Bring Your Sign…It’s Helmer Time
9-20-12
Ok, this Rockies season was a bust and it’s quite possible we could achieve the 100 loss mark.
Just wondering how your still feeling about the lack of our homeboy Tom Helmer and his enthusiasm for the Rockies?
I don’t know about you but it seems to me the Rockies and Poot Warts need Helmer now more than ever.
Nothing against Joel Klatt pictured below.
Thursday is the last regular season game at Coors Field and Mike the Rox Addict and I plan to bring our “Bring Back Helmer” signs and just as we did the first game of the year we’re going to show our support hopefully pre-game and post-game.
What we need are Helmer supporters who can make signs and show up with arm power to hold them up.
If you miss Tom and feel it is essential that Poot Warts rehire him, get your ass up, grab a sharpie, find a chunk of cardboard and go to town with your sign making skills.
Poot Warts can tune out our chanting, but it’s difficult to mute a big ass sign?
WE NEED SIGNS!!
It’s the last game of the year…It’ll be months before you even think baseball again…Lets make a day of it and show support for the “HOMEBOY”.
Do you own one of the famous “Helmer is my Homeboy” shirts? Make sure you’re wearing it Thursday.
Then when we’re all done we meet at the Blake and talk about what a great day it was.
Shout out to the “Homeboy” maybe he can make an appearance??
Leave a comment below if you’ll be there with sign in hand or wearing one of those classic Helmer shirts.
I’m ”D” The Ranter… Please…Bring Helmer back before the Cowboy starts frosting his tips.
Joel Klatt can’t Dance.
Stout…You Rock Brotha!
Rockies…Let’s steer clear of the 100 loss mark ok?
See you Friday, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday…”D”
Manning’s No Geezer…Just a Crowd Pleaser
9-9-12
Broncos vs Steelers Game 1
Ready as we’ve ever been, Krista and I showed up at 2pm to get our tailgate on.
Even showing up 4 1/2 hours before the start of the game we were still couple of hours late for the party. We played catch-up soaking in everything by just walking around enjoying the moment. The first regular season game is a HUGE deal in Denver and this is our second year as Broncos season ticket holders so we still kind of learning the ropes.
P-F-M jerseys were in full effect.
Today was Krista’s birthday. Pretty cool way to spend your birthday I’d say.
The Mile High “Crack of the Game”.
The new era of Manning.
I had nothing against Tim Tebow whatsoever… Because above all…I like winning.
Shot of the coin flip.
Orange is back and that’s a good thing!!
Almost caught two balloons thanks to a wind shift.
You’d think with balls of steel they’d drop quicker or you’d hear some sort of clanging noise?
P-F-M in “His” house.
Traditional flyover.
Let’s begin the picture show.
Big Ben on his ass. The way it should be!
Two-point conversion denied
Props to Porter for being the AFC Defensive Player of the Week.
Final Score
Broncos 31….Steelers 19
I”m “D” the Ranter…As I mentioned earlier, I like winn’n that’s why I’m grinn’n.
This season’s gonna be fun….”D”
Not Nearly as Fun as a Real One
8-26-12
Broncos vs 49ers (Pre-Season Game 3)
Ahh the football pre-season…It seems real, but sadly like a lot of things in life… it’s not.
This is our second year as Broncos season ticket holders. I skipped both preseason games last year and Krista took the kids each to a game. This year, Krista took Mylee to the Broncos/Bears game and Hunter and I checked out the Broncos/49ers.
Baseball spring training and Football preseason are two totally different entity’s.
For me, baseball spring training is relaxing, not too crowded and it’s fun to wander around the stadiums and the practice fields exploring. Plus that time of year in Arizona the weather is perfect.
The football pre-season…Not so much.
Our first visit to Dove Valley was this year on my birthday and I found it sadly unimpressive. I must admit, I’ve never attending a football preseason workout before so I had nothing to compare it to.
As we heading inside Dove Valley and I got a good look at the joint, I wasn’t exactly sure what I was expecting. I guess maybe a little more frill?
Bronco fans were packed inside like sardines on the sidelines of what looked like a high school football field but nobody seemed to mind. It was blistering hot with very little shade unless you were part of the media. The media had nice shade tents set up along the end zone.
