I actually went to the stadium this time

Yes, I know we don't post here much anymore. Give me a fucking break, I don't see you assholes writing anything or paying me to write. You can have a Coke, put a smile on your face and shut the fuck up.

This man still gives me nightmares, and I was in the stands.

So, the last time I "reviewed" the stadium, it was based on a few text messages and reactions after the opening game against the Giants. I lambasted the idea of the vast stadium and the catering to luxury boxes and the fucked up logistics of parking and prices, etc. I mentioned that somehow college campuses that routinely pack 95K+ every week for games (Texas, Michigan, Nebraska, Ohio State, etc.) managed to do easily, but the Cowboys couldn't because the pro game experience is too different.

I was blasted in the comments section by some anonymous person who said that I was complaining too much because I only wanted a suite with free parking and beer. First off, I've got an extra "kiss my ass" card for anyone doesn't agree with me. I'm always right, don't you know that? Second of all, I actually ventured out to the stadium for a game, the Big XII championship, so allow me to re-review the stadium based on my own experience.

In a word...meh.

I'm sorry, I just wasn't taken aback by the aura of the stadium and game presentation. I'm going to chalk this up to the fact that it was a college game in a pro stadium, and the way to present a game is different, but here's my pro/con run down.

Pros:

• Parking was not as bad or teeth pulling as I expected.
  
• Neither was traffic.
• Line of Sight. We were sitting in the third section, in the corner of the end zone and I was able to see the entire field and not think I was looking at ants.
  
• Bathrooms. I didn't think they were that bad. Maybe that's just a comparison factor to everywhere else.
• The Screen. Sweet Jesus. You hear how big and bad that thing is, but you don't realize it until you see it in person. Almost to a fault, it deceives you as to how big the stadium is because the screen is so mammoth. You have to train yourself to watch the game and not the television, but it's okay if you do.

Cons

• Sound. This didn't work on two levels. This isn't really relevant in a pro game (so not really Jerry's concern), but in the college game, the band is a pretty crucial element to the fans. If you can't hear the band, then it takes away from the college football experience. Similar to the band, it's really difficult for a crowd to really get a good chant going. Check that, it's really hard for certain chants to get going. If the crowd is all doing the same thing, then it works. For example, Nebraska has a "Go! Big! Red!" chant. That works because all the fans are screaming the same thing in unison. However, Texas uses the "Texas! Fight!" chant where half the fans scream "Texas!" and the other screams "Fight!". This works in most stadiums because you can hear what's being said. For the life of me (and the sections around me), every time Texas tried to start that chant, it died immediately because no one could hear "Texas" and no one could hear "Fight".
  
• Presentation. Again, this might pertain mainly to the college game, but if you notice, there isn't a lot of "stuff" happening during the college game. The presentation is usually left in the hands of the fans. Chants and band noise and all that. Every time either side tried to get a chant going, the stadium people decided that was the time to either blare music from the sound system or show a commercial on the big screen. This move effectively killed any fan chanting, so it really hurt both teams' momentum.
  
• Public Address. This was not the usual Cowboy Stadium announcer, Jody Dean, but this falls onto The Ticket's George Dunham. It usually helps to let the people in the stadium know what is going on. We had no idea down and distance. We had no idea when/if there were penalties. We had no idea when things were being reviewed. It was like watching a game with the sound turned off and KISS FM turned way up.
  
• General information. I've heard this before and confirmed it, but there's no information displayed on any of the 2,000 screens in the stadium. I'd like to know some stats and information beyond a small ticker at the bottom of the giganto screen.
  

All in all, the stadium is nice and all, and a majority of the issues I had can be chalked up simply to the fact that this was a college game in a professional stadium, but I just wasn't as impressed or awestruck as I really expected to be when I came to the stadium.

Silly Jerry. Your big TV is too Big.

Yea, he hit the big TV.

Look who took a field trip!

One of our few readers and good friend D-Nasty took a trip this last weekend to the new Cowboys stadium for a country concert of the great George Straight. It was the first time the stadium was open for an event, and he took an ass load of pics and was nice enough to share them with us and tell us his thoughts on the spaceship.

