Monday, January 24, 2011

Cowboy Stadium Has Officially Become SuperBowl XLV



Yesterday, Cowboy Stadium was still being ruled by the Cowboys, so we were able to take a tour with Gabe and Jayme Valdez. Today the staduim is being ruled by the NFL and the FBI. 

Gabe is a chef at the stadium and was our official host. He has a "fob" that opens many doors. First, though, we had to get through the Super Bowl security that was guarding the outside of the stadium. All of these people wore jackets that said S.A.F.E. When we were almost to the entrance where we were supposed to meet Gabe and Jayme, Barry asked one of the S.A.F.E jacket people what S.A.F.E stood for. The man didn't know what it stood for, but said the company was out of Floriday and  they worked every Super Bowl.  Then he said,  "Where did we think we were going?" I don't know if we really weren't supposed to be where we were, or if the man was just embarrassed and decided to exert his power. We could go no further until Gabe came outside and rescued us.

Inside we met up with Lauren and Tennessee, who had to use a wheelchair due to a recent knee surgery.  They had received a ride in a golf cart from the parking lot and were just taken to the door. Their driver must not have been S.A.F.E. In the meantime, Jayme had designated Tennessee as her Make a Wish Child for the tour. Here is an abbreviated summary of our tour. 


Tennessee


Jayme takes off with her Make a Wish child
We started at the top. This photo was taken where the Dr. Pepper Club usually is. 
It has been taken out, because Dr. Pepper is not one of the
Super Bowl sponsors. 


Bleachers have been put in that area. I do believe that the people sitting on the top of these bleachers may be higher than the scoreboard. 

We rode up and down on this elevator with some players you may recognize, or possibly just some veterinarians.

Gabe showed us one of the kitchens with a million dollars worth of equipment in it. He did not whip up any Truffle Mac and Cheese, but they will have it ready for the Super Bowl.

Supplies are coming in everyday.
Then, we went into a suite. This particular suite had alligator hide covering the bar. 

 Notice the looks on Robin and Lauren's faces when Gabe told them that a suite pays $295.00+tax+gratuity for a tray of sixty shrimp.
We also visited Jerry Jones' suite. I have no photos, because his personal guard didn't look too happy that we were there.This is not his guard, but this was similar to how he looked as he watched us. The suite was very tasteful and there were cute photographs of his grandchildren. 

Next, Tom, Mike, Roger, and I had to talk some football. 

When working an event, the chefs and waitstaff walk at least six miles a day. I don't know how much we walked, but we were getting a little hungry. We visited the pastry kitchen. Lucky for us, Pastry Chef Katie had some leftover cookies and blueberry muffins in her kitchen. They were yummy. 
Did you know that the goal posts for the Super Bowl are different than the ones used during the season for the NFL? Here is one of  the official Super Bowl Goal post. It was getting all spruced up.

On to the interview room where Barry interviewed a former state champion basketball player.

Down to the field. 

Locker rooms were next. First the Cowboys locker room and a side trip into the trainer's room.


The Aggies

Our name is always misspelled.

Take this guy off your Fantasy Football team.

Barry and Chris met some cheerleaders at the dedication before the stadium opened. However, they can't really remember which ones. So we just took pictures in front of several of them, and they can pretend they know them.

We went into several of the clubs and bars. The lighting and my little flash did not work well together, so you will just have to imagine very nice lounges, artwork, and fixtures. 

We appreciate Gabe giving us this tour on his day off. He won't have another day off until after the Super Bowl. Thanks to Jayme for probably getting him to do it! As Barry, Tennessee, and Lauren drove off in the golf cart to the parking lot, 
Chris, Robin, and I began walking and took time for a photo op.

This worked out well for us, since the kind golf cart driver came back, picked us up, and delivered us to our car. He must have still been a good ol' Texan not a S.A.F.E.






























3 comments:

  1. Great post, Jan! What a fun way to spend the day.

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  2. That sounds/looks like so much fun. That's very cool that y'all got to do that. Poor Tennessee's knee, but that place is so big, everyone should get wheel chairs ;)! Y'all owe Jayme and Gabe!

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  3. That was very cool to see behind the scenes at Jerryworld! Tell Barry it looks as though he has a case of "Cutleritous".

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