PLYMOUTH, Minn. — Jim Malecha can remember — albeit with a smile — attending Vikings games at Metropolitan Stadium in snowmobile suits.
Like many who became lifelong supporters during the Purple People Eaters era, the Faribault native attended the last game at the Bloomington venue that was replaced by Mall of America. The temperature at kickoff of the final game was 21 degrees Fahrenheit, further enhanced by a 16-mph southeast wind.
Snowmobile suits were no longer needed once the Metrodome opened in downtown Minneapolis in 1982, but external views were sacrificed behind the opaque walls.