Big Things Poppin' at the Dick's Park

David R.

August 11, 2010 - 6:22 PM

Today for my internship I was able to take a break from the regular grind of cubical life and spend the day at the Dicks Sporting Goods Park helping out with the Kroenke Charities Youth Sports Day.

Kids ranging from 8 to 14 years of age came to the park for a day full of nothing but sports. The Dicks Sporting Goods Park is home to the Colorado Rapids, our state's Major League Soccer franchise. Considering that Kroenke Sports owns a basketball, soccer, hockey and lacrosse team, these were the four sports that everyone had the opportunity to play. My roll was to basically keep the event running smoothly and make sure that all of the kids were in the right place at the right time. It became kind of difficult when they began to get tired, but I can't really blame them. The sun was blasting everyone who was outside today, and the proof is one the back of my neck (ouch). I was tired too but it was a blast to get out in the sun and have some fun with the youngsters.

I worked the event along with two other interns from my department at Kroenke. Our internship is unpaid as you know, so the fact the we each got paid for helping out today is a major plus.

Coming up this weekend at the same venue is the annual Mile High Music Festival. I went to the festival two years ago and had a blast. It is basically just a weekend long concert with over 40 different bands. Big names like Tom Petty and the Dave Matthews band were there the last time I was there. When I was working the camp today I noticed all of the event services crews hard at work preparing for the event. The entire outdoor venue is covered with people and stages during the event. Attendance levels vary from year to year, but when I went to years ago there were roughly 100,000 people there between the two days. That's a big crowd, and from what I saw everyone got their money's worth.

As with most fun things, there is always the danger hazard. A hot day in August can get up to 100 degrees, which serves as danger enough. But when all of the concert goers mix some alcohol with the heat, it can become deadly. The last time I went I saw numerous people being taken out of the park on stretchers from heat and alcohol/heat related issues. It is never a fun thing to see, but it forces you to become more cautious. I haven't yet decided whether or not I am going this year, as my money is in short supply, but if I do, I can be sure to expect one wild time.

While looking through the newspaper the other morning I noticed that the NCAA released a feature about the upcoming college football season. Our Ducks are ranked at number 11 in the coaches poll. I would consider this to be a mighty fine ranking considering our preposterous off-season (thanks Masoli). Game one is right around the corner, and I think all Oregon fans are anxious to see if we can hold our ground despite losing our heisman contending quarterback.