My final game at Principal Park was a hot one, a Sunday afternoon game. I sat behind home plate, about 4 rows back. After splitting the first 6 games of the series, today was the tiebreaker. After seeing the I-Cubs give up 25 runs the past two games, I was really hoping to see a win.
Attendance was down for the day, I blame the weather. There were storms in the area, but they missed us. Instead it was sweltering sun. While the temp only was 85, it felt like mid 90s as I sizzled in my seat. There was much less breeze behind home plate, so I cooked. About halfway through the game, I went to the right field corner water fountain and soaked my head in water. It was either that or pass out. For some reason I didn't go to the left field AC club. That's my bad.
Today's food was a bit less than before. With the extreme heat, I had no appetitive. It was one pork tenderloin sandwich, one snowcone, and one beer. I was then ready to pass out for a nap in my seat.
Pork Tenderloin: This time I grabbed one from the booth behind home/3B side (instead of the LF club restaurant). It was still good, but not as great as the made to order food in left field. The patty was a bit saltier, more breaded, and less meaty than before. Still a good sandwich. I was talking with the two friendly ladies running the stand, and told them how I put ketchup on the one I had on Friday. They chuckled at me and recommended trying ranch or honey mustard, then provided me with both. I ate half the sandwich with ranch, then the other with honey mustard. Both were good. Thanks for the tip! Overall, I give this one a 7/10
Snowcone: This time I went for a rainbow snowcone instead of just cherry. That's cherry, banana, and blue raspberry in order. Yeah, they mixed together and turned green, which was a little weird. But the flavor was good. The ice kept me from passing out, so on a hot day like that one, this gets a 10/10.
Unfortunately the Iowa Cubs would drop this game as well. They went down 3-0 early, then came roaring back with a grand slam off the bat of Trace Thompson. Unfortunately Juan Gamez didn't have it, giving up 5 runs in his outing to seal a 8-5 loss. Bummer.
Overall though, it was another good time in Iowa. The stadium workers were super friendly yet again, and the people I sat around were also very friendly and talkative. Every game I went to, I made a new buddy. Everyone I talked to knew plenty about the team and the game of baseball. While the on field product was rough from what I saw, I still had a great weekend exploring the region, checking out the stadium, meeting the folks, trying the food, and taking it all in.
I highly recommend the Iowa Cubs experience at Principal Park. It's a fine place of the midwest, and a very solid way to spend a 3 day weekend. I will see you again next year!
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