of the lower level (crowding the walking-space severely), and our seats on the rail of the second part of the first level were awkward at-best.

We thought the seats were going to be awesome. They were physically comfortable — it’s always more roomy in the first row. But with the aisles off-set, there were people walking in front of us for basically the entire game. The worst/best was Churro Guy. While all the other guys would stop in front of us to have a nice chat, their wares still high above their head and in our sight-line, Churro Guy joined in the chant.

“Let’s go, Dodgers,” said Dodger fans, about 20 percent of the fans at this particular game.

“Let’s go, Angels,” said Angels fans, excited about the young Trout and Trumbo.

“Let’s go, Churros,” shouted Churro guy, always moving and always rolling with the crowd. He was one of few entertaining aspects of sitting on the rail.

The other entertainment was provided by the people-watching. At an event that I mistook for a sporting event, baseball watching took a back-seat to deafening speakers, roided out orange guys in tank tops, and silicon-enhanced Orange County stereotypes. It may be that I’m the baseball-purist, uppity Dodger fan, but it was far from the baseball-focused throw-down I’d hoped for.

We sped away from the Big A and ventured to the Galaxy game. Galaxy radio broadcaster Joe Tutino, one of the best guys in the business, encouraged us to come and so we did. Luke and Andy were really skeptical, but it seemed like they were enjoying themselves within the 5th minute of the match.

The Home Depot Center is a soccer jewel. Absolutely beautiful.

The Home Depot Center is the anti-Angels stadium. Everyone there seems into the game and are simply dressed and there to have a great time and support their team. Two entire sections, both packed to the brim spend the entire game on their feet, cheering, singing, dancing, and jumping around. The stadium is beautiful, still seems brand new, and there isn’t a bad seat there. Magee, Keane, and Beckham all scored and it was a romp. While half of our crew didn’t have a keen interest in soccer, I would go to another Galaxy game in a heartbeat.

The only downside was that they didn’t allow the camera lens we tried to bring in — the Angels let me but the Galaxy didn’t. This may be due to the Galaxy caring more about the fan experience. So look up those camera rules before you go.

Bottom line from Owen — For LA area baseball stadiums, Angels Stadium is a total second-fiddle to Dodgers Stadium, but can still be entertaining. Just don’t expect hardcore baseball fansmanship to be happening. I’ll admit there are some hardcore baseball fans, but from what I saw, the general focus was far away from the game. And there are too many distractions. Galaxy games are awesome. Congratulations to the MLS and Galaxy for really developing a first-rate professional soccer experience in the US.

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Bottom line from Luke –If only you lived in Los Angeles Owen? Buried by concrete and car exhaust?

I’ll take the SLO life. I’ll take it for so many reasons: the bike paths, hiking, rugged unfettered coastline, clean air and low stress living. I’ll take it for it’s quiet evenings and award winning wine country. I’ll take it because I sense God here.

Living on the CC as a serious sports fan means you have to earn your fansmanship. You have to battle the morning alarm clock on a Saturday just to enter a baseball stadium, and then three hours later, do it all again, this time with a bad beer-coma — 4 hours by congested freeway.

LA is a damn circus spinning a few awes but after a while you just get tired of the bright lights and fame and fixate on your zenful haven. You use the bitch for it’s worth and let her go.

I use Los Angeles and easily let her go. I let her go to the honking rat racers and the fake tans. I’d rather live in an outhouse listening to the didgeredoo of the waves than I would in the heart of hell just to see a few more ball games every year.

Not even the Angels or the Dodgers can compete with the simplicity of the central coast. And the MLS, according to Evan Moffit, “is the C-league of International soccer.” So, while it has improved and while the fans were rowdy, they they don’t even enter the conversation for me.

The baseball game was nice. Sitting with friends for a few hours talking baseball, listening to the drunk chants “let’s go doyers…” was worth it all because I’m just that serious of a sports fan. I’ll go to war to get there a couple times a year.

And Owen, you’re right — the big A is not as hardcore as Dodger stadium is. People don’t bash others over the head for wearing an opposing team’s cap. And yes, it is more expensive. But we’ve got a better firework show than you do.

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Bottom line from Andy — I’m the driver – a driving fiend. Didn’t someone say something about a destination and a journey? Living 3+ hours away from Goger Stayum is no big deal for a guy like me. I like the drive. I like averting the mess of the 101, 134 and 5 for the smooth sailing of the 118, 210 and 2. So as far as the time it takes to get down there? Doesn’t bother me one bit.

The last time I went to the Big A was when I was 12 years old. This was before it became the Disney-afied grounds it is today. It seems like it is a monstrocity in the middle of nowhere really. One sky scraper in the distance as the stadium appears off a residential street named Katella, that seems like it would be best fit somewhere in Santa Maria. The inside was nothing special. Some rocks, some fountains, some fireworks, but I couldn’t feel the nostalgia and history like I do in Dodger Stadium. Not even close.

The drive to Carson was swift and painless. I still can’t believe that guys like David Beckham and Landon Donovan play in a stadium located on a State College Campus. For how exciting the game supposedly was for a soccer game (Galaxy won 3-0), the three random 30-second outbursts of energy and constant chanting and horn-blowing throughout the entire game wasn’t worth the time investment for a guy like me. Not to say it wasn’t a good time for a one-time thing, but its not something I would look forward to doing again. I guess I just don’t understand the “primitive-ness” of soccer.

All-in-all, the trip was well worth it. To spend time with good friends, share some laughs and just get away from it all for an epic day of sports and grub is something that is truly appreciated by this fan.