When I got stationed in Germany in the later part of the '80s, my wife and I landed at Frankfurt Int'l Airport. There were armed military patrolling inside the airport in pairs. One with a shotgun and a german shepard. The other with an uzi. I looked at my wife and said, "What kind of neighborhood is this?"
First High School game I ever did was a real barn-burner where the visitors came back from 2 down to force overtime. The Home team eventually won in OT. The location was pretty much Normal-town, USA, the crowd was very loud and vocal all game--in a fairly typical HS, mostly good-spirited way. Anyway, after the game, we collect our stuff, pack our bags and change shirts by the side of the field. As we start walking off the field, an off duty cop appears and starts to escort us off the field. He is a big guy, almost stereotypically big, barrel chest, big belly, in full police uniform, including holstered weapon on one hip and night stick on the other. As we get to the edge of the field, we veer off track from the main entrance and he opens a secret gate... that leads to an opening in the hedge behind the field and then into the parking lot!! I cam thinking: Holy S#!t!! Do all fields have secret exits? Would we need this if the Home team had lost? Are all games like this!? What have I gotten my self into!? Well, in 5 years since then, no games have been like that, in terms of excitement. Of course, I have done hotly contested games since, I guess because that was my first HS game ever, it stuck in my mind. But I have gotten used to looking for the secret ref exit (available at a few fields) and the off-duty cop escorts at all HS fields that I am working for the first time.