Here’s a few photos from back on Aug 7.
Brock Osweiler
Champ Baily
It was fun, Mike the Rox Addict was there as well and I’m sure I’ll be back but not until the novelty of having Manning as our quarterback dies down just a bit.
Anyways, back to Sports Authority Field.
I was shocked that I stumbled across free parking and it was only 4 1/2 blocks from the Broncos stadium…Hell Yeah!!
Tailgating was in full swing, but on a toned down level compared to any regular season game. My mission today was to spend some quality time with my boy, watch some football and practice my photo taking skills so I’m ready to rock on Sept 9th vs the Steelers.(Broncos first regular season game).
So lets roll with a picture show.
Dudes feet were real close to those spot lights.
Go Prater!!
Matthew Willis.
Manning looking for Demaryius Thomas.
Complete.
Champ ain’t lett’n go.
Decker just before his TD catch, the football is right next to the horse’s ass. Manning played for less than a quarter and had the Broncos up 17-10.
Caleb Hanie scrambling for the ball.
Broncos led 24-10 at the half. I felt like Manning and most the starters looked pretty good.
That soon changed. Because it’s pre-season I’ll spare you the details and make a long story short.
Final Score
49ers 29…Broncos 24
I’m ”D” the Ranter and one thing is for sure, pre-season games may be a joke but the Rant is serious business this Broncos Season.
Go Broncos…”D”
Woo Hoo…Rockies Take Two from the Blue
8-28-12
Dodgers vs Rockies Game 2
If it’s Tuesday and the Rockies are in town you know where I’m gonna be at 4:30 pm.
My happy ass will be standing in line at Coors Field, chatt’n with the Rantics and enjoying all the tiny details that make up the baseball experience.
Check this out…Rumor has it that the Dodgers had to stock up on the Booty Balm this morning.
This was due to chapped cheeks from gett’n their asses severely spanked the night before 10-0.
I had the day off so I headed to Coors from home today instead of from work after finishing a ten-hour day. You could say I was feeling fresh.
So fresh I actually stood on the wall today and tried to snag a few autographs.
Here’s my thing…I suck at getting autographs, but I love collecting and displaying them and that equates to a dilemma. I usually try to get what I need autographed at spring training because down there I feel like I’m not bothering the players as much.
However sometimes you just need to get one particular item signed and today it was Charlie Blackmon’s spring training cap I’ve been hanging onto all season.
Lucky for me I’m friends with Amy the Blake Street Babe.
She assured me she could get Charlie to come over to the wall and sign my/his spring training hat. While Charlie was warming up Amy called out his name, he looked over and Amy pointed to the hat and said, “Chuck Nasty…This is your spring training hat.” Charlie nodded and after he finished warming up he came over to the wall and signed my hat. Simple as that.
Thank you Charlie and Amy…Too Cool!
Not only did I get Charlie to sign, I got JP and Tyler Colvin on cards and Josh Rutledge’s autograph on my ticket. Props go out to Amy and Mike who hooked me up with the baseball cards I got signed.
Not too shabby.
Pre-Game Walk of Shame..Nice try but Brian Fuente’s stare looked meaner.
Just a bunch of youngins.
I had my camera on my lap until Kemp decided to test the outfield wall.
Wall 1…Kemp 0
When will they learn, the wall always wins?
The Dodgers are playing some sloppy ball.
Safe.
Rosario with a nice RBI.
Scoring JP.
Here’s JP doing his best to hit Danny a homer.
Danny up and ready.
Doesn’t get much closer than that.
Charlie looks up at the Umpire.
For the second day in a row the Rockies put a good spank’n down on the Dodgers. Props to Baby Bull for going 3 for 4 with 3 RBI’s and a sweet left field homer.
Final Score 8-4…Yeah!!…Discount shitty tacos.
I’m ”D” the Ranter…Can you say SWEEP?
At Any Age…KISS is the Rage
8/8/12
I’ve never seen KISS live before and that’s a shame because KISS is all about the live show.
I’ve often been asked “D..What’s the first concert you ever attended?”
Each time I answer that embarrassing question I bow my head and force out the word ”Loverboy“.
Yes Loverboy…
All I can tell you is I grew in the Great White North and they were extremely popular up there.
