Flooding crippled New York on Wednesday night, creating a nightmare for fans in Queens.
What a nightmare
Torrential rain from the remnants of Hurricane Ida caused catastrophic flooding in the New York metro area Wednesday night, submerging roadways, subway stations and ground-floor apartments. At least nine people were killed.
And yet, play at the U.S. Open in Queens continued. Some matches were postponed because the rain was so unrelenting the retractable roof on Louis Armstrong Stadium proved no match.
Out on the concourse, a beer stand careened out of control as the wind whipped.
This is what fans had to contend with as they left the stadium and ventured to the train station to try to make their way home.
And once they arrived at the station, they were faced with the daunting task of navigating a public transit system crippled by the unprecedented flooding. Service was suspended on every line of the New York subway system. The Long Island Rail Road suspended service on its Port Washington branch, which serves the National Tennis Center.
Fans who decided to wait out the weather inside Arthur Ashe—where Diego Schwartzman defeated Kevin Anderson in straight sets in a match that ended around 1 a.m.—were told not to leave due to the transportation crisis.
Jake Kring-Schreifels (who I went to college with) was one of the fans who stuck it out for the Schwartzman match. By the time the match ended, the 7 train was running again with limited service to Manhattan and he was able to catch one without waiting for too long.
“It wasn’t too bad, honestly,” he told me. “We left the last match around 1:10 a.m. and then got a 7 train around 1:45 a.m.”
Once he got into Manhattan, Kring-Schreifels saw “lots of people just camping out in the Grand Central subway stop” but was able to walk the 25 blocks home instead of having to wait for another train. Another fan, Forrest Brown, wasn’t so lucky. He wrote on Twitter that he had to walk all the way from Grand Central to Brooklyn.
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Bishop Sycamore’s latest problem is being accused of passing bad checks at the hotel it stayed at for its game over the weekend. ... Longtime Nationals executive Bob Boone (the father of Bret and Aaron) is leaving his job because he doesn’t want to get the COVID-19 vaccine. ... Former Colts quarterback Art Schlichter, who has been in and out of jail for most of the past two decades, was released after serving eight years of an 11-year sentence in federal prison.
Not “for no reason” (he kicked the ball after Ronaldo set it up for a penalty) but still, what was he thinking?
So there won’t be any unvaccinated players on those teams
Mark Davis is building a supervillain’s lair in the middle of the desert
He broke his own ankles
People will definitely only watch this show for legal betting advice
It worked so well the first time not to try it again
That’s pretty cool
Shocking
Not sports
An 80-pound cougar being kept illegally as a pet was removed from an apartment in the Bronx. ... Scientists discovered that microscopic organisms called “water bears” walk the same way as animals 500,000 times larger. ... An Illinois woman was arrested for trying to get into Hawaii with a fake vaccine card that misspelled Moderna as “Maderna.”
A good song
Email dan.gartland@si.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.
Flooding crippled New York on Wednesday night, creating a nightmare for fans in Queens.
What a nightmare
Torrential rain from the remnants of Hurricane Ida caused catastrophic flooding in the New York metro area Wednesday night, submerging roadways, subway stations and ground-floor apartments. At least nine people were killed.
And yet, play at the U.S. Open in Queens continued. Some matches were postponed because the rain was so unrelenting the retractable roof on Louis Armstrong Stadium proved no match.
Out on the concourse, a beer stand careened out of control as the wind whipped.
This is what fans had to contend with as they left the stadium and ventured to the train station to try to make their way home.
And once they arrived at the station, they were faced with the daunting task of navigating a public transit system crippled by the unprecedented flooding. Service was suspended on every line of the New York subway system. The Long Island Rail Road suspended service on its Port Washington branch, which serves the National Tennis Center.
Fans who decided to wait out the weather inside Arthur Ashe—where Diego Schwartzman defeated Kevin Anderson in straight sets in a match that ended around 1 a.m.—were told not to leave due to the transportation crisis.
Jake Kring-Schreifels (who I went to college with) was one of the fans who stuck it out for the Schwartzman match. By the time the match ended, the 7 train was running again with limited service to Manhattan and he was able to catch one without waiting for too long.
“It wasn’t too bad, honestly,” he told me. “We left the last match around 1:10 a.m. and then got a 7 train around 1:45 a.m.”
Once he got into Manhattan, Kring-Schreifels saw “lots of people just camping out in the Grand Central subway stop” but was able to walk the 25 blocks home instead of having to wait for another train. Another fan, Forrest Brown, wasn’t so lucky. He wrote on Twitter that he had to walk all the way from Grand Central to Brooklyn.
The best of SI
What to expect from a funky Concacaf World Cup qualifying process. ... Playoff picks and other predictions for the college football season. ... Inside Tulane’s hectic preparation for its season opener vs. Oklahoma after evacuating from New Orleans. ... The Lakers need Anthony Davis to step up this year after a disappointing 2020–21 season.
Around the sports world
Bishop Sycamore’s latest problem is being accused of passing bad checks at the hotel it stayed at for its game over the weekend. ... Longtime Nationals executive Bob Boone (the father of Bret and Aaron) is leaving his job because he doesn’t want to get the COVID-19 vaccine. ... Former Colts quarterback Art Schlichter, who has been in and out of jail for most of the past two decades, was released after serving eight years of an 11-year sentence in federal prison.
Not “for no reason” (he kicked the ball after Ronaldo set it up for a penalty) but still, what was he thinking?
So there won’t be any unvaccinated players on those teams
Mark Davis is building a supervillain’s lair in the middle of the desert
He broke his own ankles
People will definitely only watch this show for legal betting advice
It worked so well the first time not to try it again
That’s pretty cool
Shocking
Not sports
An 80-pound cougar being kept illegally as a pet was removed from an apartment in the Bronx. ... Scientists discovered that microscopic organisms called “water bears” walk the same way as animals 500,000 times larger. ... An Illinois woman was arrested for trying to get into Hawaii with a fake vaccine card that misspelled Moderna as “Maderna.”
A good song
Email dan.gartland@si.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.
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