For the past three years, all we have heard about the new Cowboys Stadium is that it will end up being pretty much the most bad ass place in the world to watch any sort of sporting event. I had a chance last weekend to see if it lived up to its hype, and man oh man, it did. Firstly, the parking situation is not lacking. We had no issues getting into or finding our lot as the parking lots are marked with massive signs starting about a half mile from the stadium on the south side. Getting out was a whole other story- it took just under an hour to get out of the lot. I will admit that the acoustics were lacking but at the end of the day it’s a football stadium not a symphony hall.

We entered the stadium on the west side (end zone) and as soon as we got in the door we were met with a blast of cold air. That’s right, no more sweaty fat guy next to you for the opening games in September. Once the place filled up, the temperature raised but it was still very comfortable with 60,000 people inside. The end zone concourse areas are wide open to the field and you can see the entire stadium without having to walk through a tunnel under the seats. The main concourse level has a Texas Stadium feel to it at the end zones and then you walk into an enclosed area that pretty much runs the length of the field. Jerry definitely knows how to bring on the bling. I kept wandering how long it would take to look like shit after the season started. For a football stadium meant to have a bunch of rowdy fans, it sure felt like walking through the lobby of a high class hotel. The men’s crapper sure did feel like Texas Stadium. I think that’s where Jerry cut back on spending. The field itself is lined with suites so all the Chris Chris’ can say they were there and saw nothing but Flozell’s ass on the sideline because there is no possible way to see anything on the field during a game from that perspective. They are below the field level like a baseball dugout. I think the most kick ass seats in the whole place would be the high backed end zone seats.

Our seats were in section 333. That level is sort of like the equivalent of the Platinum Club at the American Airlines Center . It’s as if Jerry took elements from the AAC, Rangers Ballpark in Arlington and Texas Stadium and split the themes up by level. The main concourse resembled Texas Stadium in that the columns and set up was very similar. The 300 level, where we were, seems as if it was designed to be like the AAC. The concourse was more of a hallway with entries to suites on the inside and bathrooms on the outside and a bar/concession area on each side. There was a main bar situated in an open area and flanked by two concession stands. There is plenty of room to move around even when it is full of people. Of course the décor and amenities are on a higher end versus the main concourse and upper levels.

The upper level was more like the upper level at the Ballpark. Getting off the escalator felt like I was going to my cheap seats to see a Rangers game. The whole concourse is littered with concession stands and not much else. It happened to be the best place to get food (I’ll touch on the momentarily). I took a peak at what the field looked like from the upper levels, and believe me you want to be in the 300’s or lower. Otherwise you are paying to be at a live event just to see it on a kick ass HD television.

The most awesomist motherf-in screen in the world. I honestly sat in my seat and just stared in awe for a couple of minutes. You can’t imagine it until you see it in person. It is that bad ass! We all know the specs and the hype behind it, but once you see it, it takes you to a whole new level of happy place in your pants. From the 300 level, it is just above you like sitting in a movie theater (I wouldn’t put it past Jerry to offer exclusive viewings- it would be worth every penny). Some of the pictures I took would make you think I was front row they were so crisp- taken directly from the screen. Putting it in perspective, when you look at it versus the other side of the stadium, it pretty much blocks over half of the other side. You see the lower bowl and that’s about it.

I really only have one complaint and I made sure to let everyone who worked there know that nachos should be served on every level. The level we were on only had trendy high end servings like Kobe Hamburgers and buffalo quesadillas and I had to make the trek to the 400 level for peanuts, nachos and even beer at one point. They did run out of food and beer for a portion of the show but I am sure that will be taken care of in the future. Overall, yes, it is the most bad ass place to watch a sporting event. It’s typical Jerry going over the top but what should we expect having the most storied and popular franchise.

new big TV

Still a little hazy from sunday (can't shake em like i could 6 years ago), as brown pointed out. But we will try and press though the fog.

