Visiting the Holy Place- Heinz Feild

This Thursday, Matt and I had the awesome opportunity to attend a Pittsburgh Steelers game. Going to see the Steelers play, was a unique opportunity to understand something really fundamental about the local culture.

We've never lived in a football town before, but it seems to me Pittsburgh takes it to the extreme. Most people here have very strong opionion about how the team should play. They follow the injury lists, the training targets and performance statistics for every man on the field. On game day, no matter what your business, professional dress is swapped for Steelers gear. The day after a game, everyone will be prepared to analyze the game play-by-play with anyone whose got the time- construction workers, college students, yuppies, mothers and grandmothers- it's all anyone can think about. Once we flew into town during a Steelers game, a businessman with a blackberry was updating the score for the whole plane until the cabin door shut, and as soon as we landed the mom with two kids in tow called in for the final score. Heaven forbid a game should end in a loss- the whole city is depressed, moping and grouchy, bitter at the coaching staff and players and each other for letting such a catastrophe befall the sacred Steelers. Football is *important* here.

I am still not sure I understand why, but after going to see a real game, but I understand how. Every seat in the stadium belongs to a seasons ticket holder. Fans pre-lease parking spot near the stadium to begin the righteous tailgating ceremony that involves beer, fire, music and cars. People stream across the bridges to the stadium in a stream of black and gold, the stadium itself is a flood of screaming passion and costumed enthusiasm. We went to a Thursday game, against a team that we were confident we could beat, but not one of the half a dozen teams that Pittsburgh HATES for some historical slight. 60,000 crazy Steelers fans were there, in full dress, in the first winter snow shouting like the place was on fire and waving those Terrible Towels. They take the game SERIOUSLY.

If you didn't see the results, the Steelers won. At work the next day, the discussion centered on whether or not they'd won by enough. Because I was among the chosen there in the stadium, I felt like a hero- as though I personally may have in some small way, through my shouts, or transmitted hating the Bengals, actually had anything to do with the win. Check out the album here.