Toronto Sports & Outdoors Tips by grandmaR

The Wind In Your Hair

I know from reading other VT pages that sailing on the lake is an enjoyable activity. I did not have a chance to do it while I was there, but there are sailing lessons available, boats which can be rented, a yacht club, and probably races. Usually when there are races, there are also opportunities to crew for folks who have boats. Sailing OP (other people's) boats is a real cheap way to go sailing.

Equipment: I know there are many folks in the Toronto area who live aboard their boats, even in the winter. I've also met some going down the ICW - folks from Toronto and other places in Canada who want to escape the cold. For some time, even before we had a boat, I beloved to an email list that is run out of the University of Toronto computer, called the Live-Aboard List.
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|| The Live-Aboard List : send a "subscribe" or "unsubscribe" request ||
|| in body of message to: live-aboard-request@crux.astro.utoronto.ca ||

Theme: Boating/Sailing

Covering and Uncovering the Blue Jays Skydome (baseball) Review

I'm not a sports fan. So going to see the SkyDome was not on my list of things to do. However, the bus drivers that drove us to and from the Convention Center would sometimes do a narrative, and I was intrigued by this sculpture. I understand that it was created by Canadian artist Michael Snow as a portrayal of fans- not necessarily flattering.

Information on the SkyDome website indicates that there are daily SkyDome tours if there aren't games or events that interfere.

Cost SkyDome Tour Experience Pricing:
Adults $12.50 Canadian
Seniors $8.50
Youth (12-17) $8.50
Children (5-11 years) $7.00

The tour begins with a 15-minute award-winning film about the construction of SkyDome entitled, The Inside Story. Some people think the film is good and some think it is boring.

The walking tour consists of a 45-minute behind-the-scenes guided tour which includes a visit to the media centre, a private SkyBox, the Club seats, the Blue Jays Memorabilia Suite, the opportunity to see a dressing room and, if our event schedule permits, a stroll onto the field.

Equipment: From the website: Fun Facts:

In 1992, SkyDome set the World Record for the greatest number of Hot air Balloons in an enclosed area -- 46 inflated Hot air Balloons on the field!

SkyDome's Hard Rock Café is the home of the largest electric guitar in North America.

There are a total of 88 washrooms throughout SkyDome including 43 Women's, 39 Men's and 6 "Family Service" facilities, for a total of 1280 toilets. In fact, women's toilets in washrooms outnumber men's by 4 to 1 - that's more than any other stadium in North America!

Volume inside with roof closed - 56.5 million cubic feet (1.6 million cubic meters)
The diameter of the building is 700 feet
All seats are a generous size with 32 to 33 inches between the seat back and the chair ahead The building itself is 11.5 acres (4.66 hectares) The ceiling height is 310 feet

The roof rises to a height of 86 meters (282 feet), high enough for a 31 story building at center field with the roof closed
The roof is made up of 4 sections which open in a smooth, circular motion
The north panel remains stationary while the other three panels retract
The world's first fully retractable roof opens or closes in 20 minutes
The roof covers 8 acres (3.2 hectares)

There are five levels: Esplanade, Club level, 110 Amenity SkyBoxes on two levels and the SkyDeck
Seating for Baseball: 51,517
Seating for Football: 53,506
Seating for Concerts: 10,000-55,000
SkyTent mode: 33,276
Seating for Basketball: 37,000
Seating at full capacity: 65,673

There are 7 bars and restaurants including;
Windows Restaurant: a 600 seat fine-dining restaurant overlooking the field
Sightlines Restaurant: two-tiered, 280 seat restaurant overlooking the field
Bistro: 210 seat restaurant overlooking the field from the Hotel
The Hard Rock Café: overlooking the field
Numerous Beer outlets

Address: 1 Blue Jays Way Toronto , M5V 1J4

Directions: SkyDome is located in the heart of the entertainment district of downtown Toronto. At the corner of Front and Peter Streets, west of the CN Tower

Phone: (416) 341-3663

Theme: Sports Watching

Website: http://www.skydome.ca