Lambeau

I know people wonder how I became a Green Bay Packers’ fan since I was born and raised in Minnesota, and my mom is an alumna of the Minnesota Vikings cheerleading squad. I get asked this all the time. The answer is quite simple: when I was a child, my dad would watch Vikings’ games, and he HATED Cris Carter: he often called him a cheater. As a child, my moral high ground told me I couldn’t cheer for him, or who he played for, the Vikings. If you live in Minnesota, if the Vikings weren’t on TV, the Packers were. As a 8/9/10 year-old watching Brett Favre was watching magic. I knew that’s the team I had to cheer for. Then, they won the Superbowl, after being in it a couple years in a short span. Then, came Aaron Rodgers, who is a couple weeks older than me. If Brett Favre was watching magic; Rodgers was like watching Football 101.

As I grew up loving the Packers, I learned things that made me love them more. 1)The fans own the team. In a world of millionaires, normal people could own a football team. I did become an owner in 2021, when stocks went on sale. I bought the stock as a present to myself for completing my dissertation mere months before. 2) I love history and tradition, which the Packers are full of. 13-time Champions. 2^nd oldest team. Came from nothing to something. There is so much about the Packers to love. 3) They have a small-town feel. Green Bay is in the middle of Wisconsin and has a small population. The fans are working people from a working town. The Packers are the epitome of American life. 3) They don’t have an annoying horn/train sound. The Vikings’ horn kills me a little inside every time I hear it.

I often say I grew up in Minnesota and Wisconsin. There are parts of MN/WI/MI that intermingle. However, I have never been to MI. AND I HATE THE LIONS—they are dirty. I will never cheer for them. I spent a lot of time in Wisconsin as a kid.  Never GB, though. Going to a game at the historic, Lambeau field has always been a goal/dream.

When I moved to NC at 15, that dream got farther away. In 2015, the Packers came to Carolina to play the Panthers. My dad and I, along with Hannah and my mom (who wanted to see Catlyn) traveled to Charolotte to see the Pack play. The team did not play their best, and on a comeback drive, Aaron Rodgers threw an endzone INT. This game was the game I knew I couldn’t cheer for the Panthers, as Cam Newton disrespected a veteran, and to me, that was just unacceptable, Though, the fans, did help the vet. The next year, the Panters played the Pack again, and my friend’s boyfriend had season tickets, and I wasn’t invited to the game. At the time, I was upset, but we didn’t know each other well enough for me to go to the game with just him, and I am sure he was trying to impress her by taking her to the game.

Every year, the Packers have multiple promotions to win tickets to Green Bay and see a game at Lambeau Field. Unfortunately, I have never won any of these promotions. One of them is you prove your Packers’ fandom by sending in a picture that will be printed on a ticket. (They don’t even have paper tickets anymore, so I don’t understand the point of this promotion, except to win tickets to the game). I have even entered that one when I know about it (sometimes the categories aren’t conducive to my fandom). With my ownership, I also get 4 tickets to the Annual Board Meeting every July. Because I can’t go, I always send my tickets to my friends that live in WI. I vote by proxy for the Ownership Meeting.

This year, the NFL Draft was in Green Bay, which was astounding because of how small the town is. The population is about 120,000. The Draft brings in millions. The biggest problem: lodging for all those people. I would have loved to go to see the Draft, but I also know the crowds would overwhelm me. In May, my friend, Ryan, asked me what I would do if I had the opportunity to go to Lambeau. I said, “be your best friend forever.” Ryan broadcasts, and he knows people all over the country. He has a friend in Wisconsin that has season tickets to the Pack and said he could use his for the Panthers’ game. The only catch: there were only 2 tickets, and he wanted to use them for him and his wife. Because he knows people, he knew he could get me one ticket. I was nervous because she’s not really a football fan, and I wanted to honor our friendship (not make the whole trip about football/Lambeau/The Packers), while checking off A Bucket List Items.

