BleedGopher
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per the Rochester Post Bulletin:
It begins, like all worthy school sport stories, with a bus ride. Last Thursday, my father, three friends, and myself availed ourselves of one of the city’s best-kept non-secrets: the Rochester City Lines ride to and from TCF Bank Stadium. For those of us who like to party, a sober ride to and from the Twin Cities is a miraculous thing, and for just $25, Rochester City Lines will ferry football fans to and from both Vikings and Gopher home games. According to bus regulars, the ride usually stops at the stadium right in front of the U of M marching band. All you have to do is call City Lines at 507-288-4353, request a spot on the bus, and bring $25 (in cash or check form) to the City Lines lot, 1825 N Broadway Ave., Rochester, with you on gameday. Oh yeah, and show up on time. The bus will leave without you; these are serious football fans its carrying.
After a mellow, imbibing ride up to the TCF Bank Stadium, we arrived at the stadium where a sea of tailgaters were already in full game-mode, with truck beds bedecked by handles of Jack Daniels and enough Solo cup wielding college kids to start a ruckus. 3 hours prior to every game this year, pre-game celebrations are held at the front plaza and lawn of 3M arena at Mariucci. The sanctioned party area is called the Gopher Garden Pre-Game Fan Fest, and traffic on the street is shut down. The street features scores of food trucks, entertainment, and football exhibits for people of all ages.
The big story of the night was PJ Fleck, new head coach of the Gophers, a man who rocks a tie to every game and pipes in rap music to his team practices. On field, he wields a very distinctive, emotive style. On the sidelines throughout the game, his energy was apparent, as if there was some motivating quality about him channeled through sheer enthusiasm: bounding off the sidelines, hugging the players. People think it’s going to be very interesting to see what he can do with a team like Minnesota. His “Row the Boat” philosophy, which is a preaches never giving up and moving through adversity and struggle with teamwork and shared sacrifice, could be a big thing for the team and its fans.
Regardless of his future successes, though, Fleck’s squad pulled out a 17-7 win over the Buffalo Bills. After witnessing the win, we got back on the bus and rode home. Perhaps the only thing more thrilling than the win was comparing our laid back faces to the stress apparent on everyone else’s in traffic.
http://www.postbulletin.com/magazin...cle_4bb1cd30-93e2-11e7-ad59-af11235c56b6.html
Go Gophers!!
It begins, like all worthy school sport stories, with a bus ride. Last Thursday, my father, three friends, and myself availed ourselves of one of the city’s best-kept non-secrets: the Rochester City Lines ride to and from TCF Bank Stadium. For those of us who like to party, a sober ride to and from the Twin Cities is a miraculous thing, and for just $25, Rochester City Lines will ferry football fans to and from both Vikings and Gopher home games. According to bus regulars, the ride usually stops at the stadium right in front of the U of M marching band. All you have to do is call City Lines at 507-288-4353, request a spot on the bus, and bring $25 (in cash or check form) to the City Lines lot, 1825 N Broadway Ave., Rochester, with you on gameday. Oh yeah, and show up on time. The bus will leave without you; these are serious football fans its carrying.
After a mellow, imbibing ride up to the TCF Bank Stadium, we arrived at the stadium where a sea of tailgaters were already in full game-mode, with truck beds bedecked by handles of Jack Daniels and enough Solo cup wielding college kids to start a ruckus. 3 hours prior to every game this year, pre-game celebrations are held at the front plaza and lawn of 3M arena at Mariucci. The sanctioned party area is called the Gopher Garden Pre-Game Fan Fest, and traffic on the street is shut down. The street features scores of food trucks, entertainment, and football exhibits for people of all ages.
The big story of the night was PJ Fleck, new head coach of the Gophers, a man who rocks a tie to every game and pipes in rap music to his team practices. On field, he wields a very distinctive, emotive style. On the sidelines throughout the game, his energy was apparent, as if there was some motivating quality about him channeled through sheer enthusiasm: bounding off the sidelines, hugging the players. People think it’s going to be very interesting to see what he can do with a team like Minnesota. His “Row the Boat” philosophy, which is a preaches never giving up and moving through adversity and struggle with teamwork and shared sacrifice, could be a big thing for the team and its fans.
Regardless of his future successes, though, Fleck’s squad pulled out a 17-7 win over the Buffalo Bills. After witnessing the win, we got back on the bus and rode home. Perhaps the only thing more thrilling than the win was comparing our laid back faces to the stress apparent on everyone else’s in traffic.
http://www.postbulletin.com/magazin...cle_4bb1cd30-93e2-11e7-ad59-af11235c56b6.html
Go Gophers!!