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1.) DParker - 05/15/2017
We used to go to Rangers games a lot because my wife and kids really loved them, but haven't been in a few years due to the kids having lives of their own now. But my son got the idea of us all going as a Mother's Day outing, which was immediately up-voted by my daughter and her husband. In addition to knowing that my wife would like spending a day like that with the family I figured my granddaughter was finally old enough to enjoy the experience...even if she didn't really have a clue what was going on. So I set about buying tickets and parking passes for all of us.
Holy crap! The ticket prices have become certifiably insane. Sure, you can sit (or even stand) at the end of the outfield or at an altitude conducive to nose-bleeds for as little as $18/person. But the seats are so far away from anything you'd probably have a better time just watching on the TV in the comfort of your own home...or from a bar stool where you can at least get a decent beer and some chicken wings for a reasonable price. Anything not in the upper tiers starts at $68 and goes to as high as $214 for the 2nd row seats behind the backstop (1st row being reserved for owners, former presidents and other non-mortals). Food and drink? $7 for a crappy little beef hot dog and $8 for a soda. And don't even ask about the sorry-assed excuses for beer. Luckily I didn't have to buy a seat for my granddaughter as she just squeaked in under the free-to-sit-on-someone's lap rule. I won't tell you what I paid for the tickets, but it was enough that at least it made me numb when it came to paying $20/car for parking. We had good seats...
...so I'll just let you imagine what they set me back. We won't be doing that again anytime soon. Oh well...at least they had the courtesy to pull out a win for us...and the grandchild had a good time...
But sadly, "Take me out to the ballgame" is no longer a feasible reality for everyday Americans on any sort of regular basis.
Holy crap! The ticket prices have become certifiably insane. Sure, you can sit (or even stand) at the end of the outfield or at an altitude conducive to nose-bleeds for as little as $18/person. But the seats are so far away from anything you'd probably have a better time just watching on the TV in the comfort of your own home...or from a bar stool where you can at least get a decent beer and some chicken wings for a reasonable price. Anything not in the upper tiers starts at $68 and goes to as high as $214 for the 2nd row seats behind the backstop (1st row being reserved for owners, former presidents and other non-mortals). Food and drink? $7 for a crappy little beef hot dog and $8 for a soda. And don't even ask about the sorry-assed excuses for beer. Luckily I didn't have to buy a seat for my granddaughter as she just squeaked in under the free-to-sit-on-someone's lap rule. I won't tell you what I paid for the tickets, but it was enough that at least it made me numb when it came to paying $20/car for parking. We had good seats...
...so I'll just let you imagine what they set me back. We won't be doing that again anytime soon. Oh well...at least they had the courtesy to pull out a win for us...and the grandchild had a good time...
But sadly, "Take me out to the ballgame" is no longer a feasible reality for everyday Americans on any sort of regular basis.
2.) bluecat - 05/15/2017
That is a really nice looking ballpark. Good clear picture.
Yes, the prices for any professional sporting venue are ridiculous. If you are lucky enough to have a double or triple A club near you, you can watch some really good baseball and have a night of fun for cheap. Maybe even milk a goat during the seventh inning stretch. San Antonio Missions?
Yes, the prices for any professional sporting venue are ridiculous. If you are lucky enough to have a double or triple A club near you, you can watch some really good baseball and have a night of fun for cheap. Maybe even milk a goat during the seventh inning stretch. San Antonio Missions?
3.) Swamp Fox - 05/15/2017
Nice pics.
I used to go to a few games here and there when my travels took me to a major league city if I was with a fun bunch. I don't remember middling seats being outrageous, but beer and food prices have always been horrible. It's a lot worse now, as you say.
Don't even look at NFL tickets unless you win the lottery. I had hoped to treat my dad to a game after my mom died, but it was outrageous.
Fortunately for me, I'm happy watching football on TV, but baseball is something I'd rather watch in person--when I watch it at all. You really have to be in sloth mode to enjoy a baseball game no matter how you watch it. That's a rare and vanishing luxury for most people these days. Maybe that has something to do with the prices. The prices certainly aren't helping people attend games.
For a while years ago, I used to share season tickets to the Durham Bulls with several people. That was fun. You get your sit-outside-and-drink beer-and-people-watch-on-a-summer-night fix taken care of several times a month, and it doesn't (or didn't) put you in the poorhouse. We used to have seats just off home plate, where the scouts and statisticians and the player girlfriends and groupies were.
Whoo-boy! :wink :grin:
P.S. I have a vague recollection of somebody taking me to an MLB game when I a kid---too young to remember clearly, though. I do remember I had the best hot dog I ever ate, though...So much so that I've been constantly and crushingly disappointed by every other hot dog I've ever come across ever since.
I used to go to a few games here and there when my travels took me to a major league city if I was with a fun bunch. I don't remember middling seats being outrageous, but beer and food prices have always been horrible. It's a lot worse now, as you say.