Here is a video of the new Cowboy stadium Jumbo-Tron.



Looks cool.

Guest Post and Field Trip: Bizzle Goes to the New Texas Stadium

We don't hide the fact that we encourage our readers to submit cool stories and pictures to us so we can post them up here and the 2 other people that read this can laugh. Not many of you actually do this, but one guy who comes through in clutch is J-Bizzle.

This time, he might never be topped.

J-Bizzle got himself a tour of Jerry World, and he's shared some pictures with us.

UPDATE: Bizzle sent his own comments....see in bold

The Outside of the Stadium

This stadium is so big that you can see it from North Richland Hills...about 16 miles away


The East End of the Stadium

If you want an analogy for a size comparison:
Cowboys Stadium : me :: Big's right man-boob : the cheeto he found that he thought was a "lump" when he was giving himself a breast exam....


The View of the BallPark at Arlington

It also makes Ranger's Ballpark look ludicrously small.


A $100K Star that sits on top of the scoreboard. It's just something nice for blimps to get a shot of...

No really, that star is purely for the enjoyment of the Goodyear blimp guys. That Jerry; thinking of everybody.


A view from above the scoreboard

This is from in the neighborhood of 260 ft. above field level.


That support has to support 9 Million pounds of force, and the hand of Kyle Orton faced J-Bizzle

The buttresses are larger than 4 bulldozers apiece.


Jerry's Suite in Jerry World

This is the view that Jerry gets at every game. He also has his personal elevator to take him to field level whenever he feels like going down there. Interestingly, no helipad at this stadium.


Jerry's Throne in Jerry World

This isn't actually Jerry's Throne, although technically 75% of the toilets in that place kind of are. This is the bathroom inside one of the $150K/year suites on the suite level that you see in pic 13. They wouldn't let me take it for a test drive.


The center of the field

The scoreboard weighs 500 tons as is in this pic. It's essentially a 10 story building with two elevators. Once the crew adds the electronics, it will weigh 750 tons.


The catwalks above

That catwalk starts out at least on a 60° grade. It’s so steep that on the way down the catwalk that you use to get there doesn't look like it's level at all.


One of the buttresses also holding up the stadium...please don't fall.

I think the guy said this is the largest building in the world to be supported solely by arches. The keyword there is building. Each buttress goes into the ground 70 ft. and then goes out from the stadium 110 ft. For those keeping track: that's one 10-story building for a scoreboard and 4 7-story buildings keeping the stadium from collapsing.


Bizzle called this "Seats in the Sky"...what a shitty view

This is from the catwalk in pic 10 looking at the top tier seats. I stood on the back row of the stadium (which would probably be the only seats I could afford) and it's really not a bad view of the field at all. At least they're not behind a Titan-tron, right?


The suites...

Ranging from $100K-$1M per year. I asked if the $1M suites came with happy endings, but our guide wasn't sure.


The beginnings of the scoreboard

I'd kind of like to go to Texas Stadium now just to get the feel for how much bigger the new stadium is.


This is called "The Bus Loop", and it can, apparently, fit an entire bus

Yes, yes it can.


The club level...will be the home of 2700 televisions

I tried to enjoy all of these places that I will never get to go once the stadium is complete.


The roof still has a hole, only this one can be covered

Brown's caption covers this one.


The seats of the common man

And I sat in one for free. $5 to touch me.

Other highlights: a giant beer cooler which is about 2 stories tall; the locker room where each locker will have an outlet, DSL, HDTV and (why not) a Playstation; there is a Walmart literally across the street which was only allowed to be built because they broke ground the day the stadium was approved, yes they sell beer; I live about 2 miles straight North of the stadium so tailgating at my place!; interesting fact, you could lay the Statue of Liberty down inside the stadium and she’d fit end-to-end.

Total cost: $1.2 billion
Construction cost: $800 million
City of Arlington’s input: $300 million


Bizzle, awesome job of capturing these shots and thinking of your buddies at The Big and The Brown. Now if you can only work a press pass for us....