Thursday Doors – December 7, 2017

Thursday Doors is a weekly feature allowing door lovers to come together to admire and share their favorite door photos from around the world. Feel free to join in on the fun by creating your own Thursday Doors post each week and then sharing it, between Thursday morning and Saturday noon (North American eastern time), by using the blue link-up button below. 

U.S. Open Doors – Flushing Meadows, New York

Dipping into the archives again this week.

As an avid tennis fan I’m fortunate to have attended the U.S. Open tennis tournament in New York City a number of times over the past few years.

One of the four major Grand Slam events, along with the Australian and French Opens and Wimbledon, this is a 2-week tournament that’s played simultaneously by 128 of world’s best men and women players.

For fans the best way to get to the National Tennis Center, where the tournament is held, is by taking the number 7 train from Manhattan.

Train door and a small peek at the New York skyline.

Disembarking at the Mets-Willets Point stop lets you off onto an elevated walkway that leads to one of the Center’s two main entrances.

It’s a 5-minute walk from the train to the gates along the elevated boardwalk. With the main stadium in view the entire time, you can feel the anticipation build the closer you get to the complex.

The transit authority has a train maintenance yard below the boardwalk.

The main stadium with its new retractable roof. Look Dan!!! So many trains!!! And so many doors too.

A retractable roof is a kind of door, right?

On the opposite side of the tracks from the tennis center you’ll find Citi Field – home of the New York Mets baseball team.

Baseball? M’eh maybe next time.

Matches start at 11:00 AM but fans with general admission passes, and/or nuts like me, like to get there for 9:30 to be among the first through when the doors open.

Those who arrive early are usually planning to scope out the best of the available non-reserved seats.

A simple general admission grounds pass is an affordable way to check out the action, especially with kids, and gives access to a limited number of non-reserved seats on all of the courts except the main Arthur Ashe stadium.

Another common goal of the early arrivals is to camp out at the practice courts in the hopes of getting a close-up views or pics of their favorite players.

With over 2 dozen courts and all of the worlds top players in attendance, once you make your way inside the complex you are in tennis heaven.

With the prestige of a Grand Slam event, the total prize money well in excess of $50 million USD, not to mention the location, the atmosphere is electric.

The doors to Armstrong Stadium, the second largest of the three main stadiums, are found right below the giant manually-operated scoreboard.

Did Federer win his match?

Battery running low and need to charge your phone or tablet? No problem. Just plug your device in at this free charging station. Close and lock the door and come back between sets.

Again, so many doors!!!

Of course we true fanatics stay until after sundown to admire the entrance to the main stadium from beyond the illuminated fountains below the giant screen.

With any luck I hope to go back again in 2019, unless anyone has connections who can score me tickets to Wimbledon… 🙂

As always, thanks so much for visiting 🙂

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