The Clackamas print., February 11, 2015, Page 7, Image 7

THE C L A C K A M A S P R IN T
I
FEB. 11, 2 0 1 5
| V O L . 48 ISSUE 1 2 _______
7
Idiot’s guide to a
Blazer game
Story and photo by Zak Laster
Have you ever w alked around and
noticed how m any people w ear P o rt­
land Trail Blazers gear in this city? O r
maybe you’ve been flipping through the
channels and found yourself w atching
a game and thought to yourself, “H m m
th at looks like a lot o f fun, b u t I b et I’d
lo o k like such an id io t n o t know ing
what’s going on.” Well, we sent our own
“sports idiot” to h er first Blazers gam e
in a long tim e. C o-editor in chief E rin
C arey will give you a first h a n d look at
w hat it’s like being new to a real sp o rt­
ing event.
O n Feb. 5, Carey attended a game vs.
the Phoenix Suns. As any experienced
Blazers fan knows, the best day to get
tickets online is the day o f the game.
People slash prices looking to get w hat
they can for the tickets before tipoff.
After tipoff th e tickets are w orthless.
“G e ttin g tick ets w as really easy,”
Carey said. “Especially if you have the
passb o o k app w ith th e iPhone. That
was k in d o f am azing to m e, because I
didn’t realize th at’s w hat the app was
for. It’s really convenient.”
Ih e re are m any different tran sp o r­
ta tio n o p tions for th e M o d a C enter.
The easiest way to get there is by riding
the Max. If you prefer to drive, there
are several cheap areas to p a rk around
the arena as long as you don’t m in d a
sh o rt walk, how ever you will have to
deal w ith the m any cars jam m ed into
a com pact area. C arey didn’t like the
choice to drive.
“M y first im pression arriving at the
M oda C enter is th at park in g sucked,”
C arey said. “Also, from w hat I know
the new nam e really sucks because it
should be the Rose G arden, b u t I do
like th e lights. The lights are a nice
touch.”
O nce inside th e M oda C enter, we
stopped for food. The Trail Blazers have
started incorporating local food options
such as Sizzle Pie and Killer Burger. We
decided on another great option, Bunk
Sandwiches. W hat pleased Carey was
the variation and getting away from the
traditional cotton candy, p opcorn and
“really nauseating h o t dogs.”
W e fo u n d o u r seats early so th a t
C arey could start to take in the envi­
ronm ent.
“People tu rn up really h ard just to
go to a basketball game,” said Carey.
“I th in k th at’s a lot o f fun. People are
also really polite, they say excuse m e
and th an k you w hen you have to move
for them .”
There are m any types o f people that
go to games and C arey saw them all
during this one. Ranging from the fan
th at paints his face, goes crazy for ev­
ery play, and boos every foul against
his team , to the m ore casual fan who
watches quietly, doesn’t w ear any team
gear b ut is still there to support.
C arey has a m essage for you w ho
th in k th at you don’t belong at a game.
“It’s really im p o rtan t th at you go to
a Blazers game. Just because it’s p a rt
o f w hat m akes Portland, Portland. The
atmosphere is really fun. You don’t have
to understand defense, offense, or any­
thin g like that. It’s just fun to be a p a rt
o f it.”
After the game, we experienced the
dow nside o f driving, w hich is getting
out o f the parking garages. It definitely
requires a lot of patience and not being
in a rush.
“People just need to be hyper-aware,”
Carey said. “Just go, don’t be super nice
and let everyone out.” As long as there’s
good m usic on the radio, the experi­
ence can be painless.
So, w hat did C arey th in k about her
social experim ent?
“I w o u ld definitely go to a n o th e r
Blazers game. I would probably prepare
for it a little bit better,” said Carey. “I
would probably dress in the right colors
and n o t look like I w andered into the
M oda Center.”
However, w hen asked w hat she took
away from this experience th e m ost,
h e r response was “I th in k I’m going to
m arry Robin Lopez.”
Well at least we tried.
Check out these upcoming Blazer home games:
Feb. 11 vs. Lakers @ 7 p.m.
Feb. 25 vs. Spurs @ 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 22 vs. Grizzlies @ 6 p.m.
Feb. 27 vs. Thunder @ 7:30 p.m.