From the handshake line to the booing of Bettman and the handoff of the trophy

http://www.espn.com/chalk/story/_/id/26740441/one-year-legal-us-sports-betting-learned

Congrats to Yagya and Atomic Data on some very smart work

…but got to ride the whole river path today (before the rain)

I’m so out of shape – this month should help a lot

Part I – protect the brain

…don’t come home

Of course it needs to snow again

Yup, I’m still here (no trains until 4:13am)

…ends here.

Vikings stadium seamlessly transitions to basketball hub

Bravo, Timberwolves

TRUTH

IT Command will be the place to be the next three days

You never know what will happen at Target Center these days

Happy Baseball Opener everyone!

We are all just a bunch of meat sacks…

Every Minnesota team should do that for every game

Timberwolves vs. Golden State @ Target Center

I finally own a green hat to wear once a year

…and the countdown is on

Return to this game will be a while, unfortunately

In or out?

Now that Monster Jam is over, it’s full on Final Four

What a franchise, eh?

Monster Jam returns Saturday

I thought I felt a little déjà vu

Like the surface charge space, though

Before basketball – not lit, after basketball – lit

The place looked great – nicely done

Good luck to Justin and his team at tonight’s Timberwolves home opener against Cleveland

The huntin’ time has arrived…

Congrats to Kaitlyn (50 miles) and all the other amazing Superior fall trail racers

Don’t think I saw a Vikings game, but saw lots of Twins there

Those nets are huge

Hope they play better than last night

Highest quarter pipe jump ever @ X Games

X Games is such a cool event

July will be busy

Hope to hear lots of Oasis (and Rhymesayers)

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-05-03/the-gambler-who-cracked-the-horse-racing-code

Just a whole lotta dirt and gas fumes

The big staff sale finally made it reasonable

Miss you, Mom ❤️

Step 1: open building. Step 2: host Super Bowl LII

First annual Minnesota Sports Awards, Target Center

MSHSL State Soccer Championship Day ⚽️

Not bad for being rusty

The Tuesday night $5 special with MK

Mac and meat is my new favorite 

Nice to finally play again

Cheaper just to use your own, no?

So much cool X Games art

X Games year one is in the books – learned so much

Medtronic Plaza @ U.S. Bank Stadium

The Big Air people aren’t right in the head

And I think we are mostly ready

So much work, but well worth it

Memorial Day @ Canterbury Park

Finally got to see MK play lax (final game of the year), Shakopee South

Mr. Cunningham does such a great job for the Twins (and Wild)

My job took me to Phoenix for the Final Four college basketball tournament this year (in anticipation of our stadium hosting in 2019), where I learned a lot about the preparation and logistics needed to put on this major event. With the first two semifinal games on Saturday and the finals on Monday night, I was able to sneak away on Sunday, April 1, to attend the Capital One JamFest.

The NCAA puts on a series of concerts over the weekend each year, but this was the only day I could go to the Arizona edition. This turned out great, as that day had the lineup I most wanted to see:

• Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats
• Blink 182
• Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
• Aerosmith

I’ve seen the Night Sweats and Macklemore before, but Aerosmith was on my bucket list (I think Blink 182 skipped my generation – don’t think I knew any of their songs, to be honest). Leon Bridges played the night before and made a quick cameo with Nathaniel Rateliff during S.O.B., which was cool (I’ve seen Leon a few times, but was still sad his set was during the semifinal games).

The local paper has a summary of the day here, which was highlighted by massive crowd control issues at Margaret T. Hance Park. Thankfully my NCAA credential got me in, because there was no way the police were letting in more than 20,000 people. I got there just as Night Sweats took the stage, positioning myself in front of the sound board and large lighting tower. I ended up getting pushed up farther and farther with each act, which included my first close-up encounter with a real mosh pit during the Blink set (waaaaay too intense for my tastes).

The concerts went on for seven and a half hours, which meant I nearly passed out from dehydration by the end. In hindsight, I was glad that I didn’t give up my spot, as watching Steven Tyler from about 15 feet away singing Dream On was a lifetime concert highlight for me (pictures after the jump). The openers sounded great, Blink was almost as energetic as their fan base, Macklemore put on a high-quality set reminiscent of his Minnesota State Fair show, while the Bad Boys of Boston really lived up to my high expectations (hard to believe those guys are all nearly 70).

Charles Barkley and Jim Nantz also made an appearance in between sets, along with about ten million Capital One promotions…

The road ends now

Gonzaga vs. North Carolina @ 6pm local

But it’s crazy out there

I do have a dog in this fight

…then 15 minute security line

Looks like we need some wires in the middle of the field

One of my Final Four souvenirs (also got a hat)