I was bound and determined that my kids wouldn’t suffer the same fate as me. I wanted them to be able to answer the question..”What was your first concert?”, with pride and not have to hang their head in bad decision disgust like their pops.
I picked up a 4 pack of tickets for Kiss/Motley Crue a few months back with the idea of taking the wife and kids, however Hunter is spending the summer in Canada so his extra ticket was given to Mike the Rox Addict.
As soon as Mylee found out she was seeing KISS she decided she had to put makeup on.
Here’s Peter Chriss of KISS
Here’s Mylee and Krista.
We arrived early and found ourselves walking past a huge caravan of tour busses. I mentioned to Mylee that these particular busses belonged to KISS. As we were approaching the end of the last KISS tour bus we heard a hard knock on the bus window. We all immediately stopped dead in our tracks.
The bus window slid open and for a second I swore I was staring at Gene Simmons.
The guy inside pointed at Mylee and said “Man that’s cool”. I told him it was her first concert. He said “Hold on” and disappeared for a few seconds. He came back, stuck his hand out the window and handed me four guitar pics and told us to “Enjoy the show”. I had no idea who the guy was until later on.
I found out it was Nick Simmons, Gene Simmons son.
I looked at my daughter and said, “That’s why you dress up”. I was extremely proud and happy for her at the same time.
The surprise “I didn’t know there was a third band” tonight was a band called “The Treatment”.
Here’s a link to their website.
They rocked it to an unenthusiastic crowd, but seemed a little better when I found out I have underwear older than a lot of these kids rock’n the stage.
I love Motley Crue.
Tonight was not their finest performance. The band seemed tight but Vince Neil was terrible. He wasn’t synced with the rest of the fellas and his chubby ass was huff’n and puff’n skipp’n lyrics all over the stage.
Random crowd shot.
The highlight of the show was the Tommy Lee’s 360 degree rotating drum set with room for a lucky passenger.
After a brief stage swap it was time for KISS. Here they are being lowered onto the stage to begin the show bust’n out Detroit Rock City.
I looked back at Mylee and she was wide-eyed and having a great time.
Here’s Kiss performing “Love Gun
Mike and I enjoying the show.
The KISS Setlist:
Detroit Rock City
Shout It Out Loud
I Love It Loud
Firehouse
Love Gun
War machine
Shock Me
Hell or Hallelujah
God of Thunder
Lick It Up
Black Diamond
Encore:
Rock’N Roll All Nite
In the end I want to thank Nick Simmons for being classy and KISS for putting on a stellar show and show’n my little girl what good old fashioned rock’n roll is all about.
I’m ”D” the Ranter…I can’t tell you how fun it was to share my first time KISS experience with my wife and youngest daughter. Mike thanks for hang’n too brotha. Andy from Spring training, good to see you as well.
What a great Birthday present …Rock On!…”D”
Being Last is No Blast
8-3-12
Giants vs Rockies Game 1
Ahh, baseball at Coors Field.
There used to be time when I looked forward to a good baseball game. Now I just hope for a killer sunset so I’ll have some cool pictures to share the next morning.
Rockies batting practice was weird. The players in the outfield were quiet, and seemed unenthusiastic. Their demeanor reflected more of what you would expect had the Rockies lost the previous night.
The Duece was on the field out taking BP and decorated the pavilion with about a half a dozen baseballs.
Speaking of the ole’ 1 + 1…If you enjoy a good laugh at the Duece’s expense…You’ll dig this.
Need more…Click here:
I managed to snag a pretty cool ground rule double during BP. The Giants #99 bobbled a catch close to the outfield wall, The ball tipped off his glove, bounced and I quickly scooped it up. I then found a young Rockies fan and shared the wealth cause that’s how Rantics roll.
I looked at the Giants Roster but couldn’t figure out who # 99 is?
The Rockies suck with or without uncharismatic ”Duece”. I must admit, it’s kinda nice not hearing that annoying Tulo chant 4 or 5 times a game. Plus now we don’t have to watch the Duece blow another clutch opportunity, at least for the rest of this season.
Pitching…Can’t even go there…Just f’kn abysmal.
Dex is the man!!
Below is one of the many reasons I habitate in Colorado.
