Re: SOLDIER FIELD 2013 • Wisconsin vs. Minnesota & Miami vs. Notre Dame
Re: SOLDIER FIELD 2013 • Wisconsin vs. Minnesota & Miami vs. Notre Dame
I don't know about that. We played outdoors as often as we could growing up. All day on the weekends.
I think the comment is more directed at the almost "talking points" way that the media describes these events. It's one sugary "memory" after the next and more and more players as time goes by can't identify with what they're talking about.
Sure, I played outside. For the two months a year while ice was safe at the slough near my house. But in Illinois, we only had ice for a relatively small portion of the year. I will agree with the talking points though that those are some of my best hockey memories.
My son has probably spent 99.9% of his time on skates indoors. We don't have outdoor ice within any sort of walking distance and kids just don't seem to play sports in the neighborhood like we used to.
Where I have trouble with the "talking points" is that the outdoor ice that I spent all those days on looked nothing like Soldier Field - it was SO much better. The slough was maybe 200' wide, but was probably a half-mile long. If your puck went out of play with any speed, you might have to skate almost 100 yards to go get it.
Two other memories (here
I go now - should be on the broadcast
):
1) The ice-quakes. BOOM!
When a big fracture would happen, it would startle you pretty good. We'd all stop, waiting for the end of the world and then laugh and keep going.
2) Frozen fish. This was a muddy Illinois slough when it was open water and was filled with carp or koy or just big ol' goldfish. There would always be hundreds of these fish, oranges, browns & whites and every combo possible, many well over a foot long frozen just inches below the surface. We'd just play right over the top of them. Wonder if they had weird dreams - assuming of course that they survived the thaw.
They should have had the game on Lake Michigan with no boards. If you want to watch it, you have to stand around the playing surface - no bleachers. Now THAT would take me back.
EDIT: Okay, obviously I talked myself around a big circle there, but I'm going to leave it. I will say though, that I went to the Lambeau game and while it was neat and I'm glad I went (once), at no time did the experience bring back any memories of me playing outside as a kid.
A football stadium with a tiny rink in the middle of the field reminded me a lot more of all the times I've been to, well, football games. Felt like a Badger/Packer Football/Hockey game.
Again, fun, but not nostalgic in any way shape or form.
