Went to watch the High School Meet of Champions at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento this past Saturday ... And was distrubed by a few things, so kind of addressing this to Keith Conning as I know he is very involved in the high school action in the area ... But also to the coaches out there on the list ... The first thing may just be specific to this particular meet or area, but the attendance was extremenly poor ... For a meet that generally has some of the best talent in the Northern California area, I was appalled as I entered the stadium and saw very few fans sitting in the seats ... If it weren't for the athletes and coaches the attendance would have almost been nil ... I know there was little advanced warning in the local paper (Sacramento Bee) and typically there is little information in general announcing track meets ... Would seem that it would be in the best interests of the local media to begin to show more interest in the sport given that the State meet will be there in a few weeks and that Sacramento is now "home" to the Olympic Trials and I believ has an NCAA meet coming up as well in the next couple of years ... May not be much anyone on the list can do about this area but just thought I would make note of it .... The area that I see people making an impact is the following ... I am a long time fan of the sport and will go to just about any competition .. I have raised my kids (now 4 & 5) going to track meets ... For them (as well as myself and others) the meet is NOT enjoyable if you can not see anything ... Now at a sparsly attended meet you would think that this should not be a problem ... However, it was a major problem .. And here is why ... First of all UMBRELLAs ... People running around the stadium with umberellas, in the stands, on the rails, right by the finish lines ... Obstructing the views of everyone around them ... And the worst were coaches and athletes ... These should be banned from the stadium and the meet announcers should make a point to announce something to that effect ... The next item is tents ... And these are almost entirely related to the teams athletes and coaches ... While I understand that they want sahede and comfort, it should not be at the expense of the fans ... You know, the ones we want to come watch the performances ... Perhaps they could be confined to the "top" of the stadium, instead of anywhere they choose to set up ... When they are placed in the middle isles and the bottom isles it again makes it near impossible for others to see over and around them ... And when you say anything to coaches there attitude is that THEY have a right to be there becasue theri athletes are competing and tht it is the FAN that is the intruder ... And i have ot make special notice of the one right down by the finish line (that I was told was for the acutrac) but again made the finish line view from the back side of the track virtual impossible ... Even for the announcers I heard ... The final complaint are the individuals along the rail - especially in the finish line area ... And the prime culprits are the athletes and coaches ... My coaches (high school and college) always made it a point to be near the top of the stadium - best view of the action splits, etc ... I've even noticed guys like Johon Smith and others at meets and that is where they head - up high ... But typically at meets like this the coaches gather around the finish line ... Kids (athletes) gather around the finish line ... And the people in the stands who PAID MONEY to come see the event are shut out from a decent view of what is going on in the race ... As big a fan as I am I finally had ot leave mid way as the kids couldn't see, and my wife kept complaining cause it was hard for her to see ... So after the 100 we left and went to dinner instead ... I can imagine the casual fan who has no incentive to be there once the view is gone ... These are some reasons why attendance keeps dropping at meets ... And the sad thing is that they are easily fixable ... Perhaps we need some education for coaches ... I know when I was in high school we were sat down adn told what was and wasn't acceptable and the coaches set the example ... The coaches are often no better than the kids any more ... Any thoughts ???
Conway Hill [EMAIL PROTECTED] |