Mike the Rox Addict and Scott…Cool hang’n with ya tonight.
Rockies lose to the Giants 16-4. That’s six of the last seven games lost.
I’m “D” the Ranter…
I love me some baseball, but lately three words keep ringing in my head.
Peyton F’kn Manning …Go Broncos!
Phillies Pay on Daddy/Daughter Day
July 13, 2012
Phillies vs Rockies Game 1
Game On…Hope you had a nice break.
I’ve have a lot of friends who are Phillies fans. There’s Phillie Jim, my buddy Rick, and an old buddy Kevin who back in the day made the ultimate sacrifice and said FU to a job that wouldn’t let him attend a Phillies/Rockies game in 2007. All these dudes are hardcore Phillies fans and with the Rant being a fan blog I respect that.
With that said, unfortunately once a year our Coors Field turns partially red and is bustling with over-anxious Phillie fans full of east coast pride, who are trying to make up for the 80 other home games they’ll miss.
No Worries..It was Daddy/Daughter day for me.
Mylee’s great because she has her mom’s fantastic sense of humor and her dad’s ability to point out people who need pointing out. Batting practice was a bust today. The Rockies were out on the field but decided a half hour was too much time to hang with the fans so they bailed early.
(Year of the Fan, the rally towel they gave away today said so).
I found out from Hawaii Bob that the Phillies had taken BP around 3pm and were finishing up inside. I can’t tell you how much that pleased the mass of Phillies fans who took the time to show up early to see their team warm-up. I was a little bummed as well because Ryan Howard was back in the lineup and I had my sights on a Howard BP homer.
BP was so boring I was wishing I had brought my full size Tulo banner so we could have played a round of ”Pin the Injury” on the Duece. Yep Rockies poster boy Tulo is taking a well deserved bumpy ride on the old Karma Wagon of life.
I hope Tulo figures out that when you “RESPECT” your fans and their time, the shocks on the Karma Wagon kick in and the ride suddenly smooths out.
But what do i know
The highlight of BP was seeing Amy the Blake Street Babe straight-up catch her second BP homer of the season. She did it sandwiched between two seasoned ballhawks who were waiting for her to blow it so they could swarm in and snap up her leftovers…Nice Job Amy!
One of Many… Ranter’s “Year of the Fan” Ideas
Players/fans playing catch…Randomly pick a few fans to go out onto the field during BP and play catch. The players have to warm up and does it really make a difference who tosses him the ball? Any baseball fan would remember walking on Coors Field and throwing a catch with a MLB player his/her entire life.
Check this out Rockies Promotional Folks…Throwing a catch costs you nothing…As I said the players are warming-up anyway and you pay them right? Make this an every home-game thing and get folks excited about showing up early for BP.
FYI Rockies..I’m available for consulting and I’m full of GOOD ideas.
Game Pictures
He’s back!
Cargo sport’n Tulo’s #2 wristband? Upside down it sort of looks like a 5.
Strike three Cliff Lee.
Friedrich did a great job pitching 6 solid innings. Christian had 7 strikeouts officially punking Cliff Lee…today.
Is Ryan gett’n bigger?
Colvin is a beast.
Straight from Tulsa…Josh Rutledge miliseconds before his first MLB hit.
They called Josh up from the AA Tulsa Drillers because Todd Helton went on the DL list Friday with right hip soreness.(Gett’n old sucks).
Heal up quick TH!
Josh’s first hit.
Josh’s first safe slide into second.
I already like Josh, in an imperfect world, that’s the perfect way to start a MLB career. Josh went 2 for 2 with 2 RBI and a stolen base.
I’m gonna say it now…Get what you can for the Duece while you can. Tulo will eventually self-destruct as he is his own worst enemy…Mentally and Physically.
In a quick 2:37 minutes the Rockies send the fans home happy with a 6-2 win over the Phillies in front of 33,346.
I’m ”D” the Ranter…I got nothing…”D”
Stoked to visit ONEOK
6-24-12
Tulsa Drillers vs the Springfield Cardinals.
Had I put a little more research into my road trip we probably could have caught the Rockies and Rangers game but instead we were able to catch a Tulsa Drillers game on the way home from our family reunion.
