We rolled into Salt Lake City later than we wanted, only to find out the game was an hour later than I thought (yay time zone change!) We got the info on the tailgate from Twitter via @RSLRoyalArmy and got waved into parking by the attendant impressed that we’d driven from Iowa for the game. We ended up parking next to a group of supporters that were having “LDS Singles Night” which entailed green jello shots (complete with carrot shreds!) and funeral potatoes with braiding each other’s hair replacing the usual kick around.
The tailgate ranged from that group, to Royal Army members, some Salt City Outlaws, to Salt City United, a group of tattooed group of supporters that seemed less than excited to talk with a not tattooed mom of two innocent looking blond children (little did they know…but more on that in another post). We found tickets, joined the Royal Army (because the answer to do you want a scarf for $25, or a scarf, patch, and RA membership for $25 is heck yes I’ll join the Army).
We went into the stadium, and the supporters section was divided up with the stage for Neil Diamond’s concert the next day. We started out sitting to the left of the stage with a group of season ticket holders that seemed nice…..too nice for us. As game time approached, we heard drums and trumpets from the other side of the stage, which was the only invitation my son needed to march on over and join La Barra, the Latino supporters.
The kids loved the atmosphere at Real Salt Lake. Between the two levels in the supporters section, there’s a terrace where kids from all over could run around and play. Both my kids found children to chase around or make confetti with, in between dancing to the constant music from Barra and spinning through the smoke bombs.
While the kids were excited to participate in the festivities, I was excited to have two USMNT players on the pitch, Jay DeMerit for Whitecaps and Kyle Beckerman for Real, or as the kids know them, “that guy from the movie (Rise and Shine)” and “the Jewish player.” I do appreciate having players for the kids to look up to, and since they live in a smaller city soccer-wise and they’re Jewish, we couldn’t have picked a better match to kick off the MLS Roadtrip, role model wise. Cap off the night with a 2-1 win for the home squad and I would call this an entirely successful trip.
The only downside is in order to make Portland in time for the next day game, we had to drive on right after the match. If there’s one thing we’ve learned at this point in the road trip, it’s that we could spend way more time than we have meeting up with all the great soccer fans along the road. Next up: Portland (or bust).
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We made it to Grand Junction, Colorado, well within shooting distance of our planned game at Salt Lake City Friday evening. The kids and I have driven about 950 miles, 283 to go and we get to cross off Real Salt Lake on our list of MLS venues, our first game on our MLS Roadtrip schedule.
Today I was sure that we wouldn’t make it. Kid 2 was doing an excellent impression of an appendicitis, and was doing his “I’m a 4 year old determined to break a bone” routine. (Kids, what did I tell you about no injuries or illnesses until after the Timbers game?) But we survived. Then I thought my car was dying, but it turns out that cars have just as much trouble “breathing” in the Rockies as we do. The Rockies, by the way, may be one of the most beautiful things America has to offer…you really should drive them sometime.
So…hopefully, we’ll be able to get to Salt Lake City in time to tailgate (they tailgate…..right?) Planning’s been a little on the light side, but I’m assuming I can google where the stadium is, correct? Hey, I’m raising a couple soccer supporters here….help a mama out!
Once I figure that out, I just have to work on our invite to Kyle Beckerman’s for post-game Shabbat. Then we’ll be set. At least, if he plays, I’ll be able to explain to the kids why it’s OK to miss Temple this week.
Time for blogging will be short this weekend, but look for updates at Twitter.com/TanyaKeith.
Filed under: Family Fun, Major League Soccer, Supporter Culture | Tags: LA Galaxy, MLS, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake, Sporting KC
This guy wants to meet your supporters! This year, the kids and I decided to do an MLS Road Trip instead of roadtripping to Grandma and Grandpa’s (I know, I was surprised they were into it too!) So here we go! We leave this week for Real Salt Lake’s Friday game, then will have one insane night into day of driving to Portland Timber’s Saturday game. We’ll make our way back via California, where we might hit the LA Galaxy World Football Challenge game, if I can see fit to part with $110 a ticket (not looking good right now…but we’ll wave while we’re in town!) Then it’s across the desert to see Sporting KC in the Open Cup final!
Two kids, one mom, 3 (or 4) MLS games, 5000 miles. Stay tuned, soccer fans…and remember…it’s not nice to wager on our survival, but you can Dwolla.com your support to @TanyaKeith Dwolla ID #812-460-2944 yeah, I’m talking to you, LA front office!
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A couple things blew me away about our experiences at Chicago Fire. First of all, a huge thanks to Section 8, who saw a tweet about my son coming to the game with us and not only had a gift for him at the merch table, but allowed him to help hold the player banners before the game. As you can see from the photo, he was pretty stoked about it. (This was the Fire vs Crew game…if anyone has photos of the kids from field side, please send them!)
Second, just yesterday, my husband got a call from the Fire, saying they knew he’d been to a game recently and wanted to encourage him to come to another match. In the “it’s nice to feel wanted” department, Chicago Fire and their supporters have blown us away. It may be a long 5 hour drive to get there, but we will be back! Thanks for the love, Fire. Right back atcha.
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Life got away from me for a while there, so in the “Better Late Than Never” department, I’m updating from our Chicago Fire Trip. I’ve been working on the trip planning and on my book, and kinda forgot to blog all this up! As the kids and I prepare for our own #MLSRoadtrip, I thought I’d give a shout out to one of my big influences for taking this trip. The stories from www.mlsroadtrip.com are really fantastic (that will link to the one that tells one of our family soccer stories). Hopefully we’ll have some equally great stories, even if they aren’t updated as fast as Evan’s. But then, his travel buddies get their own breakfast!
Soccer....Family Style 