Have you really been to Wisconsin if you’ve never gone to a Packers game at Lambeau Field? Most people who’ve pursued visiting all 50 states, end up formulating some kind of guidelines, establishing when you can officially say you’ve been to a certain state. Airport layovers don’t count. Neither does driving through a state without stopping. But beyond common sense guidelines, I’ve spent some time considering a stricter standard. One that establishes the essential destinations, those so important, they’re prerequisites to understanding a state. They don’t necessarily reveal everything, but they’re puzzle pieces without which, a deeper understanding will remain elusive.
For Wisconsin, Lambeau Field is most definitely one of those puzzle pieces. The people of Wisconsin absolutely love the Packers, and they constitute one of the most loyal and passionate fan bases in all of professional sports. Don’t believe me? Lambeau Field has been sold out every game since 1960, and the current wait for season tickets is roughly 30 years. It’s also telling that the Packers have been so successful in Green Bay.
With a population of just over 100,000, Green Bay is the smallest city to host a major professional franchise. In may ways it’s more reminiscent of a college town. Yet for more than a century, it has been home to one of the most successful franchises in all of professional sports. All things considered, I think the size of Green Bay has generally benefited the Packers. It’s certainly cultivated a more college type atmosphere, which translates into an amazing crowd and a distinct home field advantage.
At this point you might be curious about my preamble. How does going to a football game help you understand a state? In my experience, sporting events are one of the absolute best ways to find out about the people in a particular state, and Wisconsin is no different. Sports bring together people from all kinds of backgrounds, presenting an interesting opportunity to talk with people you otherwise would never meet. I haven’t written much about the conversations I’ve had throughout my travels, but at this point I’ve probably talked to thousands of strangers. These conversations have generally been very informative, and in some cases led to some interesting conclusions.
Sporting events have proved to be such fertile ground for soliciting information, that I generally show up a few hours early, hoping to engineer some interesting conversations. If you know me personally, this probably strikes you as being out of character, as I’m generally pretty shy. But I’ve discovered that outside of California, I have a secret weapon, capable of starting conversations with no effort on my part. For those of you who know me, you may already know where this is going. I’m guilty of many eccentricities, but perhaps the most amusing, and in this case useful, is my shoe habit. For the past 15 years, I’ve bought the same exact pair of shoes every month. Vans Authentic White, size 10.5.
I realize this habit is eccentric, but it’s one of my guilty pleasures. What I didn’t expect, is how useful it would be. Without fail, someone will ask me about my shoes at least once a day. I don’t think they’re all that interesting, but for whatever reason white shoes seems to elicit curiosity. These inquiries generally lead to more substantial conversations, and almost always reveal something interesting. I never realized white shoes were a California thing, but they immediately give me away as being from out of state. A wholly unexpected, but pleasant surprise, responsible for starting many productive conversations.
As it relates to Lambeau, I made it about 10 minutes before someone noticed the shoes. The opening, “Let me guess, California?” That’s all it takes. One Packers fan notices my shoes, and I’m invited to the pregame party. Over the next few hours, I chatted with many interesting people, and learned a lot. Given my previous occupation, it shouldn’t be surprising that I’ve at least partially used my trip as a sort of economic fact finding mission. To that end, talking with regular people all across the country has been an invaluable experience.
In the span of a few hours I met many great people, spanning a wide variety of backgrounds. It’s amazing how much valuable information you can glean from otherwise ordinary conversations. This is a relatively recent revelation for me. It took quitting my job and traveling across the country, to realize just how much value there was in simply talking to people.
In just a few hours I gained knowledge on everything from Wisconsin culture, to local politics, to cranberry farming. Did you know that Wisconsin has been the leading cranberry producer in the United States for 28 straight years. I know I didn’t. But one chance encounter with a cranberry farmer, and I learned a bunch of interesting facts. As an aside, if I’ve learned anything so far, it’s that you want to make time for the farmers. As a generalization, they tend to be very interesting people, and often posses a wide variety of interests.
By now you’ve probably realized this post has absolutely nothing to do with football, and that’s by design. There’s very little I could say about Lambeau Field that hasn’t already been said. A game at Lambeau is awesome, but everyone already knew that. The stadium is famous around the world, and most sports fans probably have Lambeau already on their bucket list. So instead of a boring post stating the obvious, I decided to try something a little different.
The more I travel, the more I’m convinced of the idea that travel is the great educator. Nature, history, economics, politics, culture, whatever you’re interested in, chances are travel offers an opportunity to learn. The subject doesn’t really matter, the point is travel introduces you to people with different experiences and knowledge, and tapping into that can be extremely valuable. One afternoon at Lambeau Field, and I learned more about Wisconsin than I ever could reading about it from California. I find sports in particular to be gateways to local knowledge, but the general idea applies to pretty much anywhere. But if you specifically want to know about the people of Wisconsin, gameday at Lambeau Field is your best bet. .