Super at 36,000 Feet

With all the political developments, I skipped the Super Bowl.

I really needed to say some things about it, because the Super Bowl marks the beginning of the baseball season. Incidentally, once pitchers and catchers report, can we have unanimous consent to stop thinking or talking about Roger Clemens?

OK - I had a unique Super Bowl experience. I had decided to visit my Dad for a long weekend in Florida. He's 82, his mind is good, but I never wanted to have to say "I wish I had visited when we still could", so I made the trip. For a few reasons, I like to fly Jet Blue: Their website is easy to use, their prices are good, and they have TV at every seat. I saw they had a Ft. Lauderdale to LaGuardia flight at 6 PM Super Bowl Sunday, so prior to the Giants-Cowboys game, I booked my trip.

When the Giants made it to the Super Bowl, I considered changing my flight, but decided that watching the game on the plane could be fun. Here's how it went:

On Jet Blue each seat has a TV in the back of the seat in front of you, with 36 channels. You get a free headset. The pilot announced that the game was on Channel 8, and assured us they were not allowed to watch or have it on in the cockpit, but if the flight attendants gave them updates, this would be nice.

I skipped the pre-game, and finished my book (Stuart Woods' "Straw Man".....decent, but not one of my favorites). At kickoff I put on the game, and noticed that 95% of the passengers were watching it. Usually if you walk around during a Jet Blue flight, you notice the variety of things people watch....not this flight. I do admit though, during one commercial, I watched "The Puppy Bowl" for a few minutes.

Another thing I noticed was the aisles were clear, there was very little walking around. About two minutes before halftime I had a brainstorm.....better take a bathroom break NOW. Excellent, no line, no waiting. As soon as the first half ended, there was a LONG bathroom line, like at a football game.

There was not a lot of yelling or overt rooting on the plane. I suspect real die hard fans would not have booked this flight. I did have the feeling that a Florida-NYC flight was pro-Giant, and there was a warm feeling as the game wore on. Anyone who watched that game knows it was played at a high intensity level. I had the enhanced experience of watching THAT game "alone", on my own little screen, with headset, and airline sounds as background.

The plane landed at the end of the third quarter, but I was prepared. I had a transistor radio and headset. When the TV went off, I plugged in.....to the knowing nods of a few with less foresight. I gave them updates. I had carry-on only, so I walked to my car and listened to the Giants radio team. Their excitement and anticipation was palpable.

I drove directly to a Super Bowl party at our friends Marla & George's house. This was most excellent, as I chowed down some fantastic food, and then watched football history with good friends.

A perfect ending to a perfect weekend.

Next post --- my weekend with Manny