THIS is the problem with the sport in America - THE CHEAP AZZ FANS.
"OMG! The tickets cost money! And the parking!! They won't let me brown bag my lunch!!!"
Track fans are pathetic! College football fans will not flinch to buy a travel package to a bowl game. Euro soccer fans will burn their vacation hours and a ton of coin to see their club play a UEFA Cup match, not to mention seeing their national side play in a World Cup. But American track fan won't! In fact, they will also spend hours on LRC griping that they have to pay a pittance to watch a meet live on a streaming service.
I loved old Hayward but the place was a dump and a fire trap. It only held about 6,000 without temporary bleachers, had inadequate bathrooms and concessions, smelled of piss when the weather got hot, and good luck trying to leave or return to your seat in the old main grandstand without drawing the ire of a bunch of crusty senior citizens that had to give you two inches of room to shimmy out. The new place is great, the seats are super comfortable, and there are no bad views in the place. I cannot tell you how many tight finishes I missed because a support pillar blocked my view from old east stands.
But...but...Penn? And Iowa High School Champs? And.... Yes, they do draw bigger crowds and it is easy to get the competitor's immediate and extended family to drive from four counties away to watch their precious little small school division 800 meter stud to wash out in the first round. Pro meet? You might see a WR or a great battle between the three best throwers on Planet Earth but, those soft drink prices and having to walk four blocks from a parking spot just ruin the whole thing.
Back to the economics. The sport is not a charity at any level. It take revenue to fund but the typical domestic fan is reluctant to part with any cash. Everything about our sport just looks and feels cheap down to this very website. If it is too rich for your blood, fine. Just don't go watch live meets and follow the action for free through the often dumb posts on this board. Otherwise, prove your fandom and lob some lucre at it. I find it so laughable when people complain that Eugene is too expensive, too dirty, too hard to get to, etc. but then the same tightwads brag that they will max out their credit cards to fly to Budapest for the next WC. I've been there and, newsflash, it's more expensive than Eugene and you still can't smuggle a Subway $5 Footlong into the stadium! In fact, that will probably get you jailed in Orban's Hungary.
This sport isn't for coupon clippers and folks that demand a senior discount. Pay if you are passionate! The less you support the sport financially, the shorter its lifespan gets. Otherwise, stay home and watch it on your laptop and keep whining about the lack of exposure and respect it gets.
Budapest is not more expensive than Eugene. I’ve actually lived there on a very meager budget that would be basically impossible in any decent-sized US city. Bread, deli meats at the market were so cheap and at the fruit/vegetable markets everything was so cheap that I once did the calculation in USD of watermelon prices and it came out to 8 cents per pound.
It's cheaper to live in Europe than the US right now. But it's soon to get more expensive in Europe.
There was marketing. The locals I spoke to that used to go to Pre weren't interested in: East Africans whose names you can't pronounce, paying $100 for tickets for Nike's went over-budget stadium, loud music in the new stadium constantly (the old stadium was quiet and you could listen to the chatter of the crowd), no parking, crap weather, which we are used to, but there is no cover in the new stadium except for in the nose-bleeds.
Participation is still solid but if you go to a high school track meet you recognize only 10-20% of the athletes truly care and have passion for the sport. For the rest it is just social.
It was a lot easier to socialize in the old Hayward. I think that's the problem. Track isn't much of a spectator sport. The fans are usually athletes or former athletes themselves. The fun of attending meets in person is to hang around other track fans, athletes and coaches. Now everything is designed like a football stadium for a sport that isn't football.
Participation is still solid but if you go to a high school track meet you recognize only 10-20% of the athletes truly care and have passion for the sport. For the rest it is just social.
It was a lot easier to socialize in the old Hayward. I think that's the problem. Track isn't much of a spectator sport. The fans are usually athletes or former athletes themselves. The fun of attending meets in person is to hang around other track fans, athletes and coaches. Now everything is designed like a football stadium for a sport that isn't football.
I spent 8 days watching the Oly Trials last summer while socializing with fans, athletes, and coaches. The only difference was I had a beer in my hand and someone’s knees weren’t shoved in my back. I do think the stadium is too big and the roof should cover more seats, but otherwise it’s such a huge improvement over the old stadium.
Participation is still solid but if you go to a high school track meet you recognize only 10-20% of the athletes truly care and have passion for the sport. For the rest it is just social.
It was a lot easier to socialize in the old Hayward. I think that's the problem. Track isn't much of a spectator sport. The fans are usually athletes or former athletes themselves. The fun of attending meets in person is to hang around other track fans, athletes and coaches. Now everything is designed like a football stadium for a sport that isn't football.
You are correct. Fans and coaches alike have lost the ability to circulate around the short fence, lean on it, and meet people and B.S. with them. In the historic setup, one could encounter many people--fans, athletes, and coaches as they walked around the south turn, especially when the temporary bleachers weren't there for a Trials. Of course, most college tracks have this ability, but not the new Hayward.
Now, you might run into some people you know on the concourse, but my experience has not been such. Since you can't see the track from the concourse, everyone is understandably in a hurry to get somewhere else.
