I don't even know how to start this. Many people believe your either a Raider or a hater. Just admitting that you're a Raider fan puts you into a category. Separate from all of that is first person experience. This one day in my life as a Raider fan, as I traveled to Oakland to watch the Raiders play the Jets.
It's 5:15 AM on Sunday, November first, 2015. I wake up to my wife screaming, "why are you still here?" Right away I'm freaking out because I traveled for work for many years. Having to wake up in different time zones, at different times required an alarm clock. It always made it hard to sleep. Add in sleeping in a strange place and being late becomes a paranoia. I grab my phone and realize it's only 6am. My flight isn't until 9am. I gather my thoughts and realize this is going to be awesome. I finish getting ready and head out the door after putting on my black and silver #24 Charles Woodson jersey. I park in the new C parking garage at Orange County John Wayne airport and walk into the airport feeling so lucky. I meet up with my cousin Josh and we head to our gate. We hang out at the bar while we're waiting for our flight and it's full of Raider fans going to the game. One woman is wearing a tutu and Raider jersey but everyone is pumped up. This season has already provided more excitement than any of us Raider fans could have hoped for. We finish our drinks and begin boarding. It's pretty much a Raider flight. In the back of the plane during the entire flight you hear the usual Raiiiderrrr chant as the back of the plane sounds kind of rowdy. We exit the plane and head for a taxi. Most people are heading to the stadium on the BART but I talk my cousin Josh into going to brunch at El Torito. We take the taxi to the San Leandro El Torito which is right on the water. It's packed and they tell us it'll be a 45 minute wait. I walk into the bar and see a table empty and sit down. I motion to my cousin to join me and before we know it there's champaigne in front of us done. We eat some tacos and some other food until we're stuffed and then we head out. We take an uber over to the stadium and then walk up the gates. The parking lot is packed as usual and even though I'm stuffed the bbqs still smell so good but I don't even care because I just want to get to my seat. We go through security and stop to get ourselves a beer and then bang we're at our seats.
I love this place. As a Raider fan I've always felt like I was on an island. We have a reputation that is not always correct but who cares, I embrace it. But in Oakland inside the Coliseum I feel at home. It's also the only time where even Raider fans all get along. Let's be real. Some of the Raider Nation is less than friendly. But even the most hard core gangster is your family on game day. It's unfortunate that there are people like that at all but that's the reality we live in. People are insecure and angry so that's what they exhibit. The Raiders exit their tunnel and the biggest applause is probably for Khalil Mack followed by Carr. The game starts and the Jets move down the field towards us and they settle for a field goal. The first Raider possession starts off slow but somehow culminates into a TOUCHDOWN RAIIIDERRRRS! The Raiders never look back and win the game 34-20 and now have a 4-3 record. Carr is easily the best quarterback for the Raiders since Rich Gannon. He's a very likable guy and has a strong arm on top of being extremely accurate. I'm just trying to enjoy the moment. It has been a long 12 years since the Raiders have been a good team. There were two 8-8 seasons but the rest of the years were something like 4-12, 2-14, 4-12, etc. There are many Raider fans that are just hard working blue collar people and we are passionate about our Raiders. Al Davis struggled running the team in the years before his death and it's taken a few years for his son Mark and General Manager Reggie McKenzie to rebuild this. I've tried to be patient but with so many Raider haters out there it's been tough. We leave the stadium and take an Uber back to the airport. We get to the airport by 5:30 and our flight isn't until 9pm. We hang out at the sports bar by our gate and watch Sunday night football between the Broncos and Packers as well as game 5 of the World Series between the Mets and the Royals. We have some Calamari, Pretzels, Cobb salad, beer, Jameson, and water while we wait for our board time. We arrive back in Orange County and after paying 20 dollars for parking I drive home to Mission Viejo. I get home around 11pm and since I have to be to work by 7am the next morning I force myself to go to bed. I wake up feeling like a million bucks and start my day back at work. It's just a day in the life of a die hard Raider fan living in Southern California. I'm so blessed and lucky that I have to look up at the sky and give thanks to the power that be and the loved ones who made this life possible. My youngest son turns 16 on November 12th so it's time to focus on making that day special for my young son Garrett. He's a special young man and he makes me smile just with the thoughts of what he's capable of in this life. Once again I just feel so lucky to have experienced what I have in my life.
Below is a link to the boxscore on NFL.com
http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2015110109/2015/REG8/jets@raiders#menu=gameinfo%7CcontentId%3A0ap3000000571888&tab=recap
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