How well do you know PETCO Park's entry policy? POP QUIZ!

I, like many of you, was watching the USA vs. England soccer match on Saturday. If you watched the game or more importantly heard the game then you no doubt heard the extremely loud and never ending buzzing sound. The droning buzz comes from a plastic horn called the vuvuzela.

When I first heard the sound it reminded me of The Dark Knight. If I remember correctly, in just about every scene featuring the Joker his appearance is preceded by a buzzing sound building in volume to create tension. So in my case the vuvuzelas made me think that Heath Ledger was going to bust through the TV screen at any minute and tell me how he got those scars on his face.

In any case, there were talks of banning the vuvuzela but a spokesman said:

‘Vuvuzelas are here to stay and will never be banned. Look at them as part of our culture in South Africa to celebrate the 2010 FIFA World Cup.’

He said the noise is part of the fabric of football in Africa, similar to English rattles, the football flares of Italy, the air horns of Holland and the ticker tape that greets teams in South America.

Upon hearing about the growing popularity of such noise making devices my thoughts immediately went to the Padres. Could our national pastime and our beloved team be drowned out by more than just bad PA music? Could Padres baseball be a casualty of annoying instruments being played by fans?

After searching through PETCO Park Entry Policies it doesn't appear that we are in imminent danger:

NOISE-MAKING DEVICES
Musical instruments or any type of noise-making device may not be brought into PETCO Park. Any exceptions will be at the discretion of the San Diego Padres.

Although while refreshing myself on the park's entry policies I was surprised how little I knew. Here let me give you a true or false quiz. Keep score on your own.

1. Camcorders are not allowed in PETCO Park.
2. A 4 x 6 foot sign is allowed to be brought inside the Park.
3. You can bring a hard sided cooler filled with 100 hard boiled eggs to a Padres game.
4. Lawn chairs and all other seating devices may not be brought into the park.
5. Umbrellas are only allowed in the park when it is raining.

Answers after the jump.

Ok let's take these one at a time.

1. FALSE. Camcorders are allowed. I knew that, but what I didn't know is that you cannot use tripods or monopods. I can only assume that iPods are okay. Also the Padres reserve the right to ask you to stop filming at any time.

2. TRUE. Surprisingly yes, you can bring a huge ass 4 x 6 foot sign into Petco Park. You can bring a sign as big as 4 x 8 feet. You are not allowed to obstruct the view of other guests in attendance or block advertising signs. Again the Padres reserve the right to take down all signs.

3. FALSE. I thought I could trick you with this question. Hard sided coolers are illegal but hard boiled eggs are quite legal. Soft sided coolers are okay.

4. FALSE. This is kind of a trick question because chairs or seating devices with a rigid frame are not permitted inside PETCO Park, but other seating devices like soft chairs, towels and such are permitted. Also if you happen to be a clinical giant and sports hero like Bill Walton you can have your small Asian wife carry your enormous rigid framed lawn chair into the ballpark. I know because I saw it happen on Opening Day.

5. FALSE. Umbrellas are permitted inside PETCO Park should rain be forecast and on unusually hot days, provided they do not block the view of other guests. See I didn't know that. I didn't think you could ever bring umbrellas into the park, here I was getting wet for no reason.

Anyway be sure to click on the link above and familiarize yourself with the rest of the PETCO Park Entry Policies. It could save your life.