Remember when a game day experience was fun win or lose?

ATLHawkeye said:
The last game I went to I had a great time. It was the OSU game with the low flyover... which was awesome by the way! We lost, which sucked, but I still had a great time! Of course I'm seeing it through different eyes than when I was a freshman during Hayden's first year. I was able to do the things I wanted to do to have fun, but those things are quite a bit different now than they were 30 years ago... way, WAY different! :)
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Ohio State had to get extremely lucky to win that game. The defense hand gifted that game when they allowed OSU to convert on 4th and long.
 
hawkdrummer1 said:
You should take a walk through the prime lot just outside the press box side of the stadium.

As little as 5 years ago you couldn't beg for a spot in that lot. It was packed with great characters, tailgating setups, Hawk vehicles...and was electric with fans. I strolled through before every game last fall and it was nowhere close to full, some games not even half full...it was stunning. Same is true of the Dental School lot and the lot just North of Kinnick. They too...are less than full on a consistent basis.

Gary and Sally have killed the game day environment and there is no better proof than those lots. As is usually the way with the PC, rather than police the few that get out of line...they practice behavior control and punish everybody.
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Not sure about the regular parking lots but I used to shell out 5K a year to park my RV in that lot by the practice field/train tracks. After 2010, you couldn't give me one of those parking passes. Who the hell wants to have to pack all of that up and get out within 2 hours of the game ending? Not me. No thanks.
 
lightning1 said:
Not sure about the regular parking lots but I used to shell out 5K a year to park my RV in that lot by the practice field/train tracks. After 2010, you couldn't give me one of those parking passes. Who the hell wants to have to pack all of that up and get out within 2 hours of the game ending? Not me. No thanks.
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Great point!! And it can be said for car travelers as well. It is annoying to hustle back to the car to sit in traffic for an hour and a half. My tailgate friends and I like to fire the grill back up and have a bite, but feel like the fuzz is gonna come chase us off if we dilly dally too long.
 
lightning1 said:
Not sure about the regular parking lots but I used to shell out 5K a year to park my RV in that lot by the practice field/train tracks. After 2010, you couldn't give me one of those parking passes. Who the hell wants to have to pack all of that up and get out within 2 hours of the game ending? Not me. No thanks.
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Exactly. This is where Barta screwed the pooch. What an idiot.
 
Eda said:
Great point!! And it can be said for car travelers as well. It is annoying to hustle back to the car to sit in traffic for an hour and a half. My tailgate friends and I like to fire the grill back up and have a bite, but feel like the fuzz is gonna come chase us off if we dilly dally too long.
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It's stupid on multiple counts - more laggards helped ease the postgame traffic flow for everyone.
 
Billso said:
It's stupid on multiple counts - more laggards helped ease the postgame traffic flow for everyone.
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What'd you call me!!?!?

I kid I kid.

But seriously... They got their money. What do they care.
 
I remember a game in September of 87. I think it was Texas El-Paso. We barely won, 73-0 or 73-7. It was fun before, during and after the game.
 
Eda said:
What'd you call me!!?!?

I kid I kid.

But seriously... They got their money. What do they care.
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Wasn't the stated reason that they could begin cleanup earlier and get those folks back to their families sooner?

Or was it to discourage raging meth-fueled postgame orgies?

Neither of which had been a problem for 60+ years prior...
 
Billso said:
Wasn't the stated reason that they could begin cleanup earlier and get those folks back to their families sooner?

Or was it to discourage raging meth-fueled postgame orgies?

Neither of which had been a problem for 60+ years prior...
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I don't think I recall a reason given.

Although option two sounds like something the brass would fear.
 
Eda said:
I don't think I recall a reason given.

Although option two sounds like something the brass would fear.
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Whatever the reason was, it cost them a lot of money. They kissed my 7K a year goodbye and they haven't seen it since. And as others have noted, I'm not the only one. The lots are not nearly as full as they used to be.
 
lightning1 said:
Whatever the reason was, it cost them a lot of money. They kissed my 7K a year goodbye and they haven't seen it since. And as others have noted, I'm not the only one. The lots are not nearly as full as they used to be.
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I think a contributing factor to the emptiness of those lots is also the crackdown on the tents. Come on, GarBar; Why mess with the people that are giving a lot of money?!?
 
lightning1 said:
Not sure about the regular parking lots but I used to shell out 5K a year to park my RV in that lot by the practice field/train tracks. After 2010, you couldn't give me one of those parking passes. Who the hell wants to have to pack all of that up and get out within 2 hours of the game ending? Not me. No thanks.
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Another policy from above that has hurt the entire game day experience. I used to tailgate with a bunch of friends on Olive Court (which is no longer available). It was awesome.
 
Knight78 said:
Another policy from above that has hurt the entire game day experience. I used to tailgate with a bunch of friends on Olive Court (which is no longer available). It was awesome.
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I think the University wants their fans to pay huge sums of money for the privilege of watching the games in person, without the other stuff surrounding it. They want you to show up, watch the game and go home. What they didn't account for was the traditional experience of the entire day that surrounds Iowa football.
Myself and others did not fork over that kind of cash to simply come and watch the football game. It's getting together with the Iowa Hawkeye community that supports Iowa athletics. Walking from tailgate to tailgate and talking to old friends and classmates. Good food.
If the University of Iowa thought they could get away with boiling it down to a football game, they can. If they thought they could boil it down to a football game and still keep all of the money.....they can't. I can watch a football game on my TV at home, for a lot less money and no hassle.
Anyone can simulate a poor excuse for a tailgating experience, right in their own back yard. Why would I or any sane person pay $7,000.00 a year for it? That's what it's becoming.
 
Several Hawkeye players used to come to the tailgates after the games, to hang out with their parents after they showered and changed. I got to meet a lot of players' families through tailgating. Some of the stories they would share were awesome. I would have missed out on a lot of that if I had to pack up and leave immediately after the games.
 
Billso said:
Wasn't the stated reason that they could begin cleanup earlier and get those folks back to their families sooner?

Or was it to discourage raging meth-fueled postgame orgies?

Neither of which had been a problem for 60+ years prior...
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I don't remember getting the clean up and traffic control people back home earlier as a reason. Heck, with all the money that is made on gamedays and as bad as the economy and unemployment has been it would be a good gesture of the UI to pay them well to stay a little longer.

I really think the main concern was drinking too much, public intox, and driving while drunk. Is the UI legally responsible, like a tavern owner, if someone gets sloshed drunk on their property and then go drive and kill somebody? Not sure of the legal aspects.

But a lot of the changes including ticketing people for open containers seems to be alcohol related.
 
lightning1 said:
I think the University wants their fans to pay huge sums of money for the privilege of watching the games in person, without the other stuff surrounding it. They want you to show up, watch the game and go home. What they didn't account for was the traditional experience of the entire day that surrounds Iowa football.
Myself and others did not fork over that kind of cash to simply come and watch the football game. It's getting together with the Iowa Hawkeye community that supports Iowa athletics