Times wires
Monday, February 7, 2011
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Thousands of exhausted but euphoric Packers fans welcomed their cherished team home as Super Bowl champions Monday, a day after a nail-biting victory over the Steelers.
Schools dismissed early and people took time off work to watch the team's motorcade travel from Austin Straubel International Airport to Lambeau Field along a route that included Lombardi Avenue, named in honor of legendary Packers coach Vince Lombardi.
Fans who spent Sunday night partying right after their team's 31-25 victory in Super Bowl XLV picked up right where they left off, showing up hours early for the parade. They jammed Lambeau's atrium and clogged the stadium's pro shop as they bought piles of Super Bowl gear and memorabilia. To make room, the team finally had to herd shoppers and visitors into a line that stretched outside the stadium.
Ashley Ellis, 17, and Erica Christensen, 18, of Oak Creek went to bed at midnight after celebrating the win. They were up at 4 a.m. to drive to Green Bay and stake out a spot for the parade. Asked why anyone would get up at 4 a.m. to visit a football stadium, Christensen replied simply.
"Love them," she said.
By early afternoon, throngs of fans in cheeseheads, green and gold beads, jerseys and Packer parkas jammed the team's route, transforming the streets into human trenches.
A house across the street from the stadium — Lambeau Field famously sits in the middle of a residential neighborhood — blared Queen's We Are The Champions.
Craig Umentum, 29, of Green Bay dragged a green-and-gold wagon loaded with a case of beer.
"The title is home, baby!" Umentum yelled, his voice still hoarse from screaming Sunday night.
Joni Hamalainen, 25, of Helsinki, Finland, arrived in Green Bay on Friday to watch the game. A longtime Packers fan, he said he considered going to the Super Bowl, but it was too expensive. Instead he journeyed to Green Bay — alone — and watched the game with hundreds of new friends at a bar and grill.
"It's a dream trip," he said as he waited for the motorcade to arrive.
Rich Winker, 42, of La Crosse, Wis., showed up in former Packers linebacker Ray Nitchske's No. 66 jersey and a replica old-school Packers leather helmet. He said he decided at 11 p.m. Sunday to make the four-hour drive to Green Bay on Monday.
"It is awesome," he said. "It's just unreal how many people are here. Who knows when it will happen again?"
The arrival was over quickly, though; the players didn't make any formal public appearances. The real party is set for this afternoon, when the Packers are expected to stage a public rally at Lambeau.
But there's a little hitch — Lambeau's bleachers are covered with snow and ice. The team said it would pay people $8 an hour to remove it ahead of the celebration.
Meanwhile, the team's star quarterback and Super Bowl MVP, Aaron Rodgers, was celebrating far away.
His smile never faded as he rode on the back of a convertible pacing down a confetti-filled parade route through Disney World's Magic Kingdom in Orlando.
"It's a special day, it really is," said Rodgers, who flew in directly from Texas. "I didn't get a lot of sleep (Sunday) night, but it's great to be able to celebrate. This is a team that came together and accomplished something special."
Rodgers became the latest Super Bowl MVP to participate in Disney's "I'm going to Disney World" commercial series, which celebrated its 25th anniversary this year. He is expected to rejoin his teammates for today's celebration in Green Bay.
The scene was different in Pittsburgh, where there's a silver lining for the black-and-gold faithful coming off Sunday's loss: All the "Seventh Heaven" merchandise will still be good for at least another year.
At Primanti Brothers restaurant — a Pittsburgh tradition that has fed many a Steeler fan — folks noshed on pastrami-and-cheese sandwiches, paying no attention to the muted Super Bowl highlights at a TV hanging near the counter.
Had they been listening to the TV, they'd have heard quarterback Ben Roethlisberger reflect on losing his chance to join Troy Aikman, Joe Montana, Tom Brady and Steeler legend Terry Bradshaw with three Super Bowl rings.
"I feel like I let the city of Pittsburgh down, the fans, my coaches, my teammates," he said after the loss, in which he had two interceptions.
Source: http://www.tampabay.com/sports/partys-just-starting-for-lambeau-faithful/1150260
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