Sports Travel: Loud and Proud
Written by Daniel Turner, Friday April 10 2009
The 12th Man, loud and proud, a contingent of leather lung faithful who fill Qwest Field when the Seahawks play to create the ultimate home field advantage by generating a level of noise that equals or surpasses an airplane taking off, a heavy metal concert, or a high powered detonation. How loud does it get during a Seahawks game? So deafening is the noise that some teams have accused the Seahawks of amplifying the sound in Qwest. No proof has ever been unearthed to justify that claim, so it appears that the fans provide the decibels that cause visitors to jump off sides or go in motion too early.
With an atmosphere like that, you know you want to try it out once just to see if it is what it is said to be. Coming off of a 4-12 season with the economy in the toilet this may be your best opportunity to score tickets to the loudest show on earth. Once you secure the keys to the kingdom you may want to download bands like Mastodon, Pantera and Helmet to get your audio senses set for what is on hand when you take your seat at Qwest.
Football tickets cost a lot of money, so let’s live it up when it comes to accommodations. The Hotel 1000 on 1st Ave is the rest stop for this journey. It is a stylish boutique hotel with valets who dress all in black and wear fedoras while hailing taxis, toting luggage and pointing out the direction to that location you seek. Black is the color of dress for all the employees so, everyone from the late Johnny Cash to Slayer will fit right in and blend with the chrome, granite and recessed lighting that provides the ambience and lets you know you’re going to get your money’s worth.
The rooms in the 1000 have paintings that, should they not strike your fancy, can be rolled until you find one you like. They’re kind of like the ads on the time keepers table at NBA games. The mini bar signals room service when you are out of your favorite beverage. Hell, you could go broke downing $8.00 Red Hooks just to watch someone bring in replacements.
Once you bore of that activity you can retire to the Boka, a lounge that offers good food and drink and faces 1st Ave to give you a perfect view of Puget Sound. Across the street from the hotel are the Harbor Steps that lead down to Alaskan Way and Elliott Bay. Small shops and restaurants are located on the artfully created steps and Alaskan Way offers plenty of stores, eateries and Ye Olde Curiosity Shoppe. That’s a tourist trap that offers Seattle souvenirs and the mummified remains of an old prospector, or so the withered package of browned, aged tape claims. You don’t need any of the trinkets they sell, but it is worth poking around and looking at the pickled preserves of two headed fish and other oddities.
Pier 57 is at the foot of the steps and houses an old carousel that is worth taking a spin for both children and young lovers, including those young at heart. The pier is also next to Argosy Cruises. Argosy offers short excursions out on Puget Sound. One will take you to the Ballard Locks.
The Ballard Locks is similar to the Panama Canal, but its major purpose is keeping the salt water of Puget Sound out of the fresh water of Lake Washington. It is also a canal for ships to pass from one body to the other and is an area where salmon migrate to spawn. The technological wonders also offer a cool view of their workings and sit in the midst of a park. Aboard the Argosy vessel you can sip a cold one and take a look at something you probably don’t have back home; unless you live near the Erie Canal.
On Saturday night you will want to eat hearty if you are going to mingle with the face painted, soon to be hearing impaired crew that grace Qwest, so let’s go to a true Northwest tradition. Ivar’s Salmon House is located on the north shore of Lake Union next to the University Bridge. Ivar’s gained You Tube fame when they ran a half second commercial during the Super Bowl. The image of a gull shouting Ivar’s is still up for viewing on various sites, including Ivar’s home page. The Salmon House is a beautiful wooden structure that is decorated in Northwest Native American art on both the exterior and interior. In the main dining area a hand carved dugout canoe is suspended over the center of the room. Windows on the west and south sides offer breath taking views of Lake Union and the Olympic mountain range.
As you dine on expertly prepared fish with locally grown vegetables as side dishes you can watch seaplanes landing and taking off on the lake along with a steady flow of pleasure craft. If a large vessel wishes to pass under you may get to see the bridge drawn open. As you savor a local beer or wine and watch the bridge rise just remember it is more fun to watch it from the restaurant than it is from the line of traffic that may form.
Now that you have savored the Northwest pride of their native artifacts, cuisine and scenery it is time to go from the proud to the loud. To get yourself ready for a Sunday afternoon of rooting on the Seahawks you need to work up your energy with some music. That calls for a trip to the Crocodile. The Crocodile is a club in the Bell Town section that has recently reopened. In its heyday it was the home of the then burgeoning grunge scene. It was home to bands like Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains and, yes, Nirvana.
There’s not as much flannel, tattered shorts, or baseball caps worn backward visible these days, but the club is up and running again and hosting a local music scene that is still filled with talent and doesn’t have to worry about becoming romantically involved with Courtney Love.
Bell Town isn’t far from the Hotel 1000, so go nuts and try to bring back the bygone days of grunge, or even resurrect the spirit of another local band, the Kingmen’s Louie, Louie. Just make sure you get back to your room in time to change into your Seahawks jersey so you fit in with the rest of the Qwest crowd. You can use the noise of the Crocodile to practice screaming at the other team.
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