| Minnesota
Vikings - Metrodome |
| Address: |
500 11th Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55415 |
|
| Name: |
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome |
| Home Team:
|
Minnesota Vikings |
| Capacity:
|
64,121 |
| Playing
Surface: |
Grass |
| Year Opened:
|
1982 |
|
After spending more than two
decades at Metropolitan Stadium, it was time for a new stadium
for both the Minnesota Vikings and the Twins (MLB), who both
played at the stadium. Built in the mid 1950’s, Metropolitan
Stadium was beginning to deteriorate after two decades of existence.
In the late 1970’s, Minneapolis began studying the idea
of building a dome stadium for both teams. By mid 1979, a new
dome stadium was approved to be built in downtown Minneapolis.
On December 20, 1979, construction began on the multipurpose
dome stadium. A dome multipurpose stadium was chosen because
of the cold weather between fall and spring. Named after former
Vice President, Hubert H. Humphrey, the H.H.H. Metrodome, was
completed in just over two years. The Minnesota Twins (MLB)
played the first game ever at the Metrodome on April 6, 1982.
The Vikings inaugural first game
at the Metrodome was on September 12, 1982. Over 64,000 seats
in two tiers circle the entire field when the Metrodome is
in football configuration. The Metrodome is one of the easiest
stadium to be converted from baseball to football. The entire
process takes around four hours. A section of 7,600 retractable
seats make up the 23 foot high right field wall during a baseball
game, but the seats are pulled out allowing the capacity to
be increased during football games. The dome at the stadium
consists of over ten acres of Teflon-coated fiberglass. It
is the only air-supported dome, and fans enter the park through
revolving doors that prevent the release of the air that keeps
the dome upright. The roof requires 250,000 cubic feet of
air pressure per minute to remain inflated. The roof has snow
melting ducts to prevent a collapse. However, in the fall
of 1982, the dome collapsed, but was re-inflated. Very few
changes have taken place at the Metrodome since it opened
in 1982. After the 2003 season, the Astroturf field was removed
and replaced with Fieldturf. Currently, the Vikings and the
Twins would like to have new stadiums built.
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