This introduce yourself idea is a good one. I live on the Illinois side of the River, near St. Louis. Have been a season ticket holder since the Rams came to St. Louis. Turned 60 years old this year. Grew up in the upper midwest, Michigan, then Wisconsin. Lived in Wisconsin during the Packers' Lombardi years in the '60s, but was a Lions fan - how dumb is that? Never was wild about the Packers - even rooted for the Cowboys during the Ice Bowl in 1967. Eventually lived in Chicago, and was a big Bears fan - and especially Walter Payton - in the late '70s to mid-'80s. Sorry, LA fans, but used to love seeing the LA Rams leave So Cal and lose to the Vikings or Bears in the icy playoffs. Eventually one sister went to Southern Cal, and my parents lived in Orange County from '85-'95, so toured the Big A in Anaheim when the Rams were still there - saw some of the Rams (don't recall who) working out at the stadium during a tour one time. But I've lived in the St. Louis area since about 1980 - was thrilled when the Rams landed here - one of the "crown jewel" franchises of the NFL.
I also used to represent the contractor (I'm a lawyer) that built the TWA Dome (now Edward Jones). Got into the building a number of times while it was being built. It pains me, though I agree, that it's somewhat outdated, and a little dark. (You'll all eventually feel old when buildings you considered new are torn down - I saw Shea Stadium being built.) Timing is a lot of it. Just like baseball had an era of round, multi-use stadiums (e.g., old Busch Stadium, Riverfront, Three Rivers, etc.), football had inside domes, intended for multi-use. The Ed is one of the last of those - though recent improvements really do make it a solid game-day experience - even though I HATE coming in from tailgating for the game on a bright fall day. It has the largest in-stadium bar in the NFL, though the best tailgating spots were lost when a new casino was built. And the '99 through '01 Rams were probably my favorite sports team of all time. (In part because I went to high school and college in Iowa - was a big Kurt Warner fan.)
One of my best memories of that era was after they won Super Bowl 34. Game was on Sunday, parade was on Monday, and I had to fly to New Orleans early morning on Tuesday. I was in the second row, behind the bulkhead. Seated directly in front of me was Marshall Faulk. I was tempted to talk to him, but before I did, he opened his USA Today newspaper - a picture of him along with others along the parade route the day before - and he started reading an article about the arrest of Ray Lewis, the Ravens linebacker, on some sort of homicide. (Ultimately Lewis was acquitted, I think.) But I didn't want to bother Marshall - wasn't sure if he knew Lewis, what he thought, etc. Eventually he pushed his seat back - almost in my lap - and went to sleep. I finally asked if he was Marshall Faulk as we exited the plane, then thanked him for "one of the biggest sports thrills I'd had", or some drivel like that. He was gracious and thanked me, put his black SB 34 cap on backwards, and disappeared into the airport.
That whole era went too fast. The Super Bowl 36 loss burns to this day - recently saw something on NFL Network about the "Top Ten SuperBowls", and 36 made it, 34 did not...crazy! But winning 36 would have confirmed the GSOT as one of the greatest teams of all time - something we all know, but that's ignored in the media centers. Also can't help but wonder what would have happened had we re-signed London Fletcher - we might have had 3 straight championships to celebrate.
I should wrap up, but want to reassure those not from St. Louis that, although the downtown struggles (all the growth is into the surrounding county), this really is a good home for the Rams. St. Louis is a great sports town - especially baseball, of course, but in particular a great sports broadcasting town. Harry Caray, Jack Buck, Dan Dierdorf, Dizzy Dean (for us REAL old-timers), Bob Costas, Joe Buck - all are native or adopted St. Louisans. Great sportscasting and great sports talk was part of the culture here, long before anybody considered cable, or ESPN. And athletes in St. Louis, including the old football Cardinals and now the Rams, are royalty here. And humble, hard-working athletes are the prototype, and epitomize the St. Louis frame of mind - Albert Pujols and Sam Bradford being the current "perfect fits" - as is Steve Spagnolo, I think.
I love the diverse nature of Rams fans, too - whether from STL, LA, or elsewhere. A great, historic franchise, with a passionate, insightful following. You'd all ace the Wunderlich, no doubt. Good stuff. I'm really excited about the season coming up. Thanks for inviting me to share. Go Rams!
sjm62002