The Freeze runs in a promotional contest during the game against the Philadelphia Phillies at SunTrust Park. Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Fan falls just before finish line in race against the Freeze

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated 7/20/23

It happened yet again.

Just before reaching the finish line, a fan at an Atlanta Braves game stumbled and bit the dust, losing to The Freeze in a race.

Here is the video from Thursday’s race during the 7th inning of the Braves-Arizona Diamondbacks game.

It’s a cold world when you’re racing the Freeze. pic.twitter.com/iApk1cxCPN

— MLB (@MLB) July 20, 2023

The Braves have been running an in-game competition involving The Freeze since at least 2017. The challenge involves a fan getting a huge head start in a race across the warning track. After the fan gets a big head start, The Freeze then takes off, and it’s a race to see who gets to the finish line first.

Fans on occasion can beat The Freeze, but part of the fun is in seeing the masked man come blazing around the warning track to catch someone who has a huge lead over him.

Though some fans have beaten him, many fans get close but come up short. Those fans often make a fatal error: they check to see where The Freeze is. It seems that after turning to see where The Freeze is, the fans panic and lose their balance, falling face-first into the dirt. We saw it happen in 2021.

The same thing also happened in 2017.