NHL Winter Classic Rink Update

by Al Yellon on Dec 16, 2008 6:53 PM CST in Chicago Cubs News

I hadn't planned on stopping by Wrigley today, given that it has been puking snow all afternoon. But I had to go out for a while and my route took me past the ballpark (no, really -- I had to go that way). I didn't even bring my camera.

But when I got close to the park -- this was just before 5 pm -- I saw that the lights were on. Well, how could I resist? The first photo (from my 2.0 megapixel camera phone) was taken from my car (thus, the snow on the window), the others after I found a lucky parking space right across the street and got out. The Cub security guys (one of whom remembered that I had been there last year taking photos of the turf installation) said that the hockey workers will be working till about 6 pm each day. So tomorrow, weather permitting, I may run by there and take some more.

Click on photos to open a larger version in a new browser window. Taken at Wrigley Field, Chicago, Tuesday, December 16, 2008, approximately 5 pm CST. All photos by Al

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Great pics AL!

Great pictures Al!

I had a weird thought today what if it’s too warm on New Year’s Day?

MaIne South Hawks 2008 Class 8a Champs!

by puckishcubsfan on Dec 16, 2008 6:55 PM CST reply actions

Doesn't matter.

The rink has a refrigeration unit. “Too warm” will just make it more comfortable for the fans.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 16, 2008 8:32 PM CST up reply actions

Cool...

I just wonder what the view will be like from the stands? I can’t imagine that the view of the game action will be optimal.

Someday we'll go all the way...

by CubsBullsBears on Dec 16, 2008 6:59 PM CST reply actions

Spooky

Anyone think those pictures are kind of spooky?

Not in a bad way at all.

But when I worked downtown and took the red line as part of my way home when you go past Addison stop at night during the winter the dark stands against the night sky are really really spooky.

There’s a ghost story in there. I actually wrote one.

MaIne South Hawks 2008 Class 8a Champs!

by puckishcubsfan on Dec 16, 2008 7:04 PM CST reply actions

Thanks so much Al!

Great pictures. It’s cool to see the park covered in snow like that.

"I never drink water because of the disgusting things fish do in it" -W.C. Fields

by calicubfan on Dec 16, 2008 8:11 PM CST reply actions

When you live outside of Chicago...

you forget how beautiful the winter in the neighborhoods is. Then again, it’s much easier to say that as I sit in SoCal where cold = 50 degrees.

by CeePee17 on Dec 16, 2008 8:16 PM CST reply actions

Sigh.

You should have seen traffic today — at a dead stop most of the afternoon.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 16, 2008 8:32 PM CST up reply actions

That looks AWESOME.

I love the commercials they have been playing too, with “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” playing as hockey players lace up and get ready for the game. Looks like it is going to be fun to watch. From my home. In the warmth.

Dan

Evey Hammond: Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici. V: By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe.

by dtpollitt on Dec 16, 2008 9:48 PM CST reply actions

Rooftops question

Are the roof tops going to be filled for the game ???

I've been bleeding double blue Cubbies & NY Rangers

by parrotinct on Dec 16, 2008 9:52 PM CST reply actions

Rooftops are selling tickets...

… for somewhere around $400 each. Whether they’ll sell out at that price is another question entirely.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 17, 2008 3:57 AM CST up reply actions

Let's hope no one is standing too close to the edge...

…when one of those big arctic wind gusts comes through.

Yes, yes ... winter is indeed a pond upon which all of us must skate, braving frostbite and runny noses in the hopes that our cars will start and we shan't embarass ourselves slipping on a patch of black ice. Spring is more a quagmire of cold mud and slush, and fall is a pile of fallen leaves that may or may not hide a pile of doggy doo-doo. But summer, ah summer is an oasis of endless green that disappears all too quickly beneath our feet as we rush through its warm, glorious bliss.

by daver on Dec 17, 2008 10:29 AM CST up reply actions

Pretty cool shots, Al.

And “puking” snow is apt. Its down right gross outside.

by halfblindcubbiegirl on Dec 16, 2008 11:57 PM CST reply actions

That "Puking" snow though is so beautiful.though

How it is reflected off the lights in the dark just makes it seem that much better.
We(UW Band) are still practicing, outside, in the cold, and the days where it snows are always one of my favorite practices of the year. It always gets dark halfway through practice, and we have lights, which just makes the whole scene so amazing. It’s times like that where you forget that it’s really cold out and you can’t feel your fingers.
Thanks again for the pictures AL!

by stadiumguru on Dec 17, 2008 8:25 AM CST up reply actions

Every time I see these pics,

the ones yesterday and all the news coverage, I get more amped up. All this and the ’Hawks are starting to “put things together”.

Sweet Lou for Mayor in '11.

by blackhawk24 on Dec 17, 2008 7:47 AM CST reply actions

PLEASE

keep th pictures coming. I have tickets to the game and cannot wait to get there. I am having no luck with any webcams of the stadium and would love to see the progress. Can anyone help with this or do i just wait for Al to keep taking molre pics.

by ThisOldCub18 on Dec 17, 2008 8:31 AM CST reply actions

I'll take as many as I can.

I’m pretty excited about this game too.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 17, 2008 8:50 AM CST up reply actions

Where are you sitting?

I got seats in 114, but I am looking for bleacher tix. Just out of habit, not for a better view.

by gocubsgo22 on Dec 17, 2008 10:50 AM CST up reply actions

I am in the bleachers but not sure if they will be good seats? What are your thoughts?

by ThisOldCub18 on Dec 17, 2008 8:38 PM CST up reply actions

I'll be in 126....

