The Winter Classic Experience

Me in the Crowd at Winter Classic

On January 1, 2008 the NHL decided to stage a unique event that being the Winter Classic in Buffalo, New York. The Buffalo Sabres hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins at Ralph Wilson Stadium which is the home of the Buffalo Bills.

Thanks to my pals Andrew Kulyk and Peter Farrell who are Sabre season ticket holders, they were able to secure tickets for my friend the King and I to see this unique event.

The experience that day was priceless. Despite not feeling our best, we still braved the elements on this day to see hockey history in the making. With snow falling during the game, the ice needed to be repaired numerous times but that didn't stop the game from being a big hit. A record crowd of 71,000 were on hand to witness it.

The game wound up being decided in a shootout as the Penguins beat the Sabres, 2-1 as Sidney Crosby scored the game winner.

On January 1, 2009 the NHL decided to do another Winter Classic. This time they chose Wrigley Field in Chicago as the site of the event. The Chicago Blackhawks took on their original six rival, the Detroit Red Wings. Unfortunately I didn't get to witness this one in person. I did watch it on TV with deep regret.
Since the game was at a smaller venue, the ticket prices were rather pricey. That coupled with the fact I live in NYC, it's a long drive to Chicago and mother nature can always play her tricks. In addition, my friend the King who happens to be a Red Wing fan thought he was going to have to work so we decided it was better not to go.

Ironically we met up with Andrew Van Cleve a few years ago when we visited Chicago. He was at that Winter Classic. I wish we knew each other then.

As for the game that day, the Red Wings beat the hometown Blackhawks, 6-4 in the highest scoring Winter Classic game.

On January 1, 2010, the tradition continued. This time the Winter Classic was played at Fenway Park in Boston as the Philadelphia Flyers invaded Beantown to play the Bruins.

Once again the King and I decided to go. We wound up buying tickets at the last minute on Craiglist because we were concerned about the weather.

Thankfully mother nature cooperated. It turned out to be a beautiful winter day. The temperature was a comfortable 36 degrees which made for a wonderful setting. We had the privilege of sitting towards the back of the grandstand near first base which was the corner of the rink. We had the Green Monster staring us right in the face.

As for the game, the Flyers lead 1-0 into the third period. Late in the period, the Bruins evened the score at one. This one was decided in overtime as the Bruins found the net in the extra session as they sent the natives home happy, 2-1. It should be noted their were a number of Flyer fans in attendance as well who had a long ride home after the loss.

As for the King and I, since we didn't have a real rooting interest so we got to enjoy the outcome regardless of who won.

On January 1, 2011, the Winter Classic returned to a bigger venue. This one was played at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh which is the home of the Steelers. The Penguins hosted the Washington Capitals.

This game was originally scheduled to start at 1PM like the others. Unfortunately mother nature was up to her tricks again. This time the temperature was in the 40's and rain was expected. With that being said, they decided that with the rain suppose to clear out by the evening, they changed the starting time to 8PM. By doing so, this turned out to be the first Winter Classic in prime time.

As for the King and I, we got to go again. This time our friend Peter Agnew who has season tickets for the Capitals said he didn't want to go. He asked us if we wanted to buy the tickets he was offered. We instantly told him yes.

We wound up sitting in the upper level with other Capital fans. They did a nice job distributing the tickets for this game. It seemed like every other section was divided by each team's fans. By doing that it made for a fair view for everybody who was able to be part of this unique experience. They drew a crowd of 68,000.
As for the game, the hometown Penguins came up short as the Capitals won, 3-1.

This year New Year's Day came out on a Sunday. With that being said, the NHL decided to move their Winter Classic game to Monday, January 2nd instead.

This time they went back to the baseball park setting as they chose to have the Philadelphia Flyers host the game at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Phillies. The Flyers played the New York Rangers in the latest installment of the Classic. The game was scheduled to start at 1PM but since the weather conditions weren't ideal they decided to move the starting time to 3PM.

The King and I once again got to take part in the festivities. We were also joined by our friend Andrew Van Cleve who recently moved to Philadelphia.

The King and I got tickets with the help of season ticket holders that we know. Andrew found a person on Craigslist who sold him a ticket for face value.

Surprisingly it seemed like their were a lot more Flyer fans than Ranger fans at the game. We happened to be sitting around a lot of Flyer fans. There were a lot of people dressed up in their Flyer colors throughout the ballpark.

Don't get me wrong, there were a good number of Ranger fans in the building but with the ticket prices being really pricey I think that prevented some people from going to the game.

The experience is different than seeing a hockey game indoors. The outdoor game makes for a once in a lifetime scenario for those who have some spare money to burn. If you like the game of hockey, I strongly suggest that you go to a Winter Classic so you can see the experience for yourself.

