Phoenix Arizona was the first out of town spot for the Sharks Tour. The whole family decided to come with, and it was a great trip.
The Phoenix Coyotes play at the unfortunately named jobbing.com Arena. I think this might be the worst example of corporate sponsorship in sports. Previously called the much more appropriate Glendale Arena, the place is fan-tastic. A rather new building, the home of the Coyotes features super comfortable seating, great views, wonderful acoustics (you could hear the skates...), and, at least at the moment, a really terrible hockey team.
Things were so bad for the Coyotes that Howler, the Coyote mascot, couldn't even win a victory over S.J. Sharkie. Much like his relative Wile E. Coyote's failure in capturing the Roadrunner, Howler could not take down Sharkie. If he drew close, some of the large number of Sharks fans would step in between, allowing Sharkie to go on his way. Why he was there, I'm not sure, but I know this much have added to the Coyote's embarrassment.
Is that a Hooters you see behind my brother? Why yes, it is. Dining options at the jobbing.com (kill me) Arena were quite varied. From Hooters to the Penalty Wox (nearly makes up for the arena name), hunger was to be crushed. Most of us went with the hot pastrami sandwich (me, having not learned my lesson from the Kings game the night before), and they were pretty tasty indeed. Brother, as you can see, opted for Hooters chicken strips, which were as appealing as an Ugly Betty being your Hooters waitress. A between period snack of Italian Ice was a good choice, too.
Cheerleaders are one of the little quirks of the jobbing.com Arena. One doesn't normally associate cheerleaders with hockey, and it's something that could certainly take away from the game. The Coyotes do a good job of walking the line, though, and I didn't find the cheerleaders too intrusive at all. Just pretty. Very pretty. Another nice quirk, and one I doubt I'll see anywhere else, was free parking. Wow.
Considering how bad the team is, I found the Coyote fans pretty impressive. Sure, they might not sell out games, but the fans that do show up (free parking!) are into the game. There was a good amount of cheering for the team, and not too much booing when they Coyotes blew a 4 minute power play. The Coyote howl before power plays and after goals is wicked cool- it certainly gets the crowd involved.
Phoenix is a rather strange city. Spreading unnaturally over the desert, it gives new meaning to urban sprawl. Although there is a small downtown, it's mostly made up of connected suburbs. Unlike a lot of desert cities, Phoenix makes no attempt to hide it's deserts roots. Lawns are left a more natural tan, and the freeways are painted to fit into the surrounding desert. There are even a few large red-rock hills right in town.
That's me in downtown Scottsdale. Downtown is a mix of old-timey Western Town and newfangled art galleries. Mom and I had a lovely time walking around and checking it all out. Didn't get to experience too much night life, but there was a brief trip to the cowboy bar Roman's Oasis, in the little town of Goodyear.
The Sharks ended the day with a record of 30-15. Their 60 points puts them in 5th place overall in the West, one point behind Detroit. They're also closing in on the Ducks for 1st place in the Pacific. Let's Go Sharks!!
See all the pictures at my flickr.
Is that a Hooters you see behind my brother? Why yes, it is. Dining options at the jobbing.com (kill me) Arena were quite varied. From Hooters to the Penalty Wox (nearly makes up for the arena name), hunger was to be crushed. Most of us went with the hot pastrami sandwich (me, having not learned my lesson from the Kings game the night before), and they were pretty tasty indeed. Brother, as you can see, opted for Hooters chicken strips, which were as appealing as an Ugly Betty being your Hooters waitress. A between period snack of Italian Ice was a good choice, too.
Cheerleaders are one of the little quirks of the jobbing.com Arena. One doesn't normally associate cheerleaders with hockey, and it's something that could certainly take away from the game. The Coyotes do a good job of walking the line, though, and I didn't find the cheerleaders too intrusive at all. Just pretty. Very pretty. Another nice quirk, and one I doubt I'll see anywhere else, was free parking. Wow.
Considering how bad the team is, I found the Coyote fans pretty impressive. Sure, they might not sell out games, but the fans that do show up (free parking!) are into the game. There was a good amount of cheering for the team, and not too much booing when they Coyotes blew a 4 minute power play. The Coyote howl before power plays and after goals is wicked cool- it certainly gets the crowd involved.
Phoenix is a rather strange city. Spreading unnaturally over the desert, it gives new meaning to urban sprawl. Although there is a small downtown, it's mostly made up of connected suburbs. Unlike a lot of desert cities, Phoenix makes no attempt to hide it's deserts roots. Lawns are left a more natural tan, and the freeways are painted to fit into the surrounding desert. There are even a few large red-rock hills right in town.
That's me in downtown Scottsdale. Downtown is a mix of old-timey Western Town and newfangled art galleries. Mom and I had a lovely time walking around and checking it all out. Didn't get to experience too much night life, but there was a brief trip to the cowboy bar Roman's Oasis, in the little town of Goodyear.
The Sharks ended the day with a record of 30-15. Their 60 points puts them in 5th place overall in the West, one point behind Detroit. They're also closing in on the Ducks for 1st place in the Pacific. Let's Go Sharks!!
See all the pictures at my flickr.
