Hate to admit it but Indianapolis has been best Super Bowl site ever
February 03, 2012
by Nestor Aparicio
WNST - AM 1570 Baltimore
Hate to admit it but Indianapolis has been best Super Bowl site ever...having to spend eight days here watching Patriots and Giants fans revel in their good fortune.
But I’m here to say that after spending the last five nights here and walking through the streets of Indianapolis every night that I’ve never seen a Super Bowl celebration like the one that’s going on here this week.
The weather has been glorious by midwestern standards in February. It’s been in the 60′s most days and in the 40′s most nights. The zipline downtown has been spectacular. The downtown streets have been flooded with locals who have apparently taken the entire week off and are treating this Super Bowl celebration as a “State Fair” of sorts. I’m not even sure any of these people even have jobs based on the late hours and non-stop “Saturday night” celebration I’ve witnessed.
I’ve seen grandmothers and children walking the streets at 10 p.m. on a Tuesday night in Peyton Manning jerseys. The buildings are awash in color and tens of thousands of people are here partying, turning an otherwise rather mundane area into a living, breathing Bourbon Street before the fans from Boston and New York even arrive.
It’s been quite the show, like a New Year’s Eve bender that feels like it has no end. Even the coffee shop at the hotel is open 24 hours a day!
Meanwhile, during the day I’ve sat next to our vintage Bob Irsay dummy on Radio Row at the J.W. Marriott and marveled at what those Mayflower vans and that infamous night in March 1984 have begat here in “friendly heart of the Midwest.”
It’s really kind of astonishing, this long tail of events that Irsay’s move has unfurled over the past 28 years from Peyton Manning to the existence of the Ravens to this shiny new Lucas Oil Stadium and now a Super Bowl that has turned Indianapolis into midtown Manhattan for 10 days.
As the rest of my life will unfurl when I return to Baltimore on Monday morning, I will not soon forget the scene here in Indianapolis this week and always regret what our fans would’ve found if the 50,000 of you would’ve made this journey this weekend and found a city that’s in the midst of its own franchise earthquake with the Irsay-Manning-Luck triangle.
I’ve attended 18 Super Bowls. I’ve walked the streets, seen the energy, participated in the revelry at all of them. I’ve broadcast more than 500 hours of radio from Super Bowls from San Diego to Miami, from Detroit to Jacksonville, from Tampa to Minneapolis and I can honestly say that I’ve never seen a better site or a metropolis that’s taken to throwing a party quite the way Indianapolis has this week.
And before you start directing your angst, anger and vitriol my way just realize this — I’m in the business of reporting the facts and being honest.
And if the the great tradition of Howard Cosell of “telling it like it is” is sacred to me then I owe you the truth — I’m here in the land of the Irsays reporting back to Baltimore that this might go down as the greatest Super Bowl site ever.
And, given the tenth of a second that our city came from experiencing this magic and energy, that’s a very, very difficult admission on my part.
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Saturday, February 4, 2012
AP Reports White Convicted of 6 Felonies
"Indiana's top elections official could lose his job and his freedom after jurors convicted him of multiple voter fraud-related charges on Saturday, leaving in flux the fate of one of the state's most powerful positions.
"Republican Secretary of State Charlie White has held on to his office for more than a year despite being accused of lying about his address on voter registration forms.
"A Hamilton County jury found White guilty of six of seven felony charges, including false registration, voting in another precinct, submitting a false ballot, theft and two counts of perjury. He was acquitted on one fraud charge."
By Charles Wilson, AP reporter
"Republican Secretary of State Charlie White has held on to his office for more than a year despite being accused of lying about his address on voter registration forms.
"A Hamilton County jury found White guilty of six of seven felony charges, including false registration, voting in another precinct, submitting a false ballot, theft and two counts of perjury. He was acquitted on one fraud charge."
By Charles Wilson, AP reporter
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
It May Be in the 60s Now...
The New York Giants take on the New England Patriots this Sunday at 6:30 p.m. EST in the Super Bowl at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
The game will take place under a retractable roof, but will the weather wreak havoc on travelers?
"There's a potential storm Saturday and Sunday, but exactly how it's going to take shape, we're still not sure about," said AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Michael Pigott. One scenario is that a storm develops in the Plains and stays too far south and west for precipitation to arrive in Indianapolis over the weekend. The second scenario is that the storm is more progressive, sending some rain into Indianapolis by late Saturday and even the possibility of a snow shower on Sunday.
At this point, it appears that there will be a bit of rain in Indianapolis on Saturday, followed by a passing shower or two on Sunday. It is not out of the question that there is enough cooling for a snow shower on game day.
"Depending on which (scenario) is right, it will have a large effect on not only the Super Bowl, but also the following week. We're expecting a big cold shot later," added Pigott.
Some football fans from around the country traveling to the Super Bowl may deal with a snowstorm or severe weather.
