Sometimes, when I’ve arrived early at the Coliseum, I’ll walk over to the Pak ‘n Save on Hegenberger to grab some beers for tailgating, or a water/soda and some snacks to take into the game. Inevitably, the walk usually involves walking past the portable football seats used for Raiders games. This area next to the B Lot is even more of a mess these days due to the construction of the Oakland Airport Connector, which runs parallel to Hegenberger as it terminates adjacent to the Coliseum/Airport BART station.
When I was walking back to the Coliseum, I noticed this thing that looks like a lifeguard stand or tennis umpire’s chair. It has male and female markings and arrows pointing is if to separate the sexes into two lines. What is this for, and what if anything does it have to do with Raiders games?
I don’t get it.
Update 1:20 PM – The stand is for ensuring that security lines are properly separated between men and women. Sounds like fun. Thanks to all who answered.
newballpark.org 
Last year, at the first home game… These were set up to segregate security screenings (women on one side, men on the other). There were people up in the thing making sure men went through the men line and women through the women line. I was frisked/patted down/whatever you want to call it. I think it was a reaction to the shooting at Candlestick.
Pat downs? Maybe a relic from the early post-September 11th football games?
.
Maybe there was a guard with a rifle on top to make sure that the Raiders fans don’t get unruly. (joke)
Okay – It’s for the security line. Thanks everyone including Twitter followers.
Jeffrey is right. I’ll take a pic next game because it is a sight to be seen. And they don’t play any games. Males & fems must be separated, regardless of relation…lost my wife last year vs San Diego. Feels very Auschwitz-like, even tho thats a terrible comparison.
@LoneStranger Pat downs are officially gone as of last Monday night…WALK THRU METAL DETECTORS. Just like the airport, place all your valuables to the side before u pass thru. They’re recommending all fans to enter 2 hrs prior to kickoff…as if it didn’t take long enough before.
I’m still a big supporter of the Coliseum even tho “it’s a dump,” but I think its adequate and there’s a lot of money to made if both teams were marketed right. But I think the Coli def shows it’s antiquity when the place is sold out. It way too crammed getting in/out, moving around inside…unlike Petco, AT&T etc.
Yeah the Metal Detectors are a league wide thing now. So going to football games just became even less appealing than they already were. Raiders games probably more so than most.
OT: Pictures of LWs attendance at Dodgers game last night are circulating. The LW haters are going to have a field day with this. I smell a new column by Monte Poole on the horizon… :X
Not sure why. Is there some rule that MLB owners can’t go to other team’s games when invited by friends?
Has anyone posted on Lew Wolff at the Dodger v Giants game last night? The man was sitting behind home plate, in full camera view, dressed in Dodger blue. He sits behind home plate enough to know that those seats put you on TV. How many other owners would make such a decision?
Sure the A’s and Dodgers aren’t hated rivals, but they aren’t exactly the Marlins. Plus, there is some history there.
@jgmj – Check my Twitter feed for my response. Not devoting a post to that nonsense.
Yeah those booths were used in all of the previous years to separate Men and Women for the security screening, however they are not using them this year. The new metal detectors have made it so that they don’t have to separate men and women any longer. I thought at the Raiders first preseason game that the metal detectors actually made it faster to go through security than in the past. I was able to wisk right into the Coliseum with no line or problems. The NFL sent out a press release saying that all stadiums will be using Metal Detectors this year…
@ML – Call it what you will. I don’t care he was in attendance, Dodger v Giants games are fun to go to. Lew Wolff isn’t the most loved guy by his teams fans and poor judgement like that just feeds the fire. The question is “Why?”
@jgmj – “I don’t care” – That’s all you had to say. Who cares?
What I think most people are puzzled by is the continual lack of PR effort Wolff puts out there. His team is fighting tooth and nail to grab a playoff spot and the already divisive owner is in the front row in another team’s colors watching the Dodgers/Giants. If he’s in the mood for a ball game, why isn’t he at the A’s game? If he’s there doing business, doesn’t he see how some fans would react to that public display? It just seems like he isn’t thinking or just doesn’t care.
after awhile, bitching about anything and everything makes legitimate gripes less impactful… It’s “Crying Wolff”
So one-legged women or those riding hobby horses go to the left?
@ML – So it looks like you did a good job reading the first sentence of my post.
Seriously, at this point, if Lew Wolff breathes while pointing to the south, people feel that it is just further proof that he hates Oakland. If you can’t stand the guy, nothing he does will be good enough for you anyway. He went to a game and didn’t sit in a box, a total non-story.
Per SFChron:
@anon,
Not only was Wolff at Tuesdays game, but based on my HDTV observations I believe he was accompanied by Cisco CEO John Chambers. Sure looked like him sitting next to LW.
Early in the game it looked like he was sitting next to Crowley.
@LS,
I think you’re right. I stand corrected.
So, LW was seen publically rooting against the Giants, not too surprising. I wonder if Lew and Gilbert spent much time discussing potential votes.
Damn. There goes A’s fans ability to make fun of the Giants for being cheating roiders… Colon suspended 50 games.
I say it just gives a bigger opportunity to laugh at ourselves (and continue to show up Giants fans who can’t laugh about the Melky stuff)
No laughing going on at my house right now. I hope they cancel Colon’s contract right now. Cheating douchebag that he now is… Frankly I hope MLB continues to get tougher on these guys. 50 games obviously isn’t scaring them away. Time to up it to full season bans w/o pay and Lance Armstrong level weekly testing for life after a positive test. Enough is enough.