We also didn’t know the date of the game: yet. I have always been leery of going to a game at Lambeau in the colder months. Past October is not ideal weather in the Midwest. I love a good snow game, but I don’t want to be in a snow game. I am always cold. I mean ALWAYS. We found out the date of the game a few days later: November 2^nd—which is on the cusp. Needless to say, I was nervous. I wanted to go and enjoy the game, without worrying about being cold.

As the months passed, the details got hammered out. Ryan was very concerned about where we were going to eat. Me: not so much. I grew up in the Midwest. I eat Midwest food all the time. I can make Midwest food. Every game, I prepare a traditional Wisconsin dish—usually a brat. I consider myself a bratassieure. I will try flavored brats of any type (except what I am allergic to and pumpkin). Generally, I like a traditional beer brat with grilled onions. I also enjoy a local brat company that makes a brat called The Star Spangler—stuffed with cheddar and bacon. I was a little disappointed to find out Johnsonville brats are served at Lambeau. Though, I am sure Johnsonville brats are served at Lambeau. Though, I am sure that’s because they are serving a lot of people brats. My food goal was to have a good booyah (Booyah (stew) – Wikipedia) and all the cheese curds. I love cheese curds—fried, fresh, no matter how they come. *fried is my preference

Before we knew it, it was time for the trip. We had 3 ½ days in Wisconsin. There is a lot to do at Lambeau/Green Bay. I knew we would not be able to do everything I wanted to do in one trip because they weren’t Green Bay fans like I am. Truly, going to Green Bay should be on every football fans to-do list since there is so much history there.

On Friday, we went to Lambeau on a tour of the stadium tour. I would have chosen to do the Legendary Tour, in which a Green Bay Packers legend takes you on the tour. However, I knew my friends wouldn’t get the thrill of that like I would. We did the Champions tour, which allows you access to most of the stadium. No one is ever allowed access to the players’ locker room because that’s reserved for players and coaches only. Also, we didn’t have access to the visitor’s locker room because they set it up for the visiting team 2 days before the game. We walked down the tunnel, where the players enter the field. I was underwhelmed by that—probably because it’s just a tunnel when no players are in it. It’s dark. There’s no music. It’s just a tunnel when it’s no game day. We stood on the 50-yard line. (You can’t actually walk on the field, but there’s a spot on the sideline where you stand and take a picture of the field). Our tour guides were knowledgeable, and both had worked for the Packers organization for years. One of them sold beers at the first game at Lambeau in the 1950’s. I learned about the stadium—why they do certain things there they do that other stadiums don’t. Why there are bleachers and not seats. I learned about the field’s hybrid grass and got to hold it. The tour was cool. I feel like you could go several times and still learn something new. We then went on the Heritage Trail tour, which could have been skipped. There was nothing super interesting on it, except City Stadium (the original home of the Packers), but we could have found that on our own. For dinner, we had The Black Sheep, which is a favorite among the players, especially one of my favorites: AJ Dillion, who is now and Eagle, but still keeps close ties to Wisconsin and Door County.

