Business &Baseball
It’s hard to say how much actual work gets done, but this is still a sweet deal
So here’s the deal: The Rockies have this “Business Person Special,” and we were intrigued. For select games, $21 will get you a Rooftop standingroom-only ticket, a CHUBurger, fries, an 18-ounce beer or 16ounce soda and WiFi access.
I’m not sure how many Business Persons were actually working there during last Wednesday’s game with the San Diego Padres, but I was, and I have proof.
You’re reading it.
I set up my laptop at a railing with an 11-inch shelf at elbow level and took in the gorgeous nosebleed view of the field. The snow-capped Indian Peaks glistened to the north on a beautiful day for baseball. I booted up my computer and checked out the WiFi by Googling the big European Champions League semifinal soccer game between Real Madrid and my beloved Bayern Munich.
Bayern Munich was up 1-0 early, the WiFi wasn’t bad, and Rockies starter Jon Gray struck
out the side in the first inning.
So far, so good, although the reality began to set in that I was going to be standing for three hours, and the reflected sun glare on my laptop screen made reading a challenge. It’s doubtful you would want to be writing a complicated sales proposal or a monthly report to your boss up there.
And here’s a tip in case you’re inclined to try one of the seven remaining games for the Business Person’s Special this season. I selected my spot because it was right by the CHUBurger so I could grab my lunch while keeping an eye on my belongings at the railing.
There were other advantages to that perch. There’s a slight extension of the roof at CHUBurger, so you can take a step or two back from the railing and stand in shade, at least in the early innings. You can also turn around and catch replays on CHUBurger’s big-screen TVs.
It didn’t appear the other Business Persons in attendance were doing much business. I suppose there could have been some Business Persons doing business with other Business Persons, “entertaining” each other, but if there was another laptop up there that day I didn’t see it. The guy standing next to me, Chris Yost, agreed on the lack of labor around us.
“Another interesting question,” Yost said, “would be: How many people here are supposed to be working and just cut out? ‘I think I’m going to work at home today.’ ”
And let’s be honest. If your eyes are on your laptop, they aren’t on the game, so how much work are you really going to do? After Padres starter Tyson Ross walked Charlie Blackmon and Nolan Arenado to start the bottom of the third, you had to watch, right? And I’m glad I did. Dave Dahl hit a triple over the rightfielder’s head to score Blackmon and Arenado, then Trevor Story hit a sacrifice fly to score Dahl, making it 4-0.
But I was shocked by how many folks on the Rooftop were paying absolutely no attention to the game. I realize this bizarre behavior has been documented elsewhere, but it was my first trip to the Rooftop. People relaxing in the cabana area weren’t even following the game on TV screens, but the remainder of the 32,989 spectators — the ones who paid for actual stadium seats — appeared to be engrossed in the action. It was not lost on them, or me, that Gray was doing some serious business on the field, striking out seven of the first nine San Diego batters and finishing with 11.
Gray and my railing buddy, Yost, both left after the top of the sixth. Yost’s spot was quickly claimed by two men from Seattle who were in town on a business trip, and one of them promptly spilled his beer on the shelf. My laptop was unscathed, but two women sitting in the seats below us were not. They were not amused.
Once the suds were sopped up and the beer-moistened women were settled back in their seats, the guys from Seattle explained that their business in Denver had ended early, and when they couldn’t arrange for an earlier flight home, they decided to check out Coors Field. They got there 2½ hours after the first pitch, bought the cheapest tickets they could buy, and headed for the Rooftop. They were glad they did.
“It’s beautiful,” said Alex Maghami, who is partial to San Francisco’s waterfront stadium, AT&T Park. “On the West Coast, we’ve got great ballparks, but for a city with no waterfront, this is pretty good. You’ve got mountains and skyline in the same deal.”
He was right, of course, the view was grand. It was a great day for baseball, the Rockies won 5-2 and Gray got the win after losing his previous two starts.
The Business Person Special is a pretty special deal, whether you’re pretending to do any business or not. But I do wonder: Who tells those folks in the cabanas when the game is over that it’s time to leave?