Tuesday, June 18, 2013

At-Game Recap: Sons Bright, But Dodgers Dim (June 12, 2013)

We've already had a cavalcade of wrap-ups from this game, thanks to six Sons being in attendance, joined by the prolific as well as photojournalistic Killeens. But I was the only Son to walk away with the Loge Party Box Seating Flyer!

So here's the skinny on pricing:

Location # of seats 4-star game 3-star game 2-star game 1-star game
Section 101 8 $1080 $760 $720 $640
Section 103 10 $1350 $950 $900 $800
Section 110 10 $1350 $950 $900 $800
Section 125 6 $810 $570 $540 $480
Section 126 6 $810 $570 $540 $480
Section 128 6 $810 $570 $540 $480
Section 129 6 $810 $570 $540 $480
Section 130 6 $810 $570 $540 $480

The Dodgers also have Loge Party Boxes at Sections 157 and 158, with 17 seats each (a row of 10, and a row of 7). These can only be purchased on an individual seat basis. They are priced at $75/$50/$43/$40, depending on the star value of the game.

You can go here for Dodgers tickets, or get more information at dodgers.com/loge.

Special thanks again to Dodgers PR guru Steve Brener for setting us up with the gig, as well as Dodgers VP of Ticket Sales David Siegel who received us at the game. Siegel also gave a shoutout to former Dodgers PR head Josh Rawitch. We miss you, Josh!

Anyway, about that game. Well...

  • The Loge Party Boxes aren't exactly box suites, as was written earlier. They take the space of a couple of rows of seats removed from the back of the loge area, to make the loge concourses wider. Think Hollywood Bowl boxes: it's a little seating area, with tables, but not exactly private or secure. In box 103, where we congregated, they were partially protected by a concrete wall at the back of some of the box. However you could gain entry to the box from either aisle as well as a doorway in the middle of the concrete wall.
  • The best part of being in a box area like this is the freedom to walk around and not feel stuck in a seat for the whole game, constraining conversations to the two people to the right and left of you. We Sons are gabby folk, so it was nice for me to get a chance to chat with the five other Sons as well as both Killeens during the course of the game.
  • Attendant-driven food service was a little spotty in its frequency; they're servicing these boxes using overflow support from the suites upstairs, and it appears that they're still trying to work out some kinks in this system. To be fair, the attendants don't come all that often within the suites, either, but at least in those situations there's a phone to call for service. During our Loge Party Box experience, the eight of us got our own food and beer from the concession stands.
  • One thing I really liked was the fact that the loge level aisle attendants were helpful keeping other people from coming into the box. Since there are no doors, and the tables and seating looks very much like any other back-of-section area on the loge level (save the small "seat number" on the backs of the chairs), it was up to attendants to help keep order, and they did a great job.
  • One thing I didn't really like was the security guard near our box, who was a total robot during the Dodgers' four-run fifth inning (in which the Dodgers took the lead, propelled by an improbable Ryu triple). The fans were going crazy, and the aisle attendants participated in the revelry. Mr. Stoic Security Guard Man only glared when I offered up a high-five. Dude, loosen up a bit.
  • And of course, the game is always the backdrop at Dodger Stadium, when you're surrounded by great company like my fellow Sons and the Killeens. (That "All Hail Vin" picture alone is priceless.) Angelenos are interesting and social people by nature, and it was great to catch up with folks, especially during an extra-inning game (which ultimately ended in a loss, sadly; I confess that I left as soon as the D'backs took the lead in the 12th (saving me from seeing Brandon League's second ceded game in the three-game series)). All of us Sons are going through changes or stresses or work issues or something, which makes it a wonder that we can publish blogposts at a regular and unyielding cadence in the first place.

    Sometimes, there's so much going on in life that it's hard to stop and enjoy the conversation. At the Loge Party Boxes, that isn't an issue. Especially when you're seated with the Sons of Steve Garvey.

Now, the pictures.

Kim Kiwook, you left your documents on a Dodger Stadium table.

