Thursday, June 08, 2006

Miami Heat, Shaq and Wade's World

Okay, I'm a basketball nut and especially a Miami Heat fan. Check out my other posts throughout the year about Shaq, Wade, Coach Riley and the rest of the Heat.

I'm taking the frugal approach to the NBA Finals.

I can't afford to fly to Dallas, but I can afford to go to the Road Rally at American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami. The Road Rally event was free for the last round, but the charge is now $5 a head, which is still an affordable price to watch the game in the stadium, with give-aways, perks, cheerleaders, the gymnastic team and the team mascot: Bernie. It's a blast. It's like a big block party.

We don't have cable in my house or even standard TV. My kids watch videos and DVDs, but not regular tv. (They read more and watch fewer ads pushing commerical products.)

But our no-TV ban is a bummer during the NBA playoff season. I would even spring for cable, just to watch the games. But here are our solutions:


1) Go to Road Rallies for away games.
2) Watch games with friends, who have TVs in their homes (instant parties). Bring refreshments to help defray the costs for the host.
3) Watch TV at the local sports bar (beware of the weirdos. eeewww. One weird guy kept winking and singing to me every time I cheered for the Heat. I learned to keep my mouth shut and I have not returned to the sports bar.)
4) Try to get cheap tickets for home playoff games. For the first round, we were able to get $12 standing room tickets. I haven't been so successful during subsequent rounds.

oh well. There's always NBA.com, 790 the Ticket (sports radio) and 610-AM (more radio) and of course, the sports section of the Miami Herald and other newspapers, which I read on line.

The frugal fun continues. LET'S GO HEAT!!!!!!

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