I agree with WeHomez/RoHomez that UO will only further isolate our already NICHE sport of Track and Field

I don't even really care either way on this issue... but doesn't everybody see that the Olympic Trials will ALWAYS have higher turn out than the World Champ Qualifier because it leads to the olympics.... Something even non-track-enthusiasts can appreciate.

why can't I see any topics.

NCAA College Teams wrote:

Plus, retirement aged fans don't spend very much money on souvenirs.

Having NCAA's every year at a retirement ville in Arizona, California, or Florida would be just as bad as having it in Eugene, Oregon every year.

Nobody buys track and field souvenirs. I ran in high school, college, and still follow the sport online. But, no way I'd ever buy "souvenirs" or travel any real distance to see a meet in person. The fan base for running is pretty much runners, people even when older, who are more into doing than merely watching and consuming like the fat ball sport people.

Is the problem one location or the issue really the fact that the majority of the sport doesn't want the name of the sport changed to Nike and Field.

There's no problem with a single location if quality track and field is brought to the other areas of the country in other forms. When was the last time New England held the All-Star Game and of course the World Series only recently returned. But Beantown never lost its fervor for the sport.

If Eugene doesn't keep progressing the sport then cut them lose. Make them continue to demonstrate how letting them host is best for the sport and make continued hosting opportunities contingent upon demonstrable proof that it helps our sport as a whole.

So far I don't see anyone who's done a better job.

I think DC would be a great location for a national meet- either NCAA or USATF. There are so many affluent high school kids who compete in track. No facility though.... Give me $200 million and I'll build a great one.

DC in the Spring of Fall has nice weather, but the summers are terrible for fans. Mt Sac, Sac St, and Stanford always draw huge crowds if that matters to some. T&F is a TV sport though and crowds have never mattered at all. The Olympic Stadium for the Rome GL meet is always half empty yet they hold it every year at the same time and same day of week each year. Adidas, with U.S. HQ in Portland, always puts on the Home Depot with the worst planning and meet management in the developed world, absolutely crap facilities. They don't obviously don't need any tickets sold because TV is where they make a killing.

Wrong on all counts.

You are from Tyler, Texas?

That explains everything about your ignorance and stupidity.

Track needs less "fans" like you.

So far I don't see anyone who's done a better job.

I concur. The USATF and NCAA T&F program is why the USA T&F team was #1 in the world at Beijing and will kick ass in Berlin ! Cali, Tx, Ark, Wa, NY, Ma, Nc, Me, Fl, Az, Ut, Va, Sc, Al, Ms, Tn, Ky, Oh, In, Mn, Sd, Ak, etc. are why. Sac St put on a very successful OTs in 2004. Mt Sac Relays brings in 250,000 fans and athletes each spring, simultaneously using three full track & field stadiums. Tx Relays, BAA, Drake Relays, NYCM, Penn Relays are monumentally crucial to our sport. Other schools & venues *deserve* to have the NCAA outdoors, USA outdoors, OTs, etc. at their venues too, and yes they have the Oly and WC medals to vouche for the claim.

I love Hayward Field and the Eugene track aura. I lived in Eugene a couple years. I didn't like the town that much, but loved the track/running culture.

That said, I think rotating NCAAs and USA's is a good thing. Come up with a core group of cities that will host it and sell tickets. If you can't average 10K (sold tickets, not giveaways) you lose your right to hold the meets.

I could see Eugene, Sacramento, Indianapolis, NYC, somewhere in Carolina or the south, Chicago, L.A., Seattle, Boston, etc., each vying for it. Humid in some areas? Yeah, about 80 percent of the whole freaking U.S. is humid, just have to live with it.

I'd definitely have Eugene in the rotation, but I wouldn't make it a permanent home.

Then again, the U.S. Open tennis championships are always at the same locale and they do great at the gate and few complain.

I concur. The USATF and NCAA T&F program is why the USA T&F team was #1 in the world at Beijing and will kick ass in Berlin ! Cali, Tx, Ark, Wa, NY, Ma, Nc, Me, Fl, Az, Ut, Va, Sc, Al, Ms, Tn, Ky, Oh, In, Mn, Sd, Ak, etc. are why. Sac St put on a very successful OTs in 2004. Mt Sac Relays brings in 250,000 fans and athletes each spring, simultaneously using three full track & field stadiums. Tx Relays, BAA, Drake Relays, NYCM, Penn Relays are monumentally crucial to our sport. Other schools & venues *deserve* to have the NCAA outdoors, USA outdoors, OTs, etc. at their venues too, and yes they have the Oly and WC medals to vouche for the claim.

LET'S GET THIS STRAIGHT ONCE AND FOR ALL:

Eugene is not the problem and Eugene is not the solution to getting us out of the worst TV fan share depression in the history of our beloved sport. It's up to all USATF associations, all NCAA colleges, all running clubs, all officials, AND the entire T&F media. We all have to pull together to save our sport. Hogging the championships when everyone wants them spread around will not bring us TV money. We must have TV money to fund elites who by the sweat off their balls, scratch out medals for our country. That's all. You are dismissed...