On Saturday, we went back to Lambeau. We went to the Packers Hall of Fame. I was astounded at how large it was—2 floors of Pack. Again, I could tour the Hall of Fame multiple times and never experience it all. For one, they change the exhibits. The special exhibit was about the 1923 Packers. That was the theme of the weekend. I was disappointed by the game-day jerseys because they were the 1923 Throwback jerseys, and they are navy and gold. To me, that doesn’t say GREEN Bay Packers, even if they started as navy and gold. I wanted my first trip to Lambeau to be the green and gold. Yes, first world football problems, but lifelong dreams being fulfilled are first world football dreams. I saw all the Superbowl Trophies and rings, and Aaron Rodgers’ third MVP. I saw the Hall of Fame Football for some of my favorite Packers: Jordy, LeRoy, Ray, and Bart. I felt we rushed through the Hall of Fame because Emily wasn’t super interested (she’s not a museum person, and it’s not her team), and Ryan was trying to get me pictures of Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who was just outside the HOF. It was also super crowded because it was the Saturday before a game.  We, then went to lunch at the famous 1919 restaurant at Lambeau, where I did get my booyah and cheese curds (this was the 3^rd helping of curds I had). After lunch, we went to The Packers Pro Shop, which is HUGE. You could spend hours there. Ryan appreciated they had a section for the opponents. I got my program with paper tickets, and a Packers keychain with my name on it—one reason I am glad my name is becoming more popular. We then took pictures with the famous statues outside of the stadium: Curly, Vince, and I did the Lambeau Leap! (You can’t do it on the Stadium Tour anymore because someone hurt themselves a few years ago.) We then drove to find Vince Lombardi’s house. The basement has not been changed since Lombardi owned it, You can tour it,  but we did not want to impose on the owner’s privacy. We then went to a couple Green Bay hotspots, including a restaurant called Prime Quarter, where you cook your own steak—pretty cool experience. Raleigh should open one!

GAME DAY-SUNDAY. It was cold. So, I put on my hospital socks and fleece-lined leggings. I forgot my heated vest that my dad bought for me, and my minutes. Thankfully, Emily let me borrow hers. We didn’t know how early to arrive at the stadium because you can’t park there game day. We were told 8:30, but we could have arrived later—like 10. People tailgate in the business parking lots that are there, and if you’re not with the enemy, you can probably join one. We did go to the Tailgate Village, which is attached to the stadium. Entering Lambeau on game day is overwhelming. It’s an amazing feeling to be with that many like-minded people. I found my seat, which was just above the lower bowl in the endzone. IT WAS SO WINDY. Like, 30 MPH winds. The people sitting next to me were from Cary, North Carolina, and were Pack fans. What a small world. The guy next to me is now my stadium boyfriend, lol. He bought me a hot chocolate, and I caught him staring at me a few times. When I was shivering, he put his arm around me to keep me warm. The game was terribly reffed—there were several missed holding calls on the Panthers. I have a picture of one. It was also not coached well. I was yelling at Coach Matt the entire time. I did love yelling “GO PACK GO” with my fellow Pack fans. Though, the energy was lacking the entire game IMO. This was a game sandwiched between 2 big games—the Aaron Rodgers’ game and the Superbowl Champs. We beat Aaron Rodgers. I think that played a factor. However, I have long held the belief games are fixed, and attending this game only confirmed that belief. It’s all about money and entertainment when you break it down. Vegas made a lot of money with the Packers losing. Call me cynical, but I know the way the world works. I watch football for entertainment, but it doesn’t mean I don’t get worked up in the moment. It’s like watching a movie.

Us losing, the day I was there, only means I have to go back to see a winning game, right? Plus, I need to see the green and gold. Now that I have been once, I know what I would do differently next time. Yes: it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience but can you have more than one once-in-a-lifetime experiences in one lifetime. Yes, you can. The experience would still be once-in-a-lifetime because it would be different than the time before.

Before driving to the airport, we went to Titletown, which is adjacent to the stadium. At Titletown, is a manufactured hill, where you can go snowtubing in the winter. There is also an ice skating rink. You can take pictures with statues of the Superbowl Rings. You can also go into the Packers’ brewery. It was not open when we went because even though Wisconsin is the drunkest state in the Union, they do not open breweries that early on Monday morning.

Ryan finally got his brat in the Milwaukee airport. It was on a pretzel bun, which I have never done before, but I believe I would thoroughly enjoy it. Who doesn’t love a good pretzel?

There’s my first time at Lambeau in a nutshell. If you have questions, ask. If you want to go to Lambeau with me, I still enter those contests. If I win one with your team, I will invite you along. Every football fan should go to Lambeau. I’ll be happy to take you there. As Always: GO PACK GO!

Here’s the link to the album from the trip: Green Bay – Google Photos