NFL Experience 2009

These are pictures of our day at the 2009 NFL Experience in Tampa, FL. It was a beautiful, sunny Florida day and quite warm, especially for those of us in our black Steeler Jerseys.

We did not see any Cardinal fans and the entire venue was a sea of black and gold. The funniest thing was the entrance where you could line up and take a photo of yourself in a team's uniform. All the teams were represented. The Steelers line was LONG. The Cardinals line....empty. I got a chuckle. As I've said before this county is full of Steeler fans.

The NFL Experience is very hands on. You had to sign a waiver if you wanted to participate in the exhibitions. If you did, you received an armband. We entered different activities such as passing, running, running plays, football drills, etc. The girls did all sorts of football drills.

Darcy and I competed against each other where we sat on a couch and when the announcer said "go" we had to push a green button, jump up and run through tires, run around several cones, jump into a chair that rocked, and throw footballs through a hole. We got 4 tries and when you made it through the hole you pushed a red button to stop the clock. I, of course, whipped her good!

One of my favorite exhibits was the Hall of Fame. I spent a considerable amount of time just wandering through it reading the different histories and looking at the exhibits such as old uniforms and equipment. All of the balls used in every Super Bowl were displayed, as were all of the Championship rings.

We got to see inside players' lockers. The player's actual equipment and clothing were inside a simulated glass locker with the player's name on it. The Steelers had Roethlisberger's locker. The Cardinals had Warner's locker. Both pretty normal with energy drinks, shoes, and shirts. The Cowboys had T.O.'s locker and inside was a copy of his own book. So typical!

We watched the Wilson company make footballs. There is only one company in Ohio that makes the NFL official footballs. Each year employees travel to the Super Bowl and set up at the NFL Experience to make footballs for the fans to see the process. We talked for quite some time with the lacing woman. They wear tape around their fingers so that the leather laces don't cut them. Each football starts out in two pieces. A seamstress sews two pieces together inside out and then the football is turned out and shaped some. The air piece is attached and cut, the laces are put in by hand, the air is pumped in and then the ball goes into a contraption that shapes it correctly. The balls are then inspected to make sure they are up to NFL code. All of the balls are made by hand. You can tell an authentic Wilson ball by the tiny "W" throughout the leather. I did not opt to throw out $130.00 for the ball.

There was an area where NFL players were seated for autograph seekers. The day we went they were Tampa Bucs players, but not really anyone of interest for me that I was willing to stand in line for a signature.

We ended the night by watching a movie on football in a makeshift theater then shopping in the NFL merchandise tent. Most of the Steeler merchandise was sold out, but I did purchase a pair of socks and some trading cards. An all around great experience!