Wow! What a sight thousands witnessed tonight at the 'Stros Home Opener! First, it was such a great thrill for me to be on the field for the 5 PM news today. I left Houston before the stadium opened and saw the final game ever played in the Dome against the dreaded Braves. So in my 8 years at Hot-lanta, I rarely went to the Ted (that's what they call the stadium there) because frankly, I can't stand the Braves. Aren't you glad I don't mince words?

Anyway, one of my jobs now is to consult with the Astros field manager Bobby Forest about whether or not to open or close the roof for the game. Of course, they'd prefer to leave it open so as to give fans great views. But that only works until mid-May and possibly late-September. Fan comfort is a key priority and it takes thirteen minutes to close the roof, but considerably longer to cool the stadium.

Today, the verdict was a no-brainer: leave it open. Even though there were clouds early on in the day, they lifted and we had a mix of sun and clouds during the afternoon. Also today for the home-opener, a group of Navy paratroopers called Leapfrogs, were schedule to parachute in. Even though I did my 5 PM hit inside, I had to scurry outside for the 6 PM news since the game started at 6:05 PM.

Just before 6, everyone outside heard the low hum of a multi-propeller aircraft that was flying low, probably around 2,000 ft. Here's what it looked like from where I was standing, near our microwave truck:

Seconds later, puffs of smoke and parachutes dotted the skies:

And one by one, the Leapfrogs disappeared into the stadium:

It was a cool couple of minutes and everyone stopped what they were doing to see this before the inevitable Astros victory. Let's hope they can beat the Cards again tomorrow night with roof open again.

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