"She followed him from Phoenix out to Cal-i-forn, then she passed out on the bed…"
The 2013 Road Warriors Guide rolls on with a week six visit to Cal. Located in the People’s Collective Commune of Berkeley, the University of California is both a monument to academic excellence and a bastion of counter culture. Im not sure exactly how these forces collide when it comes to football Saturdays, but with my tendency to caricature everything in stereotypes I imagine a tailgating scene with equal parts vegan organic fair trade quinoa spring rolls and advanced molecular gastronomy. This may not be the wine and cheese crowd you’d find across the bay at Stanford, but I definitely expect the beer to be hand crafted, near room temperature and brown. What else do I not really know about road trippin to Cal? Guess you’ll have to read on to find out…
As many of you know, Cal offers you something you probably won’t get on any other road trip… free seats for the game!
Freeloaders. Not surprised to see the Yankee cap.
Tight wad hill rises up over the stadium and offers a pretty terrific view of the entire field. As if free seats with a great view weren’t enough, it also is home to Cal’s Victory Cannon. With Sonny Dykes bringing his version of the Air Raid to Berkeley this season, they are probably loading up on extra ammo.
With coach Dykes installing the "Bear Raid" offense we wonder, does that cannon fire on full auto?
In addition to the free seats on Tight Wad Hill, Cal boasts a newly renovated stadium that looks, from my sofa, exactly the same as their old stadium. However, I am certain that upon closer inspection the updated Memorial Stadium is a vast improvement over the old Memorial Stadium. If money is no object, skip tight wad hill and get a ticket to check it out for yourself. One reason I am sure the stadium is improved is because a friend who played for the Cougs described the old Memorial Stadium in terms I would expect to be used when describing a gulag or the fetid squalor of a super villain’s dungeon. (Here is another take on the accommodations at the old Memorial Stadium from the USC perspective.) Here are some before and after photos of the renovation…
Before.
After.
While Cal has shed the tradition of their stadiums infamous rustic squalor, other traditions remain alive and well, notably, their masoc Oski. Now this sounds like a mascot we Cougs can respect, especially given this tid bit of info lifted directly from Wikipedia:
“Oski chugs beer through a hole in his right eye, stands at 5-foot-7-inches, and wears a size 15 shoe.”
When first reading that sentence I thought, “Huh, a size 15 is awfully big for someone who is only 5’….. wait a second, WHAT? He chugs beer through his eye!?”
Above I addressed what the Cal tailgating scene looks like in my imagination, but through my exhaustive research for this post I have found that due to the stadium location and surroundings, there isn’t too much of a tailgating scene to enjoy at Cal. I was briefly excited to direct you to the Bear’s Lair, an on-campus pub much like our beloved Cougar Cottage, but sadly due to campus renovations this watering hole is now nothing more than a construction site. Such a shame.
RIP Bear's Lair. As Elliot Smith sang:
"I'm never going to know you now, but I'm going to love you anyhow."
Apparently there are some bars within walking distance to the stadium, though that walk is a bit of a climb. A few beers and your Cougar spirit should be enough to power you up the hill. As far as getting to the stadium, parking seems scarce, so I would recommend making use of the BART. You can consider it your designated driver!
Meet your new friend, BART.
Good luck to all the road warriors making this trip, and, GO COUGS!
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