… I didn’t want to spend more than $75. I think those seats will be OK.

The higher up you are in the bleachers, the better your seat. What section/row are you?

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 17, 2008 9:03 PM CST up reply actions

Section 306 row 12. After looking at the web cam I think they will be pretty good.

I wonder if the big space in the middle of the outfield will be a broadcast booth and if that will obstruct the view form the bleachers?

Thanks for all your work for us Al, especially since a lot of us a re a long way from wrigley

by ThisOldCub18 on Dec 18, 2008 10:42 AM CST up reply actions

I'm guessing that will indeed be a broadcast booth.

But remember, it’s positioned in front of the batter’s eye. No one will be sitting behind it.

Your seats in 306 should be pretty good, I’d think. You’ll be in one of the top rows.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 18, 2008 11:42 AM CST up reply actions

I see that they have big banners that have blackhawks and red wings logos on them. PLEASE tell me they are not going to erect them into the air so those, like me, will possibly have an obstructed view of the rink. I am so excited and hope that most will have a good view and they don’t mess things up with extra stuff taht is not needed.

by ThisOldCub18 on Dec 18, 2008 6:32 PM CST up reply actions

I looked at the plan for the rink and it looked as though that will not be a broadcast booth but another

pond like they had last year and it also looked like the big logo banners willl just stay flat on the ground.

by ThisOldCub18 on Dec 19, 2008 8:40 AM CST up reply actions

Webcams seems to be working

"Who's Bob Brenly? The guy that used to be the manager for Arizona?" ~ Alfonso Guilleard Soriano

by JohnM on Dec 17, 2008 12:09 PM CST up reply actions

Thanks!

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 17, 2008 1:32 PM CST up reply actions

can you post the link for this webcam please.

by ThisOldCub18 on Dec 17, 2008 8:40 PM CST up reply actions

See below. It's posted there.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 17, 2008 9:03 PM CST up reply actions

The snow is sure pretty

Thanks for the pictures, Al. I like seeing pictures of winter from my 67 degree city of Tucson. Lived in Denver for a few years and don’t miss the snow and cold at all.

A baseball game is simply a nervous breakdown divided into nine innings. ~Earl Wilson

by tucsoncubsfan on Dec 17, 2008 9:30 AM CST reply actions

I read where they're going to have an "open skate" for those that live in Wrigleyville..

….which is pretty cool. Well worth the 10 bucks their asking. To say you skated in Wrigley Field on a cold December day in Chicago would be very cool.

Whoever said you can't mix business with pleasure never owned a PuttPutt course---Andy Bernard

by carmen_fanzone on Dec 17, 2008 9:53 AM CST reply actions

It is in January, but concept still applies.

I am taking my daughter. It will be her first time on skates.

by gocubsgo22 on Dec 17, 2008 10:51 AM CST up reply actions

How would someone not living in Wrigleyvile get to skate on the ice? Al says it is not open to the public.

by ThisOldCub18 on Dec 17, 2008 8:45 PM CST up reply actions

You can't any more.

It’s sold out.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 17, 2008 9:03 PM CST up reply actions

Anyone have some for sale?

by ThisOldCub18 on Dec 18, 2008 2:40 PM CST up reply actions

The Cold War

Here are some links to articles written and some photos about a 2001 outdoor NCAA hockey game played between MSU and u-m. Dubbed the “Cold War”, it set an attendance record (at the time) of nearly 75,000 people at Spartan stadium. The weather turned warmer the day of the game and it made for some pretty mushy ice.

The photos give you an idea of just how small the rink can look from nose-bleed seats.

http://msuspartans.cstv.com/sports/m-hockey/recaps/100601aaa.html

http://www.cqql.net/msu-cold.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_War_(ice_hockey)

http://www.musco.com/newsev/coldwar01.html

Go Green! Go White! GO STATE! (Now #12,966 on the Cubs season ticket waiting list- UP from 13,031...WHOO HOO!)

by Zeke on Dec 17, 2008 11:01 AM CST reply actions

The difference a day makes,

the pics from the day before looks like a different place.

I'm finally moving on...

by slocs55 on Dec 17, 2008 12:07 PM CST reply actions

I really wish I could have afforded the tickets

Being this broke sucks sometimes… But I will be in town to enjoy the game with fellow Chicagoans on a warm couch or a hoppin bar!

WOW WHAT A SEASON!

by SouthsideCUBSfan on Dec 17, 2008 1:09 PM CST reply actions

anybody have the webcam link??

by cubfanjim on Dec 17, 2008 1:47 PM CST reply actions

Try...

… this. But you’ll probably have to be a Cubs Club member to access it.

"That's my opinion and if you don't like it, well, I have others." ~ Groucho Marx

by Al Yellon on Dec 17, 2008 2:04 PM CST up reply actions

Yeah I couldn't get through on that link

This link works for me. Someone posted it here a long time ago and it still works.

"Who's Bob Brenly? The guy that used to be the manager for Arizona?" ~ Alfonso Guilleard Soriano

by JohnM on Dec 17, 2008 2:35 PM CST up reply actions

Hockey at Wrigley

Cool shots Al! Must have been a wonderful sight with the snow and all! Can’t wait for the Classic and for the skate someone mentioned. I’ll be there with skates on for the first time since college! If anyone’s there from the site, I’ll be the one always falling!

"I'm a Cubs fan. I'm very, very patient." -- from a Shoe cartoon.

by No Southern Belle on Dec 17, 2008 3:23 PM CST reply actions