None of you get it. Its Memorial Day weekend. Oregonians go camping hiking or fishing. They go to the coast where their summer houses and cabins are. They stay at their cabins in the Cascades.. This is way the crowds aren't impressive when they host nationals. They just have better things to do.
In the early days bbefore Pre went golden league Nike had to bus employees from Beaverton to give the illusion of fandom.
Its been said a million times, but its a small town with hardly any hotels. Lots of major track meets today including WA state meet next door. NCAAs should have a bigger crowd, but mostly the teams and parents. It will be interesting to see how worlds plays out.
Tickets to Pre have skyrocket over last 5-6 years. Same ticket area by finish is 3x more at $125 than in 2016. Upper level tix last night were $40 including fees. Throw in gas costs, meal costs, hotel costs, etc and track fans have to pick and choose. NCAA meet will have a very light attendance this year. USA’s could be as well with the high cost of Worlds. Hotels charging $385 (Motel 6) to $800 (Graduate, formerly Hilton). Air BnB’s are $500 to $5000 a night per house from 2 bedroom dump to 5 bedroom nice place. Many from within 2-3 hours are not spending the night but also limiting days they attend.
None of you get it. Its Memorial Day weekend. Oregonians go camping hiking or fishing. They go to the coast where their summer houses and cabins are. They stay at their cabins in the Cascades.. This is way the crowds aren't impressive when they host nationals. They just have better things to do.
In the early days bbefore Pre went golden league Nike had to bus employees from Beaverton to give the illusion of fandom.
T & F has lost its mojo in Eugene, unfortunately. Too many other things to do and many of the track nuts aren't there anymore. Better to be in Indianapolis where there are less diversions and more enthusiastic crowd, or even Des Moines.
It’s so obvious. You had the Fenway of track and field and you tore it down. it was a draw in and of itself and contributed to atmosphere becuase it can have atmosphere even with small crowds.
Yes indeed. Get backing from sponsors and promote the sport. Charging what they charge to watch in person or on a running website isn't the way to do it. You reap what you sow.
None of you get it. Its Memorial Day weekend. Oregonians go camping hiking or fishing. They go to the coast where their summer houses and cabins are. They stay at their cabins in the Cascades.. This is way the crowds aren't impressive when they host nationals. They just have better things to do.
In the early days bbefore Pre went golden league Nike had to bus employees from Beaverton to give the illusion of fandom.
No Malmo, we get it.
Sorry, the whole state is NOT going camping, hiking or fishing. Track and Field Fans would've known about this for a long, long time and they would have showed up regardless of Memorial Day Weekend.
There is nothing wrong with the venue. It is a palace and beats the hell out of the old place. As I see it, the problems are as follows:
The old guard Eugene super fans of yore are dead or very elderly. The fans that packed the house 40-50 years ago are that much older.
Too many foreigners. Sorry to say it but, why buy tickets and travel to see someone you have no emotional investment in take the victory? Today’s women’s steeple was a prime example. Two laps in, it was obvious that Coburn and Frerichs were non-factors. You could feel the crowd check out.
Too many entertainment options. Why buy a minimum $35 seat and pay $15 to park at U of O when you can watch on NBC for free? Or stream movies? Or read posts on Let’s Run?
Oregon track is no longer the only winning sport in Eugene. Crowds at old Hayward started to thin when the Ducks football and basketball teams started having success.
The track coaching staff does no community outreach. Bowerman, Dellinger, and Lananna were active in the community and hyped up the sport. Martin Smith and Robert Johnson have acted more like technocrats than salesmen. As a result, Eugene just doesn’t care as much.
The drive from Portland on I-5 sucks. The road is terrible, needs widening, and there is simply too much traffic. Locals know exactly what I am talking about.
