Editor’s note: This is part of The Know’s series, Staff Favorites. Each week, we offer our opinions on the best that Colorado has to offer for dining, shopping, entertainment, outdoor activities and more. (We’ll also let you in on some hidden gems).
I’ve been to a lot of Denver sporting events — playoff games, preseason games, blowout wins, embarrassing losses and even an All-Star game. I’ve watched from the nosebleeds, in fancy boxes, down front and even in the old Migh High Stadium’s raucous south stands.
For my money, though, the best are Denver Nuggets games. Everything is right there, in your face. The massive scoreboard is close no matter where you’re sitting, the music is loud and the seats vibrate. Even up top, in the third level, you have a chance to run into Rocky the mascot or catch a T-shirt during halftime.
For pure entertainment, however, watch for the Skyline Drumline, a group of 20 to 40 rotating musicians who roll out percussion versions of pop songs and stadium anthems outside of Ball Arena before and after the games (even in the snow), as well as on the floor during breaks, in the concourse and from section 216, where they sit (or stand).
Nothing pumps fans up more than the drumline as they head up the escalator to their seats, feeling the beat and the excitement of the game in their ears and their chests.
While members of the group look and dress like regular fans, they are actually part of a well-choreographed team, managed by Kroenke Sports (which owns the team and the arena), who have all auditioned for the group. Founded around 2015, the group has since expanded to cover Colorado Avalanche hockey games under the name Celly Squad.
And they are really good at what they do.
People with rhythm amaze me — maybe because I am the least musical person I know — and the men and women who make up the Skyline Drumline not only have rhythm, but they can also dance, smile, walk, talk, toss drumsticks to one another and play percussion all at the same time, all in the middle of thousands of fans.
I’ll be heading back to another game in January — and I will still lack rhythm. But the drumline will be there to remind me why I love watching the Nuggets at Ball Arena.
