10 Things To Know Before Going to the Superbowl!

Attending the Superbowl was a first for both Steve and me. As we went along, we definitely realized some of our mistakes and commented how we now had a list of best practices. Since we've only been to one it's hard to say if this translates to all the Superbowls, but I have a feeling it's at least helpful to consider for anyone out there heading to a future Superbowl!

In no particular order...

#1 Bring a sharpie -- If you're a big NFL fan and know the players, coaches, owners, media etc... you're likely to run into someone famous... and if you're the type to be interested in an autograph if given the chance... you better have a sharpie on you! Hot Tip : Consider both black and silver for the brown and white parts of a football.

#2 Buy a commemorative superbowl football -- one of the popular items to get autographed are dedicated superbowl footballs (available in multiple sizes). The balls have both teams' logo as well as the Superbowl logo. It's not favorable towards one team (so you're not asking a Bears player to sign your Patriots' jersey etc.). It makes it easier to collect all autographs in one place as well. And when you go home, it's perfect to display!

#3 Go for a few days! There's so much to see and do and every day is different. From what we heard some days are hit-or-miss in terms of the activities available and the action taking place. Certainly the Friday and Saturday leading up to the Superbowl were heavy with activities but I wish we had arrived a few days earlier.

#4 Wear comfortable shoes! This one is somewhat obvious but...even wearing sneakers my feet were sore each day... tons of walking, lots to see and you just never want it to end!

#5 Make Restaurant Reservations. This might vary by city but getting into a restaurant in Indy was impossible. We never tried to make reservations which was a mistake in hindsight. Plan ahead!!

#6 Don't forget your jerseys! We didn't make this mistake but it was fantastic that we both brought all her football jerseys to the city. It was practically the uniform/mandated attire and made you feel 'part of it' all.

#7 Consider flying into a large city near by! Us new yorkers tend to avoid driving and optimize flying to the closest airport to our hotel. But so many of our friends and family actually flew into Chicago, Cincinnati and other neighboring cities and then drove it. It seemed very successful methodology for them... something to consider!

#8 Get to the NFL Experience Early & Check the boards! If you want to do a meet and greet with players, get there early, check out the day's listings of options, and sign up asap so you get your choice.

#9 Get Good Tickets to the Game. We were in nosebleeds. It was still an amazing experience - don't get me wrong -- but honestly... because the seats were so high and it was hard to see most things. In part it was because I was unimpressed with Lucas Stadium Oil so other stadium may not have the same audio and visual problems we had... but don't underestimate the value of good seats.

#10 Go when your team is there. There is nothing better than watching your own team play in the superbowl. You know the players, you know the media, you know the rumors, you know the fans.. you know the songs, you know the traditions... it's the ultimate ending an amazing season.

Sunday, February 5th - VIP Status

We started the day early to party the morning/afternoon away! Big Blue Travel and New York Giants Alumni hosted a takeover of The Huddle with a silent auction, buffet, open bar and celebrity madness.

Visit my tumblr blog to see a select number of NFL player celebrity photos from that weekend.

#Amazing!

Saturday, February 4th

Up early to make the most of our time at the NFL Experience. It was a day of getting autographs, celebrating the NFL and living my absolute dream.

I was impressed with the NFL on so many levels -- from the creativity of their concepts, their cunning marketing strategies, and the ultimate end result: a true celebration of professional football.

There are few words that will do the NFL Experience justice. Everything from Wilson's booth demonstrating how footballs are created to a "Locker Room" with Gatorade and Head and Shoulders product placement, nothing was missed.

The only challenge was getting non-bar/stadium food. There was plenty of junk food but if you wanted to try a native/local Indy restaurant or meal... well you better be prepared to wait 2-4 hours!

The Huddle: Rodney Harrison

On our first day in Indiana, we drove from our hotel in Lafayette into the city (haha "the city!"). While I was very nervous about being able to find parking or ending up in endless traffic, I clearly brought my NewYork-Connecticut-Mass experience to the midwest and was completely wrong.

Not only was there hardly any cars on the road, parking was a cinch to find, even in a city we knew nothing about.

We wandered and explored and ended up at The Huddle... with Rodney Harrison! That's right! We ended up getting to meet Rodney.

Rodney: oooh Welker [jersey]
Steve: It's not too late for you to suit up tomorrow
Rodney: No... I'm done (chuckling)

During my meeting with Rodney, I was determined to get him to customize my photo of him with "Sah and Stevers" (anyone can get an autograph, how many people can get it personalized!)

Sah: Do you mind adding my name
Rodney: Sure...
Sah: It's S-A-H
Rodney: It's S... what?
Sah: S-A-H
Rodney: S-A-H?
Sah: Yes, S-A-H.
Rodney: Ok... S-A-H.
Sah: Great and do you mind adding "and Steve"
Rodney: and Steve
Sah: It was a pleasure meeting you (hand shake)

Ok so after the struggles with the name "SAH" I thought "Stevers" was going to be too ambitious... so it says "Sah and Steve" ... close enough!!!

Friday, February 3rd

We've arrived in Indy! From the moment we stepped off the plane, we felt the energy in the city. The airport was atwitter with buzz, the walls were decorated with signage everywhere and there were all these strangers welcoming us!

Our flight from Newark was pretty eventful -- we spent the flight with Otis "OJ" Anderson! Former Giants player who happened to be the MVP of the Superbowl in 1991 when the Giants one. He had two big-ass Superbowl rings... everyone was taking a picture. He's also a pretty funny guy.

My favorite Otis Anderson joke? "Big Blue Travel is giving all of you rental cars??? Are they nuts? They're letting all these New Jersey and New York drivers out on the roads in Indiana? Oh boy watch out!"

Or something like that...

The man had a valid point...