Let's keep the year-end lists coming with.....
The Top 10 Events I Attended During 2009
10. ACC Basketball Tournament @ The Georgia Dome- Atlanta, GA: my first taste of the ACC tourney. I got to see second round games ofWake Forest vs.Maryland, as well Duke vs. Boston College. I was glad to see those teams and especially to see Jeff Teague who was projected as a high draft pick, which he was to the Atlanta Hawks. I actually ended up in a lounge in the GA Dome watching Auburn upset Florida in the SEC tourney during part of the Duke game, but no one really likes Duke anyway, right?
9. Beach Trip – Destin, FL: not really an event, I know. Still it was a very fun weekend involving the ocean, a pickup football game on the beach, go karts, seafood, piano bars, and witnessing the most public debauchery I’ve seen in one night in public. I’m definitely planning on making it back to Destin as soon as possible, you should too.
8. Clemson vs. Georgia Tech @ Bobby Dodd Stadium- Atlanta, GA: shockingly, this was the only college football game that I made it to during 2009, so it had to be on the list. What started off as a Georgia Tech blowout ended up being a close game that came down to Tech kicking a game winning field goal in the game’s final seconds. Add to the excitement the fact that we got 50 yard line, 10th row seats for free and it was definitely a good event.
7. Sick Puppies Acoustic Live-X @ 99X Studios- Atlanta, GA: I won some tickets on the radio to see the Australian rockers Sick Puppies play an acoustic set in the studio. It was a pretty a cool, intimate experience with about 30 people. I ended up buying their album while I was there, its pretty decent. You can check out the footage at 99x.com in the A/V room.
6. Various Braves Games @ Turner Field- Atlanta, GA: summertime, warm weather, tailgating and baseball; doesn’t get much better than that. I can’t single out a game as part of this top ten, but collectively I had a ton of fun at Braves games this year, as always. My one regret was that I didn’t get to pour a cooler full of ice water on anyone this year. There’s always 2010.
5. T.I.’s Going to Jail Concert @ Phillips Arena- Atlanta, GA: I scored some 4th row seats to this wonderful rap extravaganza. The bass was so ridiculously loud up that close, I don’t think my hearing has been the same since. It was a great time though- my three companions and I definitely looked like the odd men out in our section, but that didn’t stop us from doing crazy white people dance moves and having a great time. We even had a Soulja Boy and Bonecrusher sighting!
4. Hawks Playoff Games- Phillips Arena- Atlanta, GA: nothing beats a playoff atmosphere, and basketball is one of the greatest sports to facilitate electric environments. Phillips Arena is actually a fun place to be during the Hawks playoff games. People arrive hours before tip-off to imbibe in my favorite new pregame ritual: oversized draft beer from Gorins (a little food joint inside CNN Center which I’ve never actually seen serve food, just beer). The fans get hammered, and thus really into the game and the Hawks feed off the energy. The 2008 Hawks/Celtics series was one of the best ever, but the 2009 home playoff games were amazing too. And this time around, the Hawks actually won a series. Next stop, Eastern Conference Finals!
3. Ravens vs. Vikings @ Metrodome- Minneapolis, MN: you can see the full recap in the October section of the X-Marc’s-The-Spot blog, great trip. My only NFL game of the year was certainly a good one. Bad outcome, but great overall experience and way more purple than should be allowed in a building full of 70,000 grown men.
2. Cruefest @ Lakewood- Atlanta, GA: 20-plus years later and Motley Crue is still bringin’ it, and bringin’ it HARD. After a huge letdown from Aerosmith earlier in the year, I didn’t know what to expect from Crue. But the rebellious rock quartet definitely did not disappoint. This was one of the best live performances I have ever seen and we’re talking over twenty years since these guys were in their prime. I would have loved to see a Crue show in the 80’s, but unfortunately the only songs I knew were by the Smurfs and Carebears during that time. I read Nikki Sixx’s book earlier in the year and figured I should check out the show too- got tickets for $20 and I can easily say that was the best value I’ve ever gotten out of a concert. Godsmack put on a great show before Crue as well. I will most definitely be returning to Cruefest in the future if they roll back through Atlanta.
1. Braves vs. Red Sox @ Fenway Park- Boston, MA: da sawx, Fenway paaaak. I feel like the Fenway experience is something that every sports fan should enjoy at least once in their lifetime. Boston is a great city to visit (made sure I went in the summer) and the sports fans up there, which is pretty much everyone, are very knowledgeable and a fun crowd to be around. The Bravos lost a pitching duel in the game that I attended but I had an amazing time nonetheless. The moment you step into the stadium and see the field for the first time is almost surreal at Fenway and its something that I will always remember.
Other notables not ranked:
Going to the unemployment office, Karaoke/Piano bars in Nashville (took about 3 years off my life that night), and a few Thrashers games.
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