Great American Bash - Coliseum

[$heriff Tom]

So I hopped on the presale and ordered tix for the Bash. Because we are bringing little Emma Marg, I passed on the $75 seats and went for the $35 option (as $50 were not available when I was poking about)

At the end of it all, I ended up with Section 101, Row A, seats 1-4. They would be great hockey seats, right behind the goalie. Wrestling, I suppose not so much. You got the idiots on the floor (although I do believe there is a buffer between last row of floor chairs and where we are) and I think we are elevated just a little. Not far from the ring in terms of feet. If there is action on the floor outside the ring, we will need to rely on the scoreboard tron to see.

I am thinking we are opposite the entrance ramp and trons? Here is the view from the seat.....what do ya'll think for $35 a seat (well, 50 after the fees) - I thought when i checked for "Best Available" I would end up near the roof.

I guess one good thing is we are first row (I am hearing it starts with A and not "AA" there so we wont have people immediatly in front of us. And with seat 1, we got an aisle seat for the big man.

Heres the view from the seat...

[angryteddy]

If anybody has an extra. I wasn't thinking that I would be in town

[$heriff Tom]

So far card is shaping up like this....

HHH vs Edge

CM Punk vs Batista

HBK vs Chris Jericho, which can easily be the match of the night.

Natalya vs Michelle McCool for the new Smackdown Diva title.

Cena vs JBL. This one has me grumpy as its a "Parking Lot Brawl." On the WWE website they are asking, "which guy will leave his blood in the parking lot of the Nassau Coliseum?" So it looks like, although we are in the building, we will be watching this one on TV.

[cactusjames]

So doing some fantasy booking in my head, Jericho has to win at the Bash. Cause if the Punk experiment ends to Batista, or even in Punk wins, he's the most over heel on Raw, and has had a string of good matches,compared to when he first came back. The ring rust is gone. Him and Batista would be a good money feud for Summerslam, but the thought of Punk and Jericho intrigues me, it could be an excellent match. There's a lot of possiblities as to where they could, but to me, those are the two most logical and better matchups.

[$heriff Tom]

Match added. A bit uninspiring, but could be some good frantic action.

A four-way for the Smackdown tag titles with The Miz & John Morrison vs. Curt Hawkins & Zack Ryder vs. Jesse & Festus vs. Fit Finlay & Hornswoggle.

What, no Hardys?

[cactusjames]

I was thinking the same thing, not even one of them in a singles match. Could this be when Jesse and Festus win it? If they give a tag title to Horny I'll be pissed.

Oh and just got my tix today, section 102, row G or H, I forget and am too lazy to get them from the drawer. Looking at the chart, the entrance ramp will be to my right, so I'll be sitting facing the cameras when they show the ring. I'm thinking I may have to bring signs for the first time since I was 9.

[$heriff Tom]

James, read above. We are in 101. Like, right next to you. But we are like, in the front row, which means I will have to deal with the crap on the floor. What chart are you looking at? I am having trouble figuring out where we will be in regards to the ramp.

[MSBNYY]

Few things are more annoying that people holding signs up in front of you so you can't see the action.

[cactusjames]

The chart I saw was on stubhub where I got the tix, it was one of the multi colored charts, I'll assume that you could find it on ticketmaster maybe. Just make sure the chart you select is the one for wrestling. The one I saw had the stage to the right of where we're sitting, so when the cameras are on the ring for the wide shot that gets the whole thing in the picture, we'll be on that side, facing the cameras. The thing that's weird, is that the shot you posted is behind the net, and the chart I saw has more dead center view to the ring, from the side of the building. So either they could change it up, or the Coliseum just stinks. I go with both.

But I suppose they could always switch sides and use the other end with the net.

[$heriff Tom]

Im a dope. The pic I posted is right, but the seats I posted were wrong. We are 110, NOT 101. I just doublechecked everywhere. I knew that when I checked the seating chart and posted the proper pic, but have been entering the wrong seats on here.

