Goodbye to another piece of my childhood…

Growing up in the Philly suburbs, the pro sports championships have been few and far between. And now one of my fondest childhood memories is being torn down. The Spectrum (I refuse to call it the Wachovia Spectrum) has seen it’s last Flyers game.

The Flyers played in the Spectrum against their minor league affiliate, and current Spectrum resident, the Philadelphia Phantoms last night. This marks the last time the Orange and Black will skate there as the building is scheduled to be torn down after the Phantoms’ season ends this winter.

Just as we lament the loss of vintage baseball and football stadiums around the country, this is the one that hits closest to home for me. The Vet was a disaster and I was happy to see it go. Yankee Stadium is a loss but after the renovations in the 70’s it wasn’t really the House that Ruth built anymore. No one, not even Mets fans, will miss Shea. Whenever they get around to moving the Garden it will be an improvement. The Continental Airlines Arena (now the Izod Center) pales in comparison to The Rock.

But the Spectrum, now that was an arena. So small that there isn’t a bad seat in the place, except for the several dozen behind poles. The ceiling is so low Dr. J used to graze it with his ‘fro. And the smells, oh the smells. My favorite memory of the place was during the ‘75 playoffs. My dad got nosebleed tickets to a game and took me and my little brother. We got to see Kate Smith sing “God Bless America” live before the game and the Flyers beat the Islanders en route to winning their second straight cup.

And all throughout the game everyone in the upper tier seats was smoking pot and cigarettes and cigars. At times the smoke was so thick you could barely see the ice. My brother and I kept asking my dad why all those people were sharing a cigarette but he refused to answer. About 10 years later I figured it out for myself. Anyhow, you just can’t buy memories like that anymore. Farewell old friend, or dare I say, “my home, sweet, home!”