That's Entertainment.

Going to sporting events have always been enjoyable---and they have come a long way in the area of entertainment. Never do I recall in all of the St. Louis Blues hockey games I attended of seeing scantily clad women skating on the ice shoveling up ice and other items littering the ice. I also don't remember seeing mascots on the field, court or in the stands. Now every team has them.

One of my fondest memories of a college football game was during the Missouri v. Kansas game during my freshman year. What was memorable about it was the fight the two bands got into during the game. I never knew a flutist could punch that hard. I also have seen mascots go after one another and seeing one of the heads come off. Much to my surprise there was a human being inside the outfit. Can you believe it?

Okay, so what I have described is not that big of a deal. But now it has gone over the top. You have fans inside blow up mascot outfits in races around the court, shirts being held by parachutes floating down from the rafters, and the kiss-cam. For those of you who don't know about the kiss-cam, it finds couples in the stadium and encourages them to kiss. The best is when they don't know one another and the ultimate was when two guys kissed at a hockey game. That was not well received by the macho fan base in case you are wondering.

I don't know who came up with this concept, but at games and stadiums around the U.S. t-shirts are now shot out of high powered tubes that look like bazooka's. They use some type of propellent to get them on their way and when they are shot out they go pretty far and really fast into the stands. Except for the time when one of the shooters slipped and nailed someone in the front row with a t-shirt. It was funny to watch, but better that the person who got hit didn't get hurt too bad---more shock than anything else.

I am waiting to see someone lean over the edge trying to get a t-shirt or some item and have them fall over the railing. I don't want them to get hurt, I want to capture it through my Nikon. I know it has happened, but not at a game I have attended. The best one I saw was when I was at a Dallas Cowboy's game many years ago and a man in the stands (who was in a costume) caught on fire when he bumped into a vendor who was carrying a Sterno to keep the food warm. It was on national TV because it was a play off game so when I told people I was there a lot of people told me they saw it. I felt special having been there.

The photo above was taken at a Kansas City Royals game. I really like when you can see the after effects from the tube; it reminds me of guns when they go off and smoke comes out. I am glad I have not been hit with any of the souvenirs; I collect bobbleheads and knowing how heavy they can be, it would not be fun to be hit by one. But I assume if I did get hit, both of our heads would be bobbling!

Thanks for stopping by.