Shot of a trailer on fire, did I mention it was hot?
While in Tulsa we hooked up with Mike the Rox Addict and Amy the Blake Street Babe who were in Tulsa as well for their first game of an extremely cool road trip.
I’ve always wanted to check the Drillers new stadium ONEOK field. The Drillers are the Rockies AA team and have a cool little stadium nestled in downtown Tulsa.
The promotional gift today was a Hornsby(the Drillers mascot) cereal bowl…For kids only.
Bummer I like cereal too.
ONEOK Field was designed by architect firm Populous(formerly HOK Sport Venue Event) of Kansas City, Missouri and constructed by Manhattan Construction Company. The stadium has an official capacity of 7,833, but is capable of holding up to 9,000 for special events.
It has 23 suites and a playing field recessed about 13 feet below street level. With a construction cost of $39.2 million, the project also included the purchase of adjacent land for complementary development, for a total project budget of $60 million.
We didn’t catch batting practice as the stadium opened one hour early and BP was finished by the time we rolled in. As far as the temperature goes, it was also 99 degrees today with at least as much humidity…Yuck!
Gotta love a U-Haul truck on a roof that rotates 360 degrees.
Helluva view of the skyline from home plate.
Rockies pitcher Jeff Francis has his own pole here.
Mylee going for a slide.
Hornsby’s entrance.
Pink fire truck?
In the top of the sixth inning Oscar Taveras hit a foul ball that landed a few rows behind me.
It’s extremely cool when you snag a game ball your first time in a new stadium.
Next pitch Oscar hit the first and only home run of the game.
Mylee showing off here new mohawk.
Mylee was lucky and got tossed a ball that was good for a free ice cream helmet.
3816 folks showed up to witness the Drillers lose this one to the Cardinals 5-3.
I’m ”D” The Ranter…Glad to be home…Check another one-off the list.
Scorpions still… “Bring the Sting”
6-12-12
Scorpions and Tesla at Red Rocks
Any chance you get to visit Red Rocks amphitheater you take it.
I wasn’t so sure I was going to make this show. The night before I started having some severe abdominal cramps and the next morning I found myself in the emergency room. After about six hours of some procedures I don’t care to mention I was released feel’n a whole lot of woozy but determined to see the Scorpions and Tesla at Red Rocks as this could be the last time the Scorpions tour…Unless they do like the Eagles do and have a never ending farewell tour.
Truth be told I’d have been there with a fregg’n IV hang’n out of me.
The last time I saw the Scorpions perform was when they played Red Rocks back in 1991.
The opening acts were Great White and Mr Big and my young happy ass was glad to be there. It rained for most of the Scorpions set and they played right through it despite some electrical issues. At one point Klaus Meine asked the crowd if he sounded all ok because he said his earpiece hadn’t worked all night.
I remember lightning striking in the back sky as the Scorpions played “Rock you like a hurricane”, and images of scorpions crawling on those big old red rocks. I’m an old skool Great White fan too and Jack Russell and the boys didn’t disappoint either.
I’ve been waiting a long time to see the Scorpions play Red Rocks again.
This time I kicked those heart attack inducing stairs in the ass because I’m a non-smoker and having lung power is a good thing.
After a brief “feeling up” by the event staff I entered the amphitheater.
Sporting a “Frozen Dead Guy Days” T-Shirt and my trademark Ranter hat I found myself surrounded by a sea of balding long hairs(myself included), men too old to be wearing tribal print shirts and women trying to squeeze into the same outfit they wore the last time they saw the Scorpions.
Not that I really care what folks wear, realize I’m an observationist and I’m trying to describe the vibe here. My seat was in the third row and that’s the closest I’ve ever been to the stage before with a ticket and my good camera in hand.
As far as distance goes I was maybe fifteen feet from the stage…Choice real estate.
My advice for catching a show at Red Rocks is arrive at least two hours early. Bring some food and beverage, park at the very top parking lot and just chill. I say that because that’s what I usually do and there is no traffic and no waiting behind a mass mob to get inside. Today I entered the actual park at 7:00 pm and with all the traffic it was 7:25 before I was parked and 7::50 before I was standing in front of Tesla.
I’ve never seen Tesla before and I dig a lot of their music so this was a good line-up for me.