Don't even look at NFL tickets unless you win the lottery. I had hoped to treat my dad to a game after my mom died, but it was outrageous.
Fortunately for me, I'm happy watching football on TV, but baseball is something I'd rather watch in person--when I watch it at all. You really have to be in sloth mode to enjoy a baseball game no matter how you watch it. That's a rare and vanishing luxury for most people these days. Maybe that has something to do with the prices. The prices certainly aren't helping people attend games.
For a while years ago, I used to share season tickets to the Durham Bulls with several people. That was fun. You get your sit-outside-and-drink beer-and-people-watch-on-a-summer-night fix taken care of several times a month, and it doesn't (or didn't) put you in the poorhouse. We used to have seats just off home plate, where the scouts and statisticians and the player girlfriends and groupies were.
Whoo-boy! :wink :grin:
P.S. I have a vague recollection of somebody taking me to an MLB game when I a kid---too young to remember clearly, though. I do remember I had the best hot dog I ever ate, though...So much so that I've been constantly and crushingly disappointed by every other hot dog I've ever come across ever since.
4.) DParker - 05/15/2017
[QUOTE=bluecat;48842]That is a really nice looking ballpark.[/QUOTE]
That brings up a huge point that forgot to include in my little rant. The ballpark looks nice because...by baseball standards...it's practically brand new, having opened in April of 1994 (2 years after we moved here...and the old park wasn't all that bad). And yet, last year Rangers ownership decided that the current park wasn't good enough, and talked the city of Arlington into putting a $500 million bond measure on the ballot to fund half the cost of a new park because....they want one with a roof. And the initiative passed in a landslide. Now, granted...daytime games during the summer can get pretty brutal under the TX midday sun (my son and I went to one several years ago in seats that were exposed, and came home with some pretty bad burns...which is why I go for seats that are shaded by the 2nd tier), but they should have addressed that issue when they built the current park. It's not like the summer weather has changed in that time, or like there wasn't the construction technology at the time. So now attendees are paying not only for the game they're watching, but also so the team can abandon a like-new park and build another one...which will be their third park in 25 years...with nary a World Series win to their credit.
That brings up a huge point that forgot to include in my little rant. The ballpark looks nice because...by baseball standards...it's practically brand new, having opened in April of 1994 (2 years after we moved here...and the old park wasn't all that bad). And yet, last year Rangers ownership decided that the current park wasn't good enough, and talked the city of Arlington into putting a $500 million bond measure on the ballot to fund half the cost of a new park because....they want one with a roof. And the initiative passed in a landslide. Now, granted...daytime games during the summer can get pretty brutal under the TX midday sun (my son and I went to one several years ago in seats that were exposed, and came home with some pretty bad burns...which is why I go for seats that are shaded by the 2nd tier), but they should have addressed that issue when they built the current park. It's not like the summer weather has changed in that time, or like there wasn't the construction technology at the time. So now attendees are paying not only for the game they're watching, but also so the team can abandon a like-new park and build another one...which will be their third park in 25 years...with nary a World Series win to their credit.
5.) DParker - 05/15/2017
[QUOTE=Swamp Fox;48843]Nice pics.[/quote]
Thanks. When the lighting is decent my phone's camera does a good job of compensating for my lack of photography skills.
[QUOTE=Swamp Fox;48843]Don't even look at NFL tickets unless you win the lottery.[/QUOTE]
Oh, yeah...they've always been insane. I took my son to a Dallas vs Green Bay game when he was little (I'm thinking just before Y2K or so) just so he could say he'd been to an NFL game at least once in his life. We sat 3 rows from the very top of the upper balcony (the only seats I could get) and even then they were $50 each. We haven't been back since.
Thanks. When the lighting is decent my phone's camera does a good job of compensating for my lack of photography skills.
[QUOTE=Swamp Fox;48843]Don't even look at NFL tickets unless you win the lottery.[/QUOTE]
Oh, yeah...they've always been insane. I took my son to a Dallas vs Green Bay game when he was little (I'm thinking just before Y2K or so) just so he could say he'd been to an NFL game at least once in his life. We sat 3 rows from the very top of the upper balcony (the only seats I could get) and even then they were $50 each. We haven't been back since.
6.) bluecat - 05/15/2017
Cute grandaughter!
So what are they going to do with the old ballpark? Same site?
So what are they going to do with the old ballpark? Same site?
7.) DParker - 05/15/2017
[QUOTE=bluecat;48846]Cute grandaughter![/QUOTE]
Thanks. I'd like to take credit, but should any photos of me surface I would be proven a dirty liar.
