Gameday/AA Logistics
Is it a reasonable walk from there to stadium. (I am thinking yes, by cutting through golf course???).
Is it a reasonable walk from bars to stadium?
My plan (half assed) is to drive and park in the morning to check out gameday, then wander (shop and appease wife for a couple hours, she has never been to AA), then drive back to courtyard, get ready, walk to bars, drink tons, eat a little, walk to stadium, see a victory, drink more, walk back to courtyard.
I plan on doing all of these things regardless, but need ideas on how much walking is actually in my plan and if it is feasible. I am also willing to take suggestions on a better plan and any criticism of my plan is welcome.
Thanks
Hell of a plan...Hell of a program..Go Blue
Take it easy, Nate. Shouldn't you be at practice?
its walkable...but not a walk I would take. Plus not sure what bars you would hit other than Cub's AC on Industrial (which is a favorite of mine been going there since I was single digits). I would do the first part if the wife wants to see Ann Arbor...otherwise I would get to the golf course, park, and commence drinking for as long as possible.
Just the wife and I, so not sure about golf course. This is what I have done in the past, but the wife would prob prefer being at a bar prior.
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<br> If we were to cab from courtyard to ???? Bars prior to game, where should we go and is there any transport to get to stadium? Or many within walking distance.
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<br>Thanks again
Yeah, that sounds like a lot of walking before what should be a game with lots of standing. But it seems like a nice route/day plan, so good luck.
That plan would have me exhausted by game time.
What about drinking from the time the parking lots open until game time? I plan on being exhausted by 3:30- taking a nap, waking up, and rallying until game time...
I guess I need to start making a gameplan as well. I have an hour and a half or so drive to ann arbor and I have no idea on wht time to arrive to tailgate. I probably will not drink too much if at all because I will have to drive home after the game. Is getting to Ann Arbor around 3:30-4 too late?
depends on what you are going to do.
i plan on getting to AA around the time the golf courses open give or take an hour. tailgating food and water/sodas for lunch and then bringing out the food/adult beverages for dinner. pacing myself.
bring cooler and comfortable chairs. Wake up ... whenever (married right ?) Fill cooler with favorite adult beverage and add hotel ice to the top then go and park at the golf course (easy to find and plenty of tailgating). Leave car there ... go on foot to campus. Walk Hoover to State Street all the way thru campus. Nice restuarants ... a little shopping (plenty of M gear). Then back to your car - well positioned for preparing for the first night game ever at Michigan Stadium!
Me? just going to regular spot around noon ... lunch with beer, then more beers until dinner, then dinner with beer then FOOTBALL!
Go Blue!
Is an idea I can get behind and based off info from here will probably be my plan. Any specific bar/rest. recs are appreciated.
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<br>Thanks again for all the info. Still a month away, but I can't be more pumped.
Just my opinion but after reading all the ideas (as of 4:45pm) this is the one to get behind. There are all kinds of places to get quality lunch along that route, and I would let the wife pick where to eat (using personal history here). With the amount of people who will be in AA for the game/tailgating I would plan on waiting 45 minutes to an hour at most places to get a place to sit and eat, if that is the plan.
its doable, but you are going to be exhausted by the end. it also depends on where you're sitting/standing in the stadium. i'm normally in the student section, which means i am standing all game long. that makes the post game walk almost unbearable, unless i can snag some hungry howies on the way out. but if youre gonna be sitting, then it shouldn't be too bad. and if you plan on drinking more downtown, traffic should clear up enough that you can cab it back to the courtyard. your feet will thank you.
Yeah, walking back to the Courtyard after going to the bars at around mid-nite is the one thing that seems totally undoable. And the bit about driving down to see Gameday likely won't be feasible, unless you want to pay for a parking spot.
For the shopping, I'd recommend heading down toward the farmer's market. That should be far enough north where you won't run into a bunch of parking issues, and has good shopping options of the market, Kerrytown, and a short walk to Main Street. It will require going back through the gameday traffic to get to the hotel, though.
Given all the schlepping around you want to do, I'd rent bikes during the day.
Bikes are a decent idea. Want to hit MDen for my shopping.
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<br>Can I get some pre game bar ideas regardless of how I get/leave there.
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<br>Thanks again
For the Big Chill, The Arena (Downtown) hosted a tent party right by the stadium where they had all you could eat/drink for $20 per person. The owner said he would probably start doing it for football games, so you might want to look into that.
Also, Ashley's has a bloody mary bar before games. Breakfast too, I think.
You seem to have a wealth of knowledge about pre-game heavy-drinking options, I look forward to your future contributions.
does anyone know specifically where gameday will be? It's not inside the stadium right? But I assume it will be just outside somewhere?
