Faces in the crowd Texans vs Giants 2010

I found a few faces that I just had to photograph at the New York and Houston game in October 2010 at Reliant Stadium. Clearly the fans enjoyed this game even though the Texans did not win it.

Pink Day at Reliant Stadium - Texans vs Giants 2010

We girls carry the banner

During Cancer month, the NFL supports the fight against Breast Cancer via Pink Day. The players, cheerleaders, and fans dress in pink. Of course the color pink has its issues with many guys, so I asked a number of ladies why guys do not like to wear pink.

I made them do it!

"I don't know but can tell you this, I made everyone in our party wear pink!" Yeah, this is truly a trend in a color gender nation. Blue = manliness, pink = girlishness.

Support by women but where are the men?

"Tell you what, you ask him!" ... "No, not me. You are not going to get me to wear pink!" So goes the trend, but it is certainly not a 100% sentiment.

Texan Cheerleaders

I did not find any guy not appreciating the pink the cheerleaders wore. Our eyes were filled with pink all afternoon long. Not a single complaint. Us guys don't dislike the color; we just refer other colors to wear, especially at a macho football game.

Texas Anthem party - plenty of pink

And those supporting the effort to fight breast cancer were out in force. Pink meant support and pink ribbons were given out at the entrance. But looking at the stands, there were not many pink shirts.

Fan in war paint - no pink here!

Instead of pink, the cry was to come to battle by many. This is serious stuff after all! Would you wear pink to war? I don't think so!

Players Uniforms

Notice one shoe pink and the other white. Were these the warriors in the stands? Nope - these were the warriors on the field!

Guy or girl?

I think you got that right! What red blooded American man would wear pink socks for everyone to see anyway?

Cheerleaders showing off their uniforms

What can I say! They were in front of us the entire game. All guys seemed to agree that they support the cancer research by watching these ladies and getting "pinked out".

Little girls in pink

But I have nothing to share that shows little boys in pink. They were wearing Texan jerseys. One lady answered my question this way, "My husband is really hot in pink. I love the way he struts with his button-up shirt on. He has only one pink shirt, but it is at the cleaners." I figured this to be a little white lie so I found her husband who said he would have wore it except it was dirty.  Hey I found one guy who likes to wear pink! (well now and then anyway).

Another lady responded to the question - my husband refuses to wear pink. Just not a manly color. Do you realize we are the only nation in the world with colors that are associated with genders? "Hmmm ... I'll look that up", I responded. I did and found her statement to be questionable. The story of pink and blue did not really become cast into concrete until the 1950's.¹ That does not change anything though. Face it, the women say it takes a real man to wear pink and the men say they just prefer to wear the colors of the team. Cop-out?

Just another great American fetish in life. Yes, my grand-daughter's room is going to be pink!

And what did I do? I was bullied into not wearing my pink shirt by my friend.  I did find a bargain Texan pink cap and wore it the entire game, over my red UofH cap. Now that is a compromise!

¹ Color Lovers

Does change in tailgating rules change Texans fans? Texans vs Giants 2010

Early view of Yellow parking lot where tailgaters camp

Yes, one week ago, the Texans announced a change that drove down the attendance at the tailgating parties. When questioning fans, there was a mixed reaction. A new term has been introduced to tailgating - "Pedestrian Tailgaters". These are people who do not go to the game but do attend the tailgate parties. They typically watch the game via satellite or the local TV stations who broadcast one of the Texan games. They arrive somewhere around 8-9 AM. This photo was taken at 8:30AM.

Concrete section for tailgaters and parking

Comparing the Dallas game, tailgating was boring this week. Was that because of the rule or the opponent? Probably both. I asked one group who was parked without any neighbors, "sure seems lonely to me". Their response - the new rule!

Before the Dallas game it was customary for a season ticket holder to bring anyone they wanted. After all, they paid for the parking spot and their friends could come out to enjoy the game with them. The attendants told us about the fights and we read some in the newspaper but never saw one. We tailgated for the Dallas game in the same parking lot. It was almost full when we arrived at about 9AM for the Dallas game. On this Sunday, for the New York Giants, it was virtually empty at the same time of day. The parking lot energy was almost gone. I expected to hear echoes at any time, like when a house has no furniture in it.

Police presence to make sure there were no fights this week

The process to obtain Pedestrian Tailgate tickets was to get them purchased via those who have season tickets for $10 each.  When the game started, the parking attendants would check tickets for those still on the lot. There was an uncertainty how this would work out, so I believe many people abandoned tailgating this week and some perhaps forever. Slowly, they might come back to tailgating if they perceive the energy has resumed in the parking lots. In the meantime, there will be lonely tailgaters on the grass and pavement.

The shock waves of management's announcement was generally mixed. Some people thought it would be good for tailgating and spectators and was sorely needed. Others who were more adventurous and fun loving thought it would have a negative impact. Bottom line is that before the Dallas game, the Texans had the best tailgating in the country in number and quality; now that reputation is on the line. Fans were not as enthusiastic in the stadium as prior games. Do you wonder as I do if it was the unexciting opponent or was it the less excited fans coming off the tailgating parking lots? In the remaining few home games, we will see what unfolds. I clearly felt the difference in and outside of the stadium.