The obvious: track isn’t very exciting. The same athletes win week in, week out. They are sort of non-descript. There is no drama or stakes involved. What does the Diamond League champion win? Obscene amounts of money? Guaranteed Olympic berth? Do you get sent back to minor league level road racing if you don’t finish top five? Who is the franchise MVP star that just makes the average fan’s jaw drop? Track has none of that.
Cheaper tickets. A night focused on domestic competition. More hype. Races where a WR setter gets life changing money. How about announcing both the metric and the imperial mark? These things generate interest. Not tactical races that start with an easy jog. Not seeing races where a dozen Africans make our best look like JV scrubs.
None of you get it. Its Memorial Day weekend. Oregonians go camping hiking or fishing. They go to the coast where their summer houses and cabins are. They stay at their cabins in the Cascades.. This is way the crowds aren't impressive when they host nationals. They just have better things to do.
In the early days bbefore Pre went golden league Nike had to bus employees from Beaverton to give the illusion of fandom.
No Malmo, we get it.
Sorry, the whole state is NOT going camping, hiking or fishing. Track and Field Fans would've known about this for a long, long time and they would have showed up regardless of Memorial Day Weekend.
You don't get it. I never said the whole state is going camping, fishing and hiking. Only those with disposable income.
There aren't as many track fans there as they want you to believe, and those days are long gone.
Tickets to Pre have skyrocket over last 5-6 years. Same ticket area by finish is 3x more at $125 than in 2016. Upper level tix last night were $40 including fees. Throw in gas costs, meal costs, hotel costs, etc and track fans have to pick and choose. NCAA meet will have a very light attendance this year. USA’s could be as well with the high cost of Worlds. Hotels charging $385 (Motel 6) to $800 (Graduate, formerly Hilton). Air BnB’s are $500 to $5000 a night per house from 2 bedroom dump to 5 bedroom nice place. Many from within 2-3 hours are not spending the night but also limiting days they attend.
Longtime meet director (1984-2021) Tom Jordan retired last year but I never saw an announcement of who the new meet director is. Is the abrupt increase in ticket prices, including a first-ever charge for Distance Night due to the new meet director? Is the poor promotion and lack of a sellout after a long string of them also due to the change in management?
Who IS the Prefontaine Classic meet director?
I bought a printed program: $1 value, $10 price. Every previous program going back over 30 years has listed not only the meet director but also the many vital volunteers. The 2022 program had no such listing. I believe that the new meet director is Nike, Inc. with independent contractor John Capriotti pulling the strings, but they want to keep all this secret.
Tickets to Pre have skyrocket over last 5-6 years. Same ticket area by finish is 3x more at $125 than in 2016. Upper level tix last night were $40 including fees. Throw in gas costs, meal costs, hotel costs, etc and track fans have to pick and choose. NCAA meet will have a very light attendance this year. USA’s could be as well with the high cost of Worlds. Hotels charging $385 (Motel 6) to $800 (Graduate, formerly Hilton). Air BnB’s are $500 to $5000 a night per house from 2 bedroom dump to 5 bedroom nice place. Many from within 2-3 hours are not spending the night but also limiting days they attend.
If there are only a few hotels and B&Bs, what about camping? Can you camp near there? I think I would rather camp than pay $500 for one night in a hotel that I was only in for eight hours to sleep.
Sorry, the whole state is NOT going camping, hiking or fishing. Track and Field Fans would've known about this for a long, long time and they would have showed up regardless of Memorial Day Weekend.
You don't get it. I never said the whole state is going camping, fishing and hiking. Only those with disposable income.
There aren't as many track fans there as they want you to believe, and those days are long gone.
Hippies and crackheads to go to track meets.
I had not been to Eugene in a looooooooooooong time until I went to the Trials in '21. It was such a disappointment. The town has gone down the tubes with homeless encampments on many underpasses, parks. Clearly drugged folks cruising the downtown areas etc. Yes, there are still some insolated areas, but I was crushed by the demise. Yes, the T&F events and new stadium are compelling for us Track Folk, but, for me the magic of Eugene has disappeared.