The DL is only 1/2 of the events. It's cheating. For Memorial Day families went to Disneyland, San Diego, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Santa Monica, Golden Gate Bridge, Huntington Beach, Santa Cruz instead. Then code shared and watched Eugene Diamond on amateurish fanboi TV.
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"Comfort must not be expected by folks that go a pleasuring."
THIS is the problem with the sport in America - THE CHEAP AZZ FANS.
"OMG! The tickets cost money! And the parking!! They won't let me brown bag my lunch!!!"
Track fans are pathetic! College football fans will not flinch to buy a travel package to a bowl game. Euro soccer fans will burn their vacation hours and a ton of coin to see their club play a UEFA Cup match, not to mention seeing their national side play in a World Cup. But American track fan won't! In fact, they will also spend hours on LRC griping that they have to pay a pittance to watch a meet live on a streaming service.
I loved old Hayward but the place was a dump and a fire trap. It only held about 6,000 without temporary bleachers, had inadequate bathrooms and concessions, smelled of piss when the weather got hot, and good luck trying to leave or return to your seat in the old main grandstand without drawing the ire of a bunch of crusty senior citizens that had to give you two inches of room to shimmy out. The new place is great, the seats are super comfortable, and there are no bad views in the place. I cannot tell you how many tight finishes I missed because a support pillar blocked my view from old east stands.
But...but...Penn? And Iowa High School Champs? And.... Yes, they do draw bigger crowds and it is easy to get the competitor's immediate and extended family to drive from four counties away to watch their precious little small school division 800 meter stud to wash out in the first round. Pro meet? You might see a WR or a great battle between the three best throwers on Planet Earth but, those soft drink prices and having to walk four blocks from a parking spot just ruin the whole thing.
Back to the economics. The sport is not a charity at any level. It take revenue to fund but the typical domestic fan is reluctant to part with any cash. Everything about our sport just looks and feels cheap down to this very website. If it is too rich for your blood, fine. Just don't go watch live meets and follow the action for free through the often dumb posts on this board. Otherwise, prove your fandom and lob some lucre at it. I find it so laughable when people complain that Eugene is too expensive, too dirty, too hard to get to, etc. but then the same tightwads brag that they will max out their credit cards to fly to Budapest for the next WC. I've been there and, newsflash, it's more expensive than Eugene and you still can't smuggle a Subway $5 Footlong into the stadium! In fact, that will probably get you jailed in Orban's Hungary.
This sport isn't for coupon clippers and folks that demand a senior discount. Pay if you are passionate! The less you support the sport financially, the shorter its lifespan gets. Otherwise, stay home and watch it on your laptop and keep whining about the lack of exposure and respect it gets.
Great post.
Not doubt there will be some growing pains as fans of T&F get used to having nice things (thank you Uncle Phil).
As the old timers move on, all the while griping about the good ol' days of that crappy stadium of yore, the next generation can't get enough of their new mecca. I was sitting amongst the next generation of track fans (all distance runners) and they were stoked. Even with almost half the attendance numbers of prior Pre Classics the noise was just as loud. When that place is full it's going to sound crazy in there.
The new stadium and T&F experience was awesome. I could have done without the $13 beer though (Next time I'll definitely need to fight the urge to sneak a brown paper bag lunch with a couple of PBRs into the stadium).
Now comes a big problem in this day and age of flash, boom, bang - how to fill it. As the Boomers move on there are many angst filled discussions across America on how to save a sport, museum, concert hall, Shakespeare festival without selling out to the lowest common denominator.
I was disappointed with the Pre crowd and I'm unsure on the best way to fill it but, from my experience last week, this stadium was the surest way to attract renewed interest in our sport.
As the Boomers move on there are many angst filled discussions across America on how to save a sport, museum, concert hall, Shakespeare festival without selling out to the lowest common denominator.
If the public doesn't want those things, then maybe they don't need to be saved.
As the Boomers move on there are many angst filled discussions across America on how to save a sport, museum, concert hall, Shakespeare festival without selling out to the lowest common denominator.
If the public doesn't want those things, then maybe they don't need to be saved.
Perhaps, but if I had an extra $270 million lying around I’d probably throw it at a shrine to T&F too. Hopefully it’s not a vain attempt to resurrect the sport. Judging from the curmudgeons posting on this thread we’ve got a 50/50 chance or worse.
Golfers are the kind of people who sit around, they're more likely to stay home and watch or go out to the course to watch.
Some years ago (maybe 15 or so) I was having breakfast in a restaurant overlooking the first hole of a golf course. Most of the guys were dressed like and tried to act like Tiger Woods- Nike sweater vest and all. They tried to look so "pro" then teed off and were the equivalent of a 5 hour marathoner.
5 hour marathoners aren't dressing like Kipchoge or Rupp (or Muir). They get some clothing on line and shoes that their specialty store recommended or that their online friends said are the best shoe available.
Somehow, the running industry has to appeal to these people. Problem is- most slightly overweight marathon runners don't want to dress in the skimpy clothing of the tiny elite- especially the women.
Jakob Ingebrigtsen, Sinclaire Johnson, Berihu Aregwai, Michael Norman, Sha'Carri Richardson, Michael Norman, Paul Chelimo,Emma Coburn, Courtney Frerichs, Laua Muir, and Josette Norris all make the list. Plus do the low attend...
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