15 yrs ago today - 10 sold out stadium shows

15 years ago, 8/31/08. It was the 10th and final sold out date at Giant’s Stadium on Bruce Springsteen’s Rising Tour. 10 sold out stadium shows is quite the impressive feat and people from all over the world descended on The Meadowlands aka The Swamps of Jersey to end  the run with a final blowout. Sure there were other shows added later but this was the “real” end of summer for many Springsteen fans.

It was also the date of my co-hosting a massive (over 200 people) tailgate in the parking lot before the show for people that frequented the BTX message board section of Backstreets Magazine’s backstreets.com, BTX. The party had been given the moniker of Ribgate. What my co-hosts and I were thinking of putting together a gathering of such size when we probably knew 15 attendees in total between us will forever remain a mystery to us all. A rented truck filled with BBQ, hot dogs, hamburgers, corn on the cob, assorted buns, cheeses, appetizers, chips, dips, desserts, tables, soft drinks, beer, hard drinks, ice and coolers entered the parking lot at 9 am and we didn’t leave until the wee hours of the next day after we had an after party in the same place. It all came together so well and was so under control that security didn’t even tell us to leave. They just stopped by for some food occasionally. Heck, we even sent a golf cart filled with BBQ to Bruce’s stage crew that day and it was fondly received.

It was a summer of Bruce and will probably never be repeated.