[QUOTE=bluecat;48846]So what are they going to do with the old ballpark? Same site?[/QUOTE]
Close. The new ($1 billion) park will be built on top of existing parking lots across the street to the south from the current park. We don't know yet what will be done with the current park, except that it will not be torn down and will remain to be used "in some capacity", which is yet to be specified. I'm thinking maybe outdoor musical events or some-such. I don't know.
Thanks. I'd like to take credit, but should any photos of me surface I would be proven a dirty liar.
[QUOTE=bluecat;48846]So what are they going to do with the old ballpark? Same site?[/QUOTE]
Close. The new ($1 billion) park will be built on top of existing parking lots across the street to the south from the current park. We don't know yet what will be done with the current park, except that it will not be torn down and will remain to be used "in some capacity", which is yet to be specified. I'm thinking maybe outdoor musical events or some-such. I don't know.
8.) Swamp Fox - 05/15/2017
The Bulls built a new stadium a while back, but I liked the old stadium...But then again, I like peeing in a trough and soaking in vibes from the old days. And yes, that's where some of the price increase at these events come from.
Just to show you how screwed up people are around here, they moved the Durham Blues Festival (multi-day and nights in September) from outside on the grass at the old ballpark to inside some concert hall a bunch of years ago. That's when I stopped going.
You're missing the whole point, people! It's a freakin' festival!
:bad:
Just to show you how screwed up people are around here, they moved the Durham Blues Festival (multi-day and nights in September) from outside on the grass at the old ballpark to inside some concert hall a bunch of years ago. That's when I stopped going.
You're missing the whole point, people! It's a freakin' festival!
:bad:
9.) bluecat - 05/15/2017
LOL!
10.) Swamp Fox - 05/15/2017
:-)
11.) Swamp Fox - 05/15/2017
Here's how people used to be able to afford ball games, and why it's tough now (slide show with more pics at the link):
[url]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durham_Athletic_Park#/media/File:Durham_Bulls_Athletic_Park_(logo).png[/url]
This is one of my favorite pics from the Bulls' history. The big bull billboard in the outfield has long been a tradition, but after a certain point--after the lawyers and the government got done ruining the American tobacco industry-- the only place you could find a link between the mascot and the leaf that made the Bull City famous was in old photos.
[url]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durham_Athletic_Park#/media/File:Durham_Bulls_Athletic_Park_(logo).png[/url]
This is one of my favorite pics from the Bulls' history. The big bull billboard in the outfield has long been a tradition, but after a certain point--after the lawyers and the government got done ruining the American tobacco industry-- the only place you could find a link between the mascot and the leaf that made the Bull City famous was in old photos.
12.) Swamp Fox - 05/15/2017
Here's how people used to be able to afford ball games, and why it's tough now (slide show with more pics at the link):
[url]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Durham_Athletic_Park_scoreboard_1992.jpg/1024px-Durham_Athletic_Park_scoreboard_1992.jpg[/url]
This is one of my favorite pics from the Bulls' history. The big bull billboard in the outfield has long been a tradition, but after a certain point--after the lawyers and the government got done ruining the American tobacco industry-- the only place you could find a link between the mascot and the leaf that made the Bull City famous was in old photos.
[url]https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Durham_Athletic_Park_scoreboard_1992.jpg/1024px-Durham_Athletic_Park_scoreboard_1992.jpg[/url]
This is one of my favorite pics from the Bulls' history. The big bull billboard in the outfield has long been a tradition, but after a certain point--after the lawyers and the government got done ruining the American tobacco industry-- the only place you could find a link between the mascot and the leaf that made the Bull City famous was in old photos.
13.) Swamp Fox - 05/15/2017
Well, I can't figure out how to link to the slide show, but if you get into the details of the first pic you might be able to find a path.
14.) Swamp Fox - 05/15/2017
BTW, that's the old downtown in the background, beyond the fence. :-)
15.) bluecat - 05/16/2017
[QUOTE=Swamp Fox;48850]The Bulls built a new stadium a while back, but I liked the old stadium...But then again, I like peeing in a trough and soaking in vibes from the old days. And yes, that's where some of the price increase at these events come from.
Just to show you how screwed up people are around here, they moved the Durham Blues Festival (multi-day and nights in September) from outside on the grass at the old ballpark to inside some concert hall a bunch of years ago. That's when I stopped going.
You're missing the whole point, people! It's a freakin' festival!
:bad:[/QUOTE]
I really like getting away from it all and going camping. And my camper has granite counter tops. LOL
Just to show you how screwed up people are around here, they moved the Durham Blues Festival (multi-day and nights in September) from outside on the grass at the old ballpark to inside some concert hall a bunch of years ago. That's when I stopped going.
You're missing the whole point, people! It's a freakin' festival!
:bad:[/QUOTE]
I really like getting away from it all and going camping. And my camper has granite counter tops. LOL
16.) Swamp Fox - 05/16/2017
"My other camp is a tarp and a backpack..."