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Stadium #1 Ralph Wilson Stadium Orchard Park, NY |
New York Jets
vs. Buffalo Bills Buffalo Bills Stadium October 3, 2010 38 - 14 Loss |
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Stadium Vitals Built: 1973 Capacity: 73,967 seats Playing Surface: Titan 50 by A-Turf Draft Beer: $6.50 Hot Dog: $3.00 Stadium Parking: $25.00 |
 Ralph WilsonStadium Address One Bills Drive Orchard Park, NY 14127 (716) 312-0409 Get Directions |
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Stadium Review - The Demise of the Franchise  A cold and rainy weekend in October set the scene for our NFL
Football Family Weekend Retreat as the men in my family reconvened
in Orchard Park, NY for our 15th annual celebration. Every year we
pick a Buffalo Bills game to attend and from all corners of the
country, we make our way back to western New York for a weekend of
food, folks, and football. So with the NY Jets game comfortably set
in our crosshairs, we rented an RV, prepared an incredible menu of
foodstuffs, and headed toward the RV parking lot at Ralph Wilson
Stadium. The RV lot at the Ralph is rather unique. Apart from its
heated, cinder block shower and bath facilities that are cleaned
throughout the weekend, RV's are allowed to begin parking in the lot
as early as Friday evening and they can stay there until Monday
morning. When coupled with the world-class tailgating you'll find
Buffalo Bills fans being actively engaged in, it's one of the top
five football fan experiences in the league. We arrived in lot early on Saturday morning. The skies were
overcast, but it didn't stop us from setting up the Fowling lanes to
begin a full day of tournament action. Fowling, as you know, is the
new tailgating game that combines the pin-point accurate passing of
the game of football with the ten pin configuration of recreational
bowling to create an incredibly unique asphalt experience, one that
you'll find is much more relevant to pro football tailgating than
that bean bag toss game you see fans bring to the lot each week.
Teams of two match wits on the fowling lanes as they attempt to
knock down their opponent's pins by throwing a football at them. The
two teams alternate throws until a full set of bowling pins is
knocked down. The first team to knock down all of their opponent's
pins wins the frame. As Commissioner of the American Fowling
Association, I am one of the game's biggest supporters and perennial
ambassadors to the rest of the league. For more on the rules
of fowling be sure to check out
www.fowling.org.  Later in the evening, we began preparing a full feast of tailgating
fodder. After fifteen years on the blacktop at Ralph Wilson Stadium,
we've become some rather accomplished blacktop culinarians in our
own right. For Saturday evening's meal we set a 12 pound roast on
the charcoal flamed rotisserie roaster for the traditional
Buffalonian Beek on Weck sandwich. The motorized rotisserie was then
flanked by a pair slow roasted beer can chickens cooked in my keg-a-que.
Neglecting the need for your typical noodle and potato sides, our
male dominated cooking staff prepared a mainly carnivorous selection
of evening entrees. Apart from the ice cold beverages of choice that
were used wash down our main course, the only other side dishes that
were employed might have been a couple of potato chips and a cookie
... all that other stuff just complicates things. When you tailgate
with the Steiniger Clan, you're looking at a full compliment of
entrees that once roamed the earth or swam in its waters.Sunday morning came quickly and it was still raining. Undeterred, we wandered over to Kenny "Pinto Ron" Johnson's tailgate in Lot 1. Kenny has recently come under NFL scrutiny for some of his tailgating antics which include bowling ball shots and the iconic ketchup opening ceremony. For those of you who are unfamiliar, Kenny is the tailgating innovator that cooks his food on the hood of his red Ford Pinto using hand tools and  garden implements. It's actually
really incredible; garden rakes are used to cook hamburgers, trowels
double as spatulas, hand saws and shovels are used as frying pans.
It's the Barbecue meat-fest that Craftsman never intended and its
all in good fun.I'm actually not quite sure what the NFL is trying to accomplish by alienating some if its most die hard fans. I certainly understand and support its position on excessive drinking, which in the hands of the irresponsible detracts from the stadium experience of us all. However, I guess I object to the means by which this strategy is currently being employed. I maintain that if you want to create a better stadium atmosphere, throw the drunks out, revoke season ticket holder privileges, punish the select few that ruin it for us all, don't tread on the guys that are an institution in the parking lot ... that's just bad business, but I digress ... In any case, as gametime approached, we headed into Ralph Wilson Stadium for the Bills matchup against the division rival New York Jets. Remember when the Jets were the doormats of the league? The underachieving franchise in distress? The easy win you could count on twice a year? My, oh my, how times have changed. It's hard to accept that these days, my beloved Buffalo Bills have replaced them as the laughing stock of the National Football League, and it continued on Sunday.  From kickoff, right through when the last few seconds ticked off the
clock, the Buffalo Bills showed what true mediocrity in this league
looks like. They couldn't run the ball on the Jets stout front line.