Let the engorgement begin!

SoSG Nomo prefers not to drink from a can, mind you.

View from high atop loge level.

I'm standing here right behind the counter, but no, I'm not open. I'm just fiddling around with containers under the counter.

Beast mode, for youth! (And yes, that is SoSG Nomo in the background, with that same weird grin.)

Dodgers take a short-lived lead! Loge Party Box goes crazy (except for aforementioned security guard guy)!

The sad walk back to the car, in an extra inning game about to feature Brandon League. Even the concession stands have closed up shop.

Great evening at the ballpark, except for the game's outcome. Thanks again, Dodgers!

5 comments:

Scott said...

Well said, I agree.

BJ Killeen said...

Well, with all this ink we're giving the party boxes, I think we need more free tickets!

Scott said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Scott said...

The Rest of the Story…Or How I created the Dodgers Photo of the Week!

I’m a visual guy, if you can’t tell by now; that’s probably why I married the talkative type of person my wife BJ is. I see things in a different light than most, my thoughts are expressed in the photos I capture with my Nikon equipment. Being a professional photographer, meaning I get paid for taking photos of whatever someone wants to pay me for. You name it and I have taken photos of it sometime in my career. Having worked at many well-known magazines, I’m skilled at having the photo tell a story, but I’m primarily known as an automotive photographer, so taking photos at a Dodger game is actually fun and challenging. When the Killeens go to a Dodger game, though, we usually sit a bit lower in the stadium than the Loge section, but it was different, so I tried to make the best of it.

Dodger Stadium has a standing rule that no ticket holders can bring in any camera lenses longer than six inches! Yeah, WTH? I guess they don’t want any quality photos from the riffraff in the stands. But I can understand, it would suck having someone in the next seat shooting photos all night with a long lens in your peripheral vision and hearing that clicking during the entire game. I have always been aware and try not to have that happen to someone we sit next to. BJ is used to it, though. I have used my Nikon 80-400mm zoom lens at many Dodger games, but this year I’m being questioned and almost hassled to the point of it being a pain in the butt. The lens measures at about 6.25 inches, about a quarter inch over the stated length allowed. The Dodger security guards must all have bionic eyes now with an embedded laser tape measure because this year I’ve been questioned at every game. I call them “Dodginators,” just doing their jobs.

My last encounter was during my now infamous “All Hail Vin” photo for the SOSG boys; BTW, thanks for posting it guys! I was bored with the angles of photos I could get around our seats so I started an Aussie “walkabout” around the stadium on the Loge level. I ended behind the right-field foul pole. Looking around for something interesting to photograph, I noticed the SOSG Party Box seats were directly underneath Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully! So I shot some photos and then heard a voice say, “that looks like professional camera gear.” The area around me was void of people, only the occasional trophy wife of a Diamondback pitcher making the climb up to watch her hubby throw some balls in the pen. Turning around I see not one but two Dodginators scanning me and my equipment up and down. And then I hear the usual, “that lens seems awfully long,” along with, “is that professional equipment?” “Why, yes it is thank you,” I answered with the truth that night. Hey Dodginator guys, I said, I’m with the Sons of Steve Garvey, you know the best Dodgers blog around, and the Dodgers PR staff set up the SOSG in a Party Box tonight and I’m taking photos for them. Instantly, one of Dodginators pulls out his smart phone and starts checking for the blog. The other guy asks what I’m taking a photo of, so I start to show him the photo on the back of my camera when the first Dodginator guard finds the blog and does a little giggle showing the other. That broke the ice from them booting me out with the only other question being who I was talking to, telling them it was my wife on the phone, directing all the SOSG guys underneath Vinny, hence the reason for me shooting the photo. I guess being on the phone with a long camera lens caught the Dodginators attention, and they were just doing their jobs, quite well I might add. The rest, as they say, is history…

Steve Sax said...

We are re-posting this story tomorrow. I love it. "How SoSG saved me from the Dodger Stadium jail"