Eugene has Nike behind it. Bidding on a package of meets (even if they undercut other individual bids) is probably very appealing to the NCAA. T&F really isn't making much money for the NCAA, even with selling tv rights for the meets, and if someone conveniently offers to save them the trouble of reviewing multiple bids for future years then they're probably going to go for it. Eugene made the NCAA an offer it couldn't refuse. Nike gets 9 more televised meets to showcase their logo on the cheap.

Mummel Troubles wrote:

So who else, pray tell, has even bid on the NCAA championships that are coming up? These are not big money-makers, so the number of bids tends to average "1" or "2". I attended the NCAA's at Sacramento, Drake, and Fayetteville that past few years and found the stands to be less than half full except for the finals on the last day. Obviously, this event is a financial loser, so there has to be something else in it for the host. Recruiting advantages? Perhaps, but even that is difficult to measure. The NCAA probably understands that the television/internet audience is the only place where they can get exposure and a full stadium of passionate fans creates the kind of aura that they need. Noone but Eugene delivers anything close to a full stadium.

Alton Baker wrote:

Hey Dead Sport,your

"Sport, you're"

a complete idiot and asshole if you think the 20,000 fans in attendance each day at the 2008 trials in Eugene fit any of your descriptions. If you think it was hippies,drug

"hippies, drug"

addicts, and draft dodgers who filled Hayward and spent thousands of dollars to get there, house themselves, buy tickets and food, your

"you're"

a complete tool. Track fans

"fans,"

regardless of where the meet is held, are some of the most successful, sophisticated and affluent people in American society. So take your myopic and ignorant sterotype

"stereotype"

of Eugene and shove it, you conservative leeming.

"lemming."

Perception is Projection wrote:

Nike has done, and continues to do more for track and runners than any other sporting good company in history.

Yep, we fans are all so grateful for all that Nike has done to bring PEDs into the sport and keep them there.

That's depressing.

We'll be in this rut another 10 years at least.

Nike and Adidas in Portland have ruined T&F with their lack of vision and obedience to their owners in Beijing and Berlin, respectively.

Subsidiaries always get 2nd rate people and it shows from what little foresight Nike USA and Adidas USA have done so far.

At least the girls will be wearing bun huggers though.

Philadelphia, PA. Enough said. Not more than 2 hours from NY, Wilmington, Dover, and the Lehigh Valley (PA for those of you who dont know, a minor running hotbed with a large spread out population). Could bring huge draws and would get great tv ratings from these locales as well. Not sure why it hasn't been considered in the past.

For starters it would help if someone in the Phily area would but up the "non refundable" bid money and actually bid for some of these championships. Secondly, it would help if some benefactor would be willing to eat the inevitable cash drain that track and field meets create. Finally, they have to convince USATF and NCAA that they can sell tickets at $400 for an eight day meet. Finally, they have to convince the same organizations that the sponsors have adequate volunteers and officials and the facilities needed to put on such an event. Hasn't happened yet, not likely to happen any time soon. In the meantime, Eugene is taking these risks, ponying up and holding great meets.

As the great Jim Bush, former UCLA coach so wisely said, (in similar words) the biggest enemy we (track and field) have is ourselves. We fight with each other and as a result end up with crumbs because we are all out for ourselves and everyone knows that we are not united.

You just described Eugene to a T with that last bit.

PA in the summer is miserable. The last thing you want to do is make fans uncomfortable. Penn Relays is absolutely the most fantastic and cool meet I've ever been to in the U.S. It's because it's in the springtime.

Lets clarify this once and for all kids. We already know that the TV audience is all that matters to championship and one-day elite meets. TV is where the money is made. Ticket sales are a small and insignificant percentage of the gate. So any arguments using numbers of fans at championship or elite track meets are pointless.

Whether the fans are mostly elderly, or homeless, or drug users, or bicycle riders, or camping enthusiasts, or school kids given free tickets, is also moot. The well known fact that the OTs in Sacramento had a larger attendance than the OTs in Eugene is moot as well.

However there are meets where the number of fans, athletes, etc. in attendance does matter. Those meets are the non-elite, non-championships meets. The top attendance for those type of meets are at Penn Relays, Drake Relays, Texas Relays, Kansas Relays, Mt Sac Relays, and Stanford Invitational, and perhaps a few others.

As the great Jim Bush, former UCLA coach so wisely said, (in similar words) the biggest enemy we (track and field) have is ourselves. We fight with each other and as a result end up with crumbs because we are all out for ourselves and everyone knows that we are not united.

You are a genius.

Excellent point.

We have to think as one team, TEAM USA.

Consider and appreciate the hard work and accomplishments of the entire track and field community from coast to coast.

Don't sell your soul to the devil.