I can’t say for sure and I know he kinda acts like that anyway, but I swear the lead singer Jeff Keith was on something.
I realize that’s not a major sin in his profession but what comes to mind is …Really..Still?
Anyway, drunk wired or whatever he got through it and they didn’t sound that bad. They performed “Coming atcha live”, “Signs”, “Modern Day Cowboy”, pretty much everything I wanted to hear.
I tried to shoot video in the third row but the security guard kept busting me. For some reason he didn’t have an issue with the 450 lb guy sitting in front of me who was filming entire songs, he just had an issue with me. I had no interest in filming the whole show, I just wanted one full song.
Here’s a little bit of Tesla.
The same security that kept busting me hooked me up later by doing a great job of removing random drunk folks who wandered into my seating area trying to block my view of the stage.
Right now Colorado is on fire and the smell of smoke is everywhere. At Red Rocks there’s a different kind of smoke and it doesn’t smell like campfire. No way around it…Red Rocks smells like weed. Again I’m just making an observation. Like it or love it, marijuana is the incense of Red Rocks.
After about a 40 minute reset, the Scorpions took the stage.
Klaus mentioned it had been a while since they played “The most beautiful venue in the world” and thanked everyone for supporting the Scorpions for all these years.
Rudolf and Klaus are the only members to appear on every Scorpions album.
Rudolf Shenker is the only original member from of the Scorpions. Rudolf formed the band in 1965 when he was 17. He’s 63 and to watch him on stage you’d never know it.
Shot of the crowd, complete with three alien spaceships checking out the show.
Here’s a little video of “Big City Nights”.
If you’ve never seen the Scorpions do it because this could be your last chance and there’s still a little “Sting” left in them.
Just don’t expect them to “Rock you like a Hurricane”, be prepared for more of a Tropical Storm.
I’m ”D” the Ranter…If it’s too loud, just use earplugs…”D”
Regular Fan…Not This Man
6-8-12
Rockies vs Angels Game 1
I tried to be just a regular fan.
I went to two games without my camera. As much as I liked the fact that my backpack was lighter and I had two free hands,.. I felt like a space traveller without a spaceship. Even back before I had a decent camera I wandered Coors Field holding my crappy camera snapping pictures of everything.
I guess after time it just become part of you or in my case me.
I fregg’n love inter league play, especially at Coors.
Teams that don’t visit Coors Field often really soak in the experience of the mile high ballpark and that equates to a good time at batting practice. Today was a perfect example. Albert Pujols was enjoying himself so much today that he took an extra round of BP. That worked out well for Jersey Geoff and I. We were well aware that fact Albert had been up to bat for a long time and we figured eventually the big guy would have to hit one our way. Not long after that conversation Albert hit one right to me. Nice easy catch right on the pavilion wall.
Shortly after Jersey Geoff got his.
Anyone that knows me knows that this is why I do BP. How many people in the world can say they’ve caught a home run ball right off the bat of Albert fregg’n Pujols?
If you think about it, not even pro ballplayers catch home run balls. They catch them before they’re home run balls. I suppose every now and then a player is robbed of a home run so I guess that’s catching a home run ball but you see my point.
The chance of me ever getting Albert to sign that ball is slim, but this ball gets a special spot in my collection. The Pujols ball was my third catch of the day. The first was a straight up catch given to a little girl behind me and the second was a ground rule double I gave to my friend Ruth who was attending her first Rockies game of the year.
Today was the hottest game of the season for me. Temperature was 88 but felt like 100.
First pitch of the game.
Trout seconds after he was caught…By a pitch. He seemed to be ok…Scary though!
Trying to get a peek.
Todd Helton toss-up.
Hunter knocks one onto the concourse. That was one of two of his homers for the evening.
WOW
Huge Rockies fans…Ruth and Scott.
As much as I detest “The Wave” at least Rockies fans were doing it at the appropriate time.
As usual it didn’t work.
Rockies lose to the Angels 7-2.
For some reason the Angels are crazy good during Inter league play.
Baseball isn’t always Cracker Jacks and home runs. Sometimes it’s just plain ugly. On that note here’s the…
Coors Field Crack of the Game
I’m “D” the Ranter and I think I just Vurped a little
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