As for the game, the Flyers took a 2-0 lead in the second period after there was no scoring for the first half of the game. The Rangers cut the lead in half at 2-1 after two periods. During the intermission, I ran into a guy I knew from New York who happens to be a big time Ranger fan. He said and I quote "this game isn't over yet." He turned out to be right. The Rangers proceeded to tie the game at two and then they got the eventual game winning goal as the Rangers hung on for the 3-2 victory.

In retrospect, I may regret not going to Wrigley Field in 2009 but I've been to the last three in a row. I hope to be able to keep going to see this unique event year after year. Time will tell.

If you plan to go, please take into account that many of the seats are bad. That's the nature of setting up a rink in a baseball and/or football stadium.

In a baseball stadium, the rink usually runs from across the outfield behind second base.

In a football stadium, the rink is laid across the gridiron between the 20 yard lines.

The bottom line is this experiment is working as the NHL now has a day it can call its own.

In the future, if you like hockey New Year's Day is the day you can see the sport outdoors. Hopefully they'll chose different locations and teams so it's more fair to the rest of the country.

I hope I've given you a reason to see for yourself what the Winter Classic experience is all about.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty loves watching hockey outdoors!

Since the National Hockey League decided that they wanted to experiment by playing a game outdoors on New Year's Day known as the Winter Classic, the King and I have been fortunate to have attended three of the four they've played thus far.

The first one occurred on January 1, 2008 when we saw the Pittsburgh Penguins play the Buffalo Sabres at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo.

That game ended in the first ever outdoor shootout in front of the largest crowd ever to see a NHL hockey game. They had just over 71,000 in attendance that day.

On January 1, 2010 we witnessed the first ever overtime game in Boston as the hometown Bruins beat the visiting Philadelphia Flyers at Fenway Park.

This past New Year's night as it turned out we saw the first outdoor game under the lights thanks to mother nature in Pittsburgh at Heinz Field. The Washington Capitals and the Penguins were on the big stage as the league's biggest stars did battle.

Now this past Sunday, February 20th we had the privilege and honor of seeing an outdoor game in Canada in Calgary, Alberta at McMahon Stadium as the Flames played the Montreal Canadiens in the 2011 Heritage Classic.

Royalty once again saw history made as we witnessed the first ever outdoor shutout as the Flames blanked the Habs, 4-0!

In addition, on February 20, 2010 we went to Syracuse, NY to see the first ever American Hockey League Mirabito Outdoor Classic between the Binghamton Senators and the Syracuse Crunch at the New York State Fairgrounds.

In the future, Royalty looks forward to attending more of these special events.

If you haven't been to one yet, I strongly suggest that you try your best to take in the experience if you're a hockey fan.

If you need my assistance and expertise don't hesitate to consult me.

Thank you for reading.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty sees Jets fall short in Pittsburgh!‏

After the Jets shocked the Patriots in Foxboro, the King and I set our sights on going to Pittsburgh again. This time for the AFC Championship Game.

We stopped off at a Wendy's in Warwick, Rhode Island to get something to eat on our way home.

Surprisingly, we weren't alone. In fact we had a bunch of Jet fans who arrived there around the same time as us. After we ordered and started eating more came in. It was quite a scene.

We all started talking to each other. One guy in particular exchanged contact information with me. His name was Brian Moffett. Brian told me he has a house on Staten Island and a place in Manhattan. The King and I said we were from Queens.

We said we're going to Pittsburgh next Sunday. I was planning to rent a car. Brian responded you don't have to, I'll drive my wife's car there.

After communicating back and forth all week, we arranged to meet up by the King's place in Astoria Sunday morning.

All we had to do next was secure tickets for the game.

By Tuesday night, I had a deal in place through Craigslist with a guy named Rob Jones who lived in the Pittsburgh area.

Thanks to our friend Mike Irr who lives in Pittsburgh we were able to pull off the transaction.

After work I spoke to Rob and I told him the situation. He seemed reluctant to overnight the tickets.

After I heard the horror stories he had to deal with because a few other people told him they wanted the tickets before I spoke to him, I couldn't blame him.

I personally knew what it was like since it's happened to me on a number of occasions too.

With that being said, I managed to convince Rob that he wouldn't have a problem dealing with me.

I proceeded to have our friend Mike Irr go to meet him at a mall that was convenient for both of them so they could make the exchange.

By Wednesday morning, the deal was finalized. Rob got his money and Mike got our tickets.

All we had to do was meet Mike in Pittsburgh to get them. Since the weather forecast was going to be so brutal, Mike didn't want to attend the game.

