Being a Houstonian, there isn't much to plan in terms of driving to Arlington, which is about 30 minutes west of Dallas. We left Sugar Land, TX (where I live, southwest of Houston) on game day around 9AM to avoid Houston traffic, made a pitstop at a gas station near the Cowboys stadium, and arrived around 1PM. We made good timing on the road, especially since the speed limit's now 75mph once you leave Huntsville (north of Houston) through Ennis (south of Dallas). I should note once you enter Ennis, you have to be very careful - it's a speed trap all the way to Dallas, so watch out!
Upon arrival, we circled the Cowboys stadium for lot 11. We had trouble finding it because of course it wasn't near lots 12-14. We ended up going all the way around; we did notice a WalMart is RIGHT across the street from the stadium. So, take note if you ever need to go (although brace yourself for a busy store as the parking lot was packed!).
We had been previously told in emails, AO Dallas Facebook event, and AO national website that the lots opened at 1PM. We waited in line with some Mexican fans, even though we could spot the AO tailgate WAY across the parking lot. The security guy told us to wait in line with the Mexican fans, but I asked, "Are you sure? We need to be on the other side of the lot. Can't you tell we don't look like we belong here?" The guy smiled and shook his head. He gave me directions for how to enter the other side of the lot, so we left the Mexican fans and drove around again.
We waited in line, but by now it was 1:45PM. The same security guy came over to me and explained the lots may not open until 3PM. AO national had a small meeting with the security guys at the lot entrance. It turned out the lady who told everyone 1PM was fired, so they changed the time to 3PM (even though there were plenty of parking attendants available). The parking lot situation alone was a sign of things to come.
AO national told some of us to buy a parking pass quickly online, and they'd let us in earlier, so we did. It should be noted $30 was the advertised cash price, but in actuality, the stadium was charging $35 (another last minute change). With fees, the total online cost $37.50, which was more expensive than what the lot charged, but at least we were able to park an hour earlier. I was the last car they let in, so others had to wait until 3PM.
I forgot to bring a friend's ticket, so we made the hike to the stadium. The website stated will call was located at either entry A or F. Upon asking a security guy, he said, "No, it's located at entry D, and that's the only one that's open now." [It was 3:30PM. According to the website, will call opened at 3PM.] We followed his directions, found will call, and frankly, it was the only process that was easy and correct. All I had to give was my photo ID and order confirmation number; less than ten minutes later, I had a re-printed ticket in my hand. According to the will call girl, 76K seats and 8K standing-only tickets were sold.
We returned to the tailgate, which was in full swing. AO Dallas had brats, hamburgers, chips, etc. It was a true tailgate. It was hot on the asphalt, but we made the best of it. I have to admit I sought refuge in my car a few times and ran the air conditioning because it was about 92 degrees (cold front for Texas I guess LOL). During the tailgate, it was known that although we had been given approval to bring in one banner (not on a pole), we would not be able to hang it anywhere. Therefore, the decision was made not to bring in any banners. Later, I noticed Grant Wahl tweeted we were denied banner entry altogether, but I can only report what was known to us at the tailgate. There was so much internal miscommunication between stadium staff that we were receiving various reasons, but the bottom line was that we weren't going to bring in banners.
Because of the hot weather, we decided to head to the gates about 4PM. Although I had brought a bass drum, mallets, & drumming gloves, AO national suggested not bringing the drum. We had been given approval to bring the drum, but given the parking lot fiasco and stadium being picky about banners, we decided to forgo the drum because of the size. I should note I never heard a bass drum in the stadium, which leads me to believe no bass drums were allowed. It's a good thing I didn't bring it because walking back across the hot parking lot to bring the drum back to my car would've sucked.
Gate entry was also complicated. We headed to the closest gate, went through the strip search, and then were denied entry. Apparently you can only enter the gate on your ticket, so we left the line and headed to the correct date, underwent the strip search again, and finally entered. The air conditioning is the only thing good about the Cowboys stadium.
We found our seats, which were in a corner near a tunnel, and quickly discovered we were in a tiny section away from the main AO section (behind the endline), even though we used the code. Oh well, there were plenty of other games where we had been in the section. This time, it was a good thing. Between the Honduran female above spitting on the main AO section ("Swallow, don't spit!" chant was popular) and Mexican fans wanting their front row seats (which not only resulting in lots of booing but security checking people's tickets in the surrounding seats), the drama across from us was sometimes more entertaining than the game.
Since we were winning in stoppage time, I booked my return flight. I had booked my Houston to Chicago flight for Sunday morning (don't want to miss the Dynamo home game on Saturday) using 12,500 United miles, which wasn't bad, considering I booked on Monday. During stoppage time yesterday, I booked my return flight from Chicago to Houston on Monday afternoon for 12,500 miles thanks to using my Dad's airline miles (since I'm pretty much depleted at this point!). Not bad at all! And these flights are on the dreamliner, so wish me luck!
After the game, we left for Plano, TX (about 45 minutes north of Arlington), where my last college roommate lives. He recently got married, and he and his wife graciously agreed to give us some floor space for free. We brought an air mattress, so it was all good. I can't ever complain about a free house to stay. Today we left around 10AM or so and arrived at my house around 2PM, which was good timing.
I am glad the USA won, so we're off to Chicago. I agree with the sentiment that I hope the Cowboys stadium never gets another game. Even though it's supposedly a world-class stadium, we were not only treated better in Baltimore, but Baltimore understood soccer culture and were organized. In contrast, Dallas was not. I'd even advocate having a soccer game at FC Dallas's stadium next time over the Cowboys stadium. Ugh!
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