Syracuse Chiefs – May 3, 2011
After debating going to Syracuse yesterday morning for yesterday afternoon’s game against Rochester, and checking the weather forecast over and over again, I decided to chance it. The forecast called for showers on and off throughout the day, but the afternoon was supposed to be a bit better. I hopped in the car and took off.
The Canada/U.S. border lineup was nice and short; just two cars were in front of me. After the first one went through, and the next one moved to the wicket, I was first in line.
But then, the car ahead of me didn’t budge. The U.S. Customs agent talked to the driver, then got out, walked to the other side of the car and said something to the passenger. Then, another agent came and talked to the vehicle’s occupants. Suddenly, every agent at the three open wickets left his little hut, moved a large pylon to block his own lane and each disappeared out of view. What the heck?
The car in front of mine was motioned over to the secondary area, so I guess it was getting searched. Here was the scene after the pylon was added but before the car was moved:
I passed through the border without incident, despite the agent quizzing me on the price of Syracuse Chiefs tickets. (?) After driving for a bit, I stopped at a Gander Mountain to get a few snacks for the road. I was in the mood for some beef jerky, and couldn’t resist getting this:
Alligator jerky! And as you’ll see below, the first ingredient is actually alligator:
And guess what? It tasted like … regular beef jerky.
An hour or so later, I arrived in Syracuse roughly 1 3/4 hours before game time. I headed straight to Alliance Bank Stadium, which is just a couple minutes off the interstate.
Like the last time I visited the home of the Chiefs, I arrived before the parking attendants had even set up to charge for parking. I pulled into the stadium lot, which was eerily empty despite it being a game day. And to make matters worse, I saw a bus (presumably Rochester’s) sitting at the front gate.
Turning into the players’ lot to check out the cars, I got a nervous feeling when I saw a Syracuse player come out, hop into his truck and drive away. Uh-oh.
The front of the stadium was deserted, and I got a bad feeling about a postponement:
Just then, the coach bus pulled away from the ballpark, so I drove back to the information board at the edge of the parking lot to see the following scene:
Ugh.
Well, you win some, you lose some. I’d have been ticked off if I’d stayed home and the game had been played, so I’m glad I tried. As you can read here, I’ve got a great roadtrip coming up in a little more than two weeks’ time.
Too bad about this one, though. I turned the car around, got back on the highway and was home in time for dinner.
The Ballpark Guide 