#18 of 31: Heinz Field Stadium
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

September 28, 2014

GAMEDAY: PITTSBURGH STEELERS VS TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS

The night before the Steelers game we happily gave up our traditional pre-game cheeseburger and enjoyed a Mini-Family-Chinese Buffet-Reunion with the Pittsburgh contingent of Bernie's family. Uncles Joe and Hank, Aunt June and Cousin Raymond were more fun than any sportsbar.

In the predawn hours of Sunday morning we parked along the banks of the Ohio River and waited for our lot to open… Gameday began with a spectacular sunrise over Heinz Field. The lot filled quickly with early birds and too few fan vans.

By 7:45 AM our cameras were checked, breakfast was eaten, the dogs walked and, dressed in black, we were ready to set off into a sea of black and gold for a three and one half hour walk around the stadium.

Finding parking had been a problem. The stadium's lots did not allow campers and the few people we were able to contact had sold their big rigs because they could no longer park them in the stadium lots. We parked in a lot adjacent to the Rivers Casino close to the field and paid $50.00 a space to tailgate with several other big rigs. We took up 4 spaces! (Oh dear!)

While there was a noticeable lack of decked out fan vans in the big Gold Lot closest to the stadium, it was more than compensated for by the fantastic attire some of the fans were wearing. Yoda was there, along with a slim bare-chested Elvis Lamé clad chap, a football priest and Batman. Like the essential "Little black dress" there were black jerseys everywhere… all with big gold numbers. Troy Polamalu's #43 shirts were most prevalent and  'Head and Shoulders' above the rest. We didn't see any Troy wigs, but there were quite a few Polamalu hair wannabes and we even met two kids named Troy. Speaking of bees, there were a lot of yellow and black striped bee shirts and pants around.

PHOTO GALLERY ONE

An assortment of terrible towels, black and gold camo pants, fleecy, puffy scarves, coolie and mariachi hats, yellow contact lenses with fake black lashes, themed argyle socks and hand knit sweaters adorned the fans.

Music was blasting everywhere, and really, what's not to love about a group of fans that beats out Neil Diamond's Sweet Caroline (????!?) along with Queen's We Will Rock You?

While we did not see as many people grilling as other stadiums, there was no shortage of really good food happening. Lots of Buffalo Chicken Dip, but there was also a savory garlic, cheese and butter pulled bread appetizer. If you are a fan of carbs and cheese, and I am, this was heaven in a pan.

PHOTO GALLERY TWO

Unique to this tailgating event was a group of family and friends who were having their Rosh Hashanah meal. There was challah bread, honey and apples, noodle kugel, brisket and chopped liver. A non-Kosher rum cake arrived in a guest's arms as I was leaving.

I actually had a little drinky-poo about 8:45 in the morning. Two very nice gentlemen had made a Vodka infusion with fresh Pineapple. That's it! Pour vodka to cover a lot of pineapple spears and refrigerate for three days. The beverage was clear, slightly sweet and pineapplely… perfect fruit juice for breakfast. I'll be making it later this week.

The day began to heat up, and about 11:15 we returned to Maybe to leave some layers of clothing behind. Arriving back, we found parties all around us - lots of kids and games going on. Gee, we thought, let's just hangout and tailgate. What a radical idea!

PHOTO GALLERY THREE

We leashed up Sully and Harry Fly and brought them out to enjoy the festivities. Harry, all black and gold like he is, was an instant sensation. People were practically lining up to pose with him. We cracked open a couple of beers, pulled out some chairs and proceeded to have a terrific time actually tailgating with the really friendly folks around us.

FINAL: PITTSBURGH 24, TAMPA BAY 27

Note: All photos in the story are available to the fans for free in the galleries. Just click on enlargement and download.