A snowstorm will be unfolding across portions of the Plains this weekend. Snow will spread from Colorado into portions of Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma on Saturday. The snow may make it farther into the Midwest, including across Iowa, northern Missouri and southern Minnesota.
On the southern edge of the storm, mild and muggy air from the Gulf of Mexico will fuel locally torrential downpours and severe thunderstorms across the Gulf States. Some steadier rain may also advance across the Tennessee Valley and the Carolinas this weekend.
"The rest of the country shouldn't be too bad, travel-wise," Pigott said. The Northwest, Southwest and Northeast should have pretty clear weather for the weekend of the big game.
After several days of above-normal temperatures, the Indianapolis area will cool down next week.
"Temperatures have been fairly warm this week," said AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Adrienne Veilleux. "But things will cool down next week in Indianapolis. They've been above average this week, will start to slide over the weekend and be right around average or even a bit below average by Monday."
With cooler air on the way, any precipitation in the area could fall as freezing rain or snow.
"If there is moisture this weekend, we could definitely see a snow shower," added Veilleux.
Note: written by John Marsh for AccuWeather.com
The game will take place under a retractable roof, but will the weather wreak havoc on travelers?
"There's a potential storm Saturday and Sunday, but exactly how it's going to take shape, we're still not sure about," said AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Michael Pigott. One scenario is that a storm develops in the Plains and stays too far south and west for precipitation to arrive in Indianapolis over the weekend. The second scenario is that the storm is more progressive, sending some rain into Indianapolis by late Saturday and even the possibility of a snow shower on Sunday.
At this point, it appears that there will be a bit of rain in Indianapolis on Saturday, followed by a passing shower or two on Sunday. It is not out of the question that there is enough cooling for a snow shower on game day.
"Depending on which (scenario) is right, it will have a large effect on not only the Super Bowl, but also the following week. We're expecting a big cold shot later," added Pigott.
Some football fans from around the country traveling to the Super Bowl may deal with a snowstorm or severe weather.
A snowstorm will be unfolding across portions of the Plains this weekend. Snow will spread from Colorado into portions of Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma on Saturday. The snow may make it farther into the Midwest, including across Iowa, northern Missouri and southern Minnesota.
On the southern edge of the storm, mild and muggy air from the Gulf of Mexico will fuel locally torrential downpours and severe thunderstorms across the Gulf States. Some steadier rain may also advance across the Tennessee Valley and the Carolinas this weekend.
"The rest of the country shouldn't be too bad, travel-wise," Pigott said. The Northwest, Southwest and Northeast should have pretty clear weather for the weekend of the big game.
After several days of above-normal temperatures, the Indianapolis area will cool down next week.
"Temperatures have been fairly warm this week," said AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Adrienne Veilleux. "But things will cool down next week in Indianapolis. They've been above average this week, will start to slide over the weekend and be right around average or even a bit below average by Monday."
With cooler air on the way, any precipitation in the area could fall as freezing rain or snow.
"If there is moisture this weekend, we could definitely see a snow shower," added Veilleux.
Note: written by John Marsh for AccuWeather.com
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Not Going to the Big Game?
Beyond the Superbowl XLVI: 10 Incredible Things to See and Do in Indianapolis gives suggestions on how to fill your idle hours if you're not willing to fork over the big bucks for a ticket to the Super Bowl.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Humanitarian Speed Dating
This notice comes via Provocate.org:Fifteen of Indy’s most innovative social entrepreneurs will get together at the Athenaeum, 401 East Michigan Street, Indianapolis, beginning at 6:30 p.m. next Wednesday (25 January) to tell us what they are doing, why it’s important, and how we can help them change the world … in four minutes each.
After hearing the exceptionally condensed version of what each of these exceptional people are doing in Indiana and around the world, take as much time as you like to talk with them more. Meet other members of their organizations. Discuss new ideas that might make a difference. Mingle, connect, network. And expect to leave the Athenaeum with a different perspective on Indy and our relation to the world.
To see a list of participating groups, go here.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Why Are We Not Surprised?
IBJ.com reports, "The Capital Improvement Board of Marion County is budgeting for total Super Bowl expenses of $8 million and revenue of nearly $7.2 million, leaving a loss of $810,000."
Read it all here.
Only the CIB can turn a win into a loss for us, the taxpayers.
Read it all here.
Only the CIB can turn a win into a loss for us, the taxpayers.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
People Movers Grind to a Halt
The Indiana University Health People Mover on the west side of downtown Indy will be out of service for 12 weeks beginning Monday (16 January).
With more than a million miles logged, the trains have become increasingly unreliable over the past several months, with unscheduled stops, doors refusing to open and other operational issues.
It's hoped the overhaul will get the light rail up and running well again.
With more than a million miles logged, the trains have become increasingly unreliable over the past several months, with unscheduled stops, doors refusing to open and other operational issues.
It's hoped the overhaul will get the light rail up and running well again.
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