So we are indeed across from the Tron, behind the goal, with a buffer between us and the last row of floor seats - designated Section 13 - 15. I would have preferred seats up a bit, maybe even near the roof, cause as Balls said signs will be about, and people like to stand for no reason. But at least we are facing the Tron, so at worst we have obstructed view but are in the building, soaking it in, having fun, and seeing everything on the Tron.

James, you're in a good seat cause you are elevated above the floor idiots, close to the ring and ramp. How much did you pay for your seat? Ours were 35 a pop (50 after all the fees)

[cactusjames]

Off of stubhub, it was around 200, well worth the price of admission for Michaels and Jericho in my opinion. I looking foward to it, and if their match is half as good as their WM 19 match, we're in for a classic.

[$heriff Tom]

Another match added, expect good wrestling action. Matt Hardy vs Shelton Benjamin, for the US Title.

[4dogg]

tickets available on ticketmaster .....limited views for $35

[$heriff Tom]

Sounds like my seat!

[cactusjames]

I like the new match. I'll be leaving in a little over 6 and a half hours. I hope HBK/Y2J is as good as I hope, I hope I didn't put to much hype in my own head.

[Ms. Jericho]

Here are some pics. Not many because of stupid people walking in front of me and because of my batteries dying.

And of course most are of Jericho and Punk.

[cactusjames]

I just got a new phone, finally a blackberry with a camera, so I was taking some pics too, but I still havn't set up the software to put in on my comp so in a day or two I'll throw mine up here. I was pretty much to the right from your seats, right behind the camera, I'm sure I'll see myself in a few crowd shots when I order the replay. My phone for some reason didn't save any of my pics for HBK/Jericho, but I got good ones for JBL/Cena, who fought a little to my right by the stage, I had a great veiw for the spot off the stage onto the car.

I also got some really good pics of HHH and Edge, and the tron as well. Overall, I liked it, I had an awesome time, and the seats were great, but I was annoyed at two non finishes even thought I did lke the story HBK/Y2J told, but the ending bugged me. Punk and Batista didn't bother me as much, since they were keeping the belt on Punk and protecting Batista, but after one non finish, it stuck out to me.

I had my whole section going for Hardy and Shelton, I literally had the worst fans around me. Even guys my age who were nearby, rooted for all faces, except HBK(wannabe city crowd). But for the most part, it was little kids no more than 6, at their first PPV. These kids were so awful, they chanted for Cena to get out of the way when showing what happened last monday, like the outcome would change for some reason. So I kept my language clean, but I let them know how stupid everyone was. As soon as I heard a few people rip Shelton, I knew these asses knew shit about wrestling so I marked huge to annoy them when Shelton won, as well as Ryder and Hawkins, who were over in my section for the LI connection. Good to see them get the nod and hopefully make something happen with this chance to standout. No one cared about the Divas belt, and it is an ugly belt so I don't blame them. JBL and Cena was fun, as was Edge and HHH, althought they didn't have a Wrestlemania-esque match, the crowd split is always cool.

Overall the experience wasn't bad, it was really fun, but as a card, as far as the matches went, I was a littleet down, I felt they could have delievered more with other matches had that Diva match been left off the card. I would have rathered Kennedy vs Umaga over that. But no complaints, it was a really good time. Still, I can't wait for the next Garden show, that place is a dump and the fans are uber-fanboys. Long Island crowds bug me, with the exception being The Browns of course.

[$heriff Tom]

Hey! Teddy and Midget Mike were there too!

Emma got really scared and upset when JBL was torching the car Cena was in.

The LI crowd is getting really panned for their reactions to everything, as they always do. While the Garden is always rabid, the Coliseum is a sleepy sorta place for grappling. I figure it will be another 5 years or so before they bother to host another PPV there.

[cactusjames]

Well the last one was almost 6, Summerslam 02, but I think they might come back for the new place they kept showing on the TV by the concessions.