They couldn't find open receivers as the Jets defensive backs
blanketed Buffalo pass catchers. They couldn't stop the run as
LaDanian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene each victimized the Bills
defense for over 100 yards a piece. Watching this game was brutal
because it brought to light how far we've fallen as a franchise.
After years of poor drafts, a refusal to sign home grown free
agents, and a front office that annually purged the talent pool at
One Bills Drive, we have become the Detroit Lions. What a mess ...For more information on the city of Buffalo, NY check out my other reviews by clicking on the links below: NFL: October 19, 2014 - Minnesota Vikings vs. Buffalo Bills NFL: September 15, 2013 - Carolina Panthers vs. Buffalo Bills NFL: November 21, 2012 - New York Jets vs. Buffalo Bills NFL: November 6, 2011 - New York Jets vs. Buffalo Bills NFL: November 7, 2010 - Chicago Bears vs. Buffalo Bills - Rogers Centre: Toronto NFL: November 1, 2009 - Houston Texans vs. Buffalo Bills NFL: August 15, 2009 - Chicago Bears vs. Buffalo Bills NFL: October 19, 2008 - San Diego Chargers vs. Buffalo Bills NFL: December 9, 2007 - Miami Dolphins vs. Buffalo Bills NFL: November 4, 2007 - Cincinnati Bengals vs. Buffalo Bills NFL: November 26, 2006 - Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Buffalo Bills NHL: March 12, 2010 - Minnesota Wild vs. Buffalo Sabres NHL: Buffalo Sabres, HSBC Arena - General Information |
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| City of Buffalo Local Information | |
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Top Tourist Attractions: Niagara Falls - Maid of the Mist Boat Tour Anchor Bar - Originator of the Buffalo Chicken Wing Local Foods: Buffalo Chicken Wings Kimmelweck "Beef on Weck" LaNova White Pizza What They're Drinkin': Labatt's Blue, Molson Canadian, Yeungling Tailgating Hotspots: Kenny "Pinto Ron" Johnson's Tailgate Party Recreational Vehicle Lot Fan Resources: Pocket Map of Buffalo Stadium Policy Stadium Parking Map Local Sports Media: The Buffalo News WGR 550AM |
Popular
Bar Districts: Chippewa Street (SoHo, Papaya, Pure, Omega Lounge, Bayou) Elmwood Avenue (Mister Goodbar, Coles, Sahara Grill, JP Bullfeathers) Delaware Avenue (Nektar, Toro, Fahertys, The Thirsty Buffalo, Snooty Fox, Stillwater) Hertel Avenue (Fiamma, Shadow Lounge) Best Restaurants: Anchor Bar (Originator of the Buffalo Chicken Wing) Pearl Street Grill Buffalo Chophouse (Steak) Tandoori (Indian Cuisine) Kentucky Gregs (BBQ) 800 Maple (Brick Oven Pizza, Martinis) Papaya and Seabar (Sushi) Northend Trattoria, Romeo and Juliet's (Italian Cuisine) Getting to the Stadium: To get to Ralph Wilson Stadium, you're going to need to drive to Orchard Park, NY, which is a suburb of Buffalo. Public transportation is not an option here. Where to Stay: I would suggest staying in a hotel in downtown Buffalo to take advantage of the nightlife. The best hotel is definitely the Hyatt Downtown, located a stone's throw from the Chippewa Street bar district. the Hampton Inn downtown and Adam's Mark are also good options. |
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| 15 year Anniversary | The Quest Machine made the Journey | Twenty-Four Pound Roast Beast | ||
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| Fowling in Buffalo, NY | Pin-Point Accurate Passing | Throwing for the Win | ||
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| The Family Retreat Crew | Big Hans, Erik, and Myself | Hans and Hans by the Fire | ||
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| Pinto Ron's Grilling Surface | Pat and Don from Coffin Corner | Coffin Corner Crew | ||
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| Slicing the Beast | Ketchup Opening Ceremony | The Beer Can Chicken is done | ||
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| Jarius Byrd Fan Eric | A View from the Field | Ralph WIlson Stadium Revisited | ||
| COMMENTS? Please feel free to post any suggestions or comments you might have for my journey to Ralph Wilson Stadium, including the following: - Local Hotspots (Bar Districts, Restaurants, Clubs) - Local Foods (Traditional Cuisine, Micro Brews) - Tailgating Traditions - Your Experiences or Helpful Hints - If you saw me let me know! All commentary will be moderated. Your e-mail address will not be published. |
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A Production of Madness Unwatched LLC |