In the meantime, Brian found another person on Craigslist who wanted a ride to the game.

His name was Nick Pallas.

Nick was an interesting young man. He's only 26 and he's been over the world already he told us. This is partly due to being a military veteran since he spent 3 years with the US Marines.

In addition, he has his own photography business where he does weddings and other special events all around the world.

For further details, please feel free to check out his website, http://www.nickypallas.com/.

Nick met us in Astoria as well and we all went to see the Jets play the Steelers at Heinz Field.

Before getting there we had to make a pit stop in Crafton, Pennsylvania which is located about 12 miles West of Pittsburgh to meet our friend Mike Irr who had our tickets.

We gave him the money he laid out for us and he gave us the tickets for the game.

We went back to the downtown Pittsburgh area so we could get ready for the big game.

We wound up circling around the area to find a parking spot. We ironically wound up parking on the same street that we did for the Winter Classic on New Year's Day night.

After we parked the car, we all finished layering up and then we walked over to Heinz Field to witness history. The winner was going to Dallas to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.

As for the game we saw, we came with high hopes and we left with disappointment.

The Jets decided that like most games this season they would play a partial game and they thought they would rely on another miracle finish to get them to the Super Bowl in Dallas.

This time their luck ran out. They dug too deep a hole in the first half to overcome their lackluster start.

It started when they won the coin toss and they decided to defer their possession to the second half.

By doing so, they put their defense on the field first. Their defense was awful in the first half, they couldn't stop the Steelers offense especially running back Rashard Mendenhall who ran wild as the Steelers built a 24-3 lead at half time.

In the second half, it was a different story. The Jets finally woke up. Unfortunately they appeared to have a chance to mount a comeback and possibly win the game but the Steeler defense stuffed them at the goal line as time kept ticking away.

The Jets wound up coming up short for the second year in a row as they lost 24-19!

On the bright side, they have a potential legend in the making at quarterback in Mark Sanchez.

After getting blind sided by Ike Taylor late in the second quarter that led to the ultimate winning touchdown, Mark came back in the second half and he was magnificent.

He put the Jets in position to win but once again the defense couldn't give him one last chance to engineer another miracle finish.

His time will come. Time will tell. He's a very special talent. We'll wait and see if in due time he does indeed get over the hump.

Despite the tale of two halves, I still found a way to enjoy myself throughout the day and night.

First we got to meet and greet Brian and Nick then when we were at the game I got to talk to a few young guys who were from Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

They were Joseph D'Urso and his friend Angelo. I had a great time being able to meet and greet them too.

Joseph was attending first ever NFL game. Since he's from Canada that's makes a lot of sense.

Angelo said he liked the Packers but he was there because his brother and cousin were going and they were big Steeler fans. They wound up sitting in a different location.

Luckily for me, Joseph and Angelo were right next to me so we were able to enjoy each other's company.

We exchanged contact information so I hope to cross paths with them again in the future.

Despite the Jets coming up on the short end of the score, it was well worth the time and money it took to be there live.

On the other hand, if I stayed home none of this would have happened.

That's what life's all about. Everyday is a gift and a potential adventure.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty starts 2011 with an added surprise!‏





Prince at Youngstown State



Prince at Winter Classic























 

When we were in Columbus, Ohio on New Year's Eve we found out that the Winter Classic in Pittsburgh was moved from 1PM to 8PM due to mother nature. Rain was in the forecast mainly during the afternoon.

As a result, we received a call from our friend, Manny Morales, who informed us that there was a college basketball game at Cleveland State at 2PM.

Shortly thereafter our friends Mike & Alicia Irr from Pittsburgh told us that there was a college basketball game at Youngstown State at 1:05PM.

I quickly figured out the distances of both places and I decided that since we were staying in Washington, Pennsylvania that Youngstown State was the way to go.

By doing so, we got to see a rare Penguin doubleheader.



First we saw the Youngstown State Penguins play the Ramblers from Loyola of Illinois.

When we arrived at the arena, the King and I were already to pay $8.00 to get in the building. The lady said here you go it's free today. She proceeded to give us tickets and we walked in.

What a way to start the New Year. We got to attend another sporting event and the price was right. What a pleasant surprise.

Based on the Penguin's performance, we got our money's worth. The Ramblers wound up blowing away the Penguins, 83-53.

After we got back to the car, I called our friends Mike & Alicia Irr in Pittsburgh who were attending the Winter Classic at Heinz Field too.

We wound up meeting them at McKees Rocks, which is located right outside of downtown Pittsburgh for dinner at Eat' N Park. We passed through Neville Island for the first time in order to get there.