Not quite sure, but as it seems most of the time its just outside the stadium. But there is the occasion it is inside the stadium and that usually has to do with late games 3:30 ET games played on the west coast or 8:00ET games played on the east coast. i could see them letting people in the stadium to cheer on a in-stadium set. but i wouldnt count on it.
in Ann Arbor, they were at AAGO for UM-ND in 2003....but I think some others have said they were on university grounds for the 2007 UM-OSU game but I was there and don't quite remember that....although that might have something to do with amount of beer I drank that day.
just north of the stadium off Keech unless they change it this time for some reason.
It was in that parking lot directly behind the north scoreboard. Right on the corner of Main and that little street.
Thanks all for the help
not so good. I'm assuming here you like walking and can go a pretty long way without getting worn out. But either way, by the end of the game (which will finish very late) you're going to be pretty tired out I'd think. Assuming then you go to the bar, it will not be a good idea to walk back to the Courtyard. Like pasadenablue says - take a taxi. Good luck and go blue!
The big issue is that it'salmost 3 miles from the Courtyard to the bars you'd likely want to take your wife to. As someone above said, you could go to Cubs, which is nearby, but south Industrial wouldn't be the place I'd want to take someone who's never been to AA. Not dangerous, just kind of desolate.
That is good info. I want to take to an area to barhop, eat, etc. Then I will worry about transportation I guess.
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<br>What is the best area for this. ?
On how old you are/what you're looking for.
The two places I wouldn't miss (as both campus landmarks and good bars) are Ashley's and Dominick's, which kind of bracket campus on State Street and behind the Law Quad respectively. Ashley's has an amazing selection of beers and, as someone mentioned, good bloody mary's. Dominicks is a rickedy, indoor-outdoor bar with decent food and dangerous sangria. Both will be packed.
Apart from that, if you're looking for packed student bars, the stretch on South University is the way to go. If you're looking for an older crowd, the Main Street area has a bunch of dining options, good brew pubs (Grizzly Peak, Arbor Brewing Company, and the Jolly Pumpkin) as well as Conor O'Neills. Both areas are relatively easy (under a mile) walk to the stadium.
I'm sure wandering in the tailgates will be a blast as well.
In 1999 or 2000, (can't remember) I was in the 7th grade and UofM was playing Wisconsin. Each were ranked in the top 10 and Gameday set up within the Stadium compound in the NE corner. Since then, I believe that location has been the best so far. It was during that shoe scandal where some UW players were suspended, and many students tied shoes to fishing poles. Made me proud.
Anyways, I think that might be a long walk but then again I am lazy. Just wear good walking shoes and dress appropiately and you should be fine.
Are in you KC, MO? My buddies and I who are UofM ROTC alumni stationed in KS are wanting to start a UofM club and travel to Lincoln and Dallas next fall. If you are let me know if interested.
I will most likely be at both of those games next year. Def the NE game.
I'm sure this is/will be available on mgoblue, but anyone know when the golf course/most parking opens the day of the nd game?
But I found out that Pioneer opens at 6am as usual so I would think that the golf course would be the same time as normal - around 7/730
thanks 8er; holy hell, very well could get a full cylce of drunken rowdiness in, pass out, be hungover for a few hours and start again well before kick-off. they should have a breathalyzer set up at every gate into the stadium and anyone who isn't consious enough to produce a registerable exhale of their own volition should not be allowed in.
Ann Arbor Golf and Outing has a page on their website specifically for gameday parking/rules depending on weather and what time the game for that week is. The U of M golf course generally follows the same schedule, but one of the courses is a little cheaper, and they converted to a group rate for tailgaters which was long-overdue.
Do we know if Gameday will be setting up their stage at AAGO? That may affect you walking plans.
You can cut your walking by just walking to the Varsity Tennis Center Parking Lot. It’s off of S. Street, in the south east comer of the golf course. They have golf cart shuttles for fans that park there for the football game that will take you through the golf course. Though I would not personal go to Briarwood my wife seems to spend a lot of time there, it is half way between the Tennis Courts and where you are staying.
To Grizzly Peak. Downtown by mden. My wife's fav other than the more formal Gratzi's.
is great too! fab food; yummy beer..i personally like it better than others, and Arbor Brewing...is below meh. (imho)
The Arena is a pretty good sports bar, in my opinion. Conor O'Neill is a good place to be too, and I do recommend the Shepherd's Pie.
For a more intimate dinner, my wife and I will go for Gratzi's, Real Seafood, Argerio's, and there's Champion House if you want a little teppanyaki (sp?) action.....plenty of good places.
49 minutes, per Google Maps. I believe there are sidewalks the whole way - however, you might have issues depending on how far the Stadium Bridge Demolition / Phoenix Rising From The Crumbling Gray Ashes Project is along.
This is my plan:
First this:
Then endling like this:
August 10th, 2011 at 1:05 AM ^
If you're at the courtyard you're awfully close to the Sheraton. And I'm pretty sure they run a shuttle. My inlaws sometimes park there are go in that way. Don't know the details but worth checking out.