I was annoyed by some of the JBL/Cena stuff too, probably cause I knew most of it was taped. I was suprised to read it was taped saturday and not before the show. Either way, some of those spots were pretty bad.

[$heriff Tom]

Taping Saturday made sense, as they needed to edit the Hell out of it, for the most "dramatic effect." It was filmed like a movie, complete with all kinds of zonky camera angles.

James, hockey fan that you are, you'll love this, specially the DiPietro parts (although you will probably like the Omar Minaya and Mikey Whipwreck parts too)

UNIONDALE, N.Y. – The Great American Bash attracted all sorts of superstars to the Nassau Coliseum — and not just those in the ring. New York Islanders star goaltender Rick DiPietro, New York Mets General Manager Omar Minaya, and ECW Legend Mikey Whipwreck enjoyed the pay-per-view spectacular from ringside, even getting a chance to meet some WWE Superstars.

“I’m a huge wrestling fan, so I had to come down. I’m looking forward to seeing a lot of good matches,” said DiPietro, a 2008 NHL All-Star. “I have a lot of admiration for what they do. It’s a lot harder than what we do. Hockey and sports-entertainment are both strenuous on your body, but with WWE Superstars the amount of work they put their bodies through night-in and night-out is amazing.”

DiPietro, who grew up in Winthrop, Mass., a town outside of Boston, met Superstars Edge, Jeff Hardy, Big Show, Mr. Kennedy, Santino Marella, Matt Striker, Raw Diva Kelly Kelly and Massachusetts’ own John Cena, who presented DiPietro with an official WWE Championship Spinner Title. The 2006 Winter Olympian said that his teammates will be jealous of his WWE experience, and the Islanders star was impressed with the Chain Gang Commander.

“It’s always good to see Boston guys succeed. Boston guys are a different breed. Cena’s at the top of his field. I wish him all the best [tonight]. Between him being from Boston, and then presenting me with the championship, I’m a John Cena fan for life,” DiPietro said with a smile.

“I think he’ll be thoroughly entertained tonight. He’ll tell two people and then they’ll tell two other people. Then, next thing you know we’ll have the whole New York Islanders roster here,” recalled three-time WWE Champion John Cena. “There is that mutual respect and admiration we have for each other. Face-to-face meetings between Superstars and athletes show that there’s a common ground.”

Kelly Kelly gave DiPietro a glimpse of next month’s issue of Natural Body Building and Fitness magazine that features her on the cover. The blond bombshell enjoyed her time spent with DiPietro.

“Rick is awesome, gorgeous, and charming. I was very excited to meet him. I’m a fan of the Tampa Bay Lightning and I’ve been to their games, but now, I’m going to start watching more of the New York Islanders,” Kelly said with an ear-to-ear grin.

For New York Mets GM Omar Minaya, coming to The Great American Bash was a chance for him to spend time with his kids before beginning a new series against the Philadelphia Phillies Tuesday.

“My kids love it. It’s a great family event. As a father, to be able to spend it with my two boys, I recommend it to anybody,” said Minaya, who’s in his fourth season as Mets GM. “Sports-entertainment is different than baseball. Baseball is a team event. This is a one-on-one event with a lot of bells and whistles with great entertainment value all around. I have a lot of respect for the Superstars. There’s an art to this. It’s not only physical. I’m very happy to meet them.”

In the locker room area Minaya visited with WWE Champion Triple H and even talked with John Laurinaitis, WWE’s Senior Vice President of Talent Relations, about the differences and similarities between WWE’s developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling, and the minor leagues.

ECW Legend Whipwreck watched his former wrestling trainees and Long Island residents Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder capture the WWE Tag Team Championships.

“I kind of lost my lunch so to speak. I’m going crazy right now. I’m very proud of them. I’m like a proud dad. They’ve done so well. I’m speechless and I don’t get speechless very often,” said the three-time ECW Champion. “They were two young kids who put in the time. They stand out because they have a lot of charisma. I see nothing but green skies in their future.”