After dinner we made our way over to Heinz Field to see the Washington Capitals take on the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Thankfully mother nature was cooperative enough that they were able to get the whole game in without any stoppages.

It was rather warm and it did manage to rain a little bit in the third period but the show still went on. 

The NHL did a tremendous marketing job once again making this special event possible. Royalty was happy to be part of it for the third time in four years. We saw the first Winter Classic in Buffalo in 2008. Last year we were in Fenway Park. This year was Heinz Field. Now the question is where will the next one be. We hope it's right in our backyard. We'll have to wait and see.

As for this one, the Capitals and the Penguins put on a nice display of hockey outdoors. The NHL has find a way to get people to watch hockey by having this unique event.

It was a festive atomosphere as the tickets were divided up evenly. It appeared like the fans of each team were sitting together in every other section. In other words, one section had mostly Penguin fans and the next section was mainly Capital fans and so on around the building.

We sat among many Capital fans since our friend Peter Agnew who lives in Baltimore, has season tickets for the Capitals. Back in the summer, the Capitals gave him an opportunity to purchase tickets for this unique event. He decided to pass on going to the game. As a result, he asked us if we wanted to buy the tickets. Needless to say, we gladly said yes. Our only concern was the weather. Luckily it worked out in the end.

I want to thank Peter for taking care of us. Peter and his lovely wife Carmen are good people. We always try to get down to Baltimore and/or Washington D.C. so we can spend some quality time with them. On the other hand, they love to come up to NYC because they're big fans of the Opera. When they do, we always make time to see them.

As for the game we saw, the Capitals wound up winning 3-1 before a crowd of 68,111!

The league's two superstars Sidney Crosby of the Penguins and Alex Ovechkin of the Capitals didn't even score a point.

As a result, other players such as Eric Fehr of the Capitals who scored two goals was the hero. Semyon Varlamov made 32 saves in goal for the Caps. The Penguins only goal was scored by Evgeni Malkin.

It was a bad day and night to be a Penguin.

After the game, we drove back home so we could attend the Jet game against the Bills at the New Meadowlands Stadium at 1PM.

I wound up dropping the King off at 7:15AM. I got home at 7:40AM. Since I was planning to return the car around 10AM I decided not to go to sleep.

I unpacked my stuff, took a shower and I ate breakfast before I returned the car.

After that I took the bus to the subway to the Port Authority Bus Terminal to go to the game.

The Jets decided to rest many of their key players in this one. It seemed more like a preseason game. The Jets went on to whip the Bills, 38-7!

After the game, I went back by LaGuardia Airport to pick up my car that I had left when I went to Chicago the week before.



I got home at 6:45PM. I ate dinner then shortly thereafter I went to sleep so I could catch up.

What a way to start 2011.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty is closing out 2010 and opening 2011 in "Classic" fashion!

2010 is coming to a close and Royalty is going out with a bang. In addition, we'll be starting 2011 in "Classic" style thanks to the NHL.

The game plan is as follows:

The King and I are going to see our first ever college bowl game which takes place in our backyard at the New Yankee Stadium.

Thursday, December 30th after I work a half a day I'm going to Avis to rent a car for the weekend. Once I pick up the car then I'll go to get the King after he gets a few hours sleep after working. After that, we're driving to the Bronx home the newly created Pinstripe Bowl between a team from the Big 12 Conference and one from the Big East. This year it features the Kansas State Wildcats and the Syracuse Orangemen. The kickoff is scheduled for 3:30PM. We'll be leaving town after the game to make our way towards our next stop that being Columbus, Ohio.

Friday, December 31st we'll arrive in Columbus in the mid to late afternoon which will get us plenty of time to get to the 7PM face off between the Ottawa Senators and the Columbus Blue Jackets.

After the game we'll be bringing the New Year somewhere along I-70 as we make our way to Pittsburgh for New Year's Day.

Saturday, January 1st we'll be starting the New Year like we have 3 of the past 4 years at an outdoor hockey game aka the Winter Classic. This time Heinz Field is the host for this unique event that hockey has taken by storm. The game features two of the league's greatest young stars, Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals. The puck drops at 1PM Eastern Time so if you want to watch the game tune into NBC and you'll see it. If you do so, you can think of the King and I who will be in the house.

After the game, we'll be driving back home so we can be at the Jets game on Sunday at the New Meadowlands Stadium against the Buffalo Bills at 1PM.

Please feel free to check back for all the details of how this getaway turned out.

If you want to join us, please let me know so I can arrange to make it happen.

Happy New Year to all!

2011 is going to be another great year especially if you add some royalty to your life. Don't just read and think about it, contact me and we'll make sure you do something about it. Life's too short why not go for a "royal" ride.

Thank you for reading.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman