Monday, Dec 23rd

Scarsdalians at the Super Bowl

superbowlgertzogThere were many Scarsdalians among the thousands who attended the Super Bowl in Indianapolis on Sunday February 5th. Parents scrambled to get tickets and arrange transportation so that their college kids could join them for this landmark event – and everyone who was there reported that it was the thrill of a lifetime.

Here are photos and comments from a few of your neighbors who made the trip. If you want to share your Super Bowl photos and memories, email them to [email protected] and we’ll add them here:

Bruce Cybul of Scarsdale and his son Ross, a college student in Washington D.C. were among the happy fans. Here is what Bruce had to say:

We had a wonderful time, especially now that the Giants won. Indy was fun; everything was centrally located and the streets were teeming with people well into the night all weekend. We enjoyed the NFL Experience at the Convention Center, waived and jumped up and down like idiots trying to get in the background of the ESPN TV broadcasts, ate at St Elmo's Steakhouse, the pride of Indy, where chants of Let's Go Giants kept breaking out. We saw some great bands, including The Fray and I high fived with Isaac Slade, the lead singer, when he walked into the crowd. I'm told we were on TV a lot during the show. We met a group that rented an RV and drove from NY for a rousing tailgatesuperbowlcybuls party pre-game where they were doing keg stands. My favorite anecdote was when we finally got to our seats after touring the beautiful stadium, we realized that we had Patriot fans sitting on both sides of us. We decided to rearrange our section so that all of the Giants fans could be together. We met with some resistance at first-- but ultimately convinced a few holdouts and suddenly there were a couple dozen or so people swapping seats. It was great as we could celebrate and commiserate with "our own kind" and the group hug at the end was fantastic. I even managed to salvage my glasses! All in all it was just plain great and exhausting. Cross another one off the bucket list.

Giants' fans Andy and Michelle Levine were also in the stands. Here is what they had to say:

superbowllevine1The Super Bowl is a singular experience. One game, all or nothing, lose and you’re out. We found it incredibly exciting -- with a build up all day starting with the NFL Tailgating party. We could barely wait for the kickoff! While a Giants blowout would have been easier to take, the fact that it was a tight game, with Eli winning it yet again in the 4th quarter, really punctuated the season. The fact that it was a rematch of the 2008 thriller in the desert made it even sweeter.

College senior Lukas Effman couldn’t resist the chance to attend the Super Bowl and traveled from Madison, Wisconsin to Indiana for the game. Here is what he shared:


superbowlukas2While its nearly impossible to describe the pandemonium that defined Indianapolis this past weekend, let alone the thrill of actually seeing my favorite team earn the right to be dubbed the "world champions", I will do my best. The blend of jubilee and control that was provided by the city Indianapolis was quite welcoming and impressive. The best way I might describe the atmosphere was to call it festive. Between the hundred foot tall Lombardi Trophy that blanketed the side of the local Marriot, and the sea of all too indistinguishable Patriot and Giant blue, the city was well prepped for a rematch for the ages. It was undoubtedly more than a New York Football Giant's fan could've asked for to start off the New Year!

superbowlellmansMark Ellman and his son Matt, a junior at Scarsdale High School, experienced thier first Super Bowl together and here is a quote from Mark: What a great time. We had a blast. It was my son, Matt, and my first trip to a Super Bowl. The excitement inside the stadium was amazing, especially that last drive by the Giants. We will never forget it and the time we spent together.

superbowlblattJeff Blatt of Greenacres continued a family tradition and took his daughter Josie, a seventh grader to the game. Here is his report: My family has had season tickets to Giant games for almost 50 years. My dad had two seats, one with an obstructed view behind a pillar, at the old Yankee Stadium. When the team moved to the Meadowlands, the obstructed view disappeared thanks to modern construction.

Josie really became a big fan this year and saw two home losses before experiencing her first victory at the playoff game against Atlanta. I then travelled to the Green Bay game with my nephew, and after the victory at San Francisco, obtained tickets to the Super Bowl. It was a classic road trip. Stayed at the O'Hare Hilton and drove from Chicago to Indy the day of the game.

We had a spectacular time. Josie wore a Manning jersey, while I wore a Phil Simms jersey. Two generations of Blatts, each sporting the uniform of our favorite Giant player. I also wore my favorite article of clothing, the David Tyree "Catch Hat" - especially galling to the Pats fans in attendance. What a day, what an outcome, what a trip. We'll never forget the joy we experienced and shared, together.


superbowlgertzog4The Super Bowl is an annual tradition for father and son Gary and Bryan Gertzog of Scarsdale. Bryan drove down to Scarsdale from Ithaca where he attends college, flew out to Indianapolis and then did the trip in reverse after the big event.
Here is what he said, The weekend was well worth the difficult travel. The atmosphere in Indianapolis was great, and the weather was pretty good too. Seeing many celebrities all over the city is always cool, but the best part was that the game managed to live up to its huge hype with a close Giants win.