Hurricane Joaquin Phoenix may or may not be making its way to the DMV in the coming days, and it may affect D.C. United's Friday night matchup with New York City FC. With lots of rain coming whether Joaquin makes landfall in the Mid-Atlantic or not, it only makes sense to throwback today to 2008 and the epic D.C. United game against the two-time defending MLS Cup champs that wasn't. The Houston Dynamo joined United and a small but hearty group of supporters for a midweek match, but the weather had other plans.
Think slide tackles that carry for dozens of yards. Crisply hit passes freezing in puddles. Not really noticing when the lights went out on the other side of the stadium because you couldn't see them through the rain anyway. Personally, I was glad I'd thought to bring a gallon zip-top bag for my effects.
I got home from the stadium several hours later than I should have that night. While MLS decided whether to call the game, we in the supporters' sections just kept partying, thanks in part to a single brave (and entrepreneurial!) beer man who kept selling in the downpour. We kept going until they kicked us out for our own safety. Then I was stranded at Metro Center for a long while by a power outage.
I wouldn't have had it any other way, though. (Except for the Metro outage, but it is what it is at this point, right?) Soccer or no soccer, it was a night to remember with a bunch of other people crazy enough to risk life and limb to support D.C. United. And it gave me a story to retell forever.
So, it does have to be asked, who is going to brave the elements come Friday night to watch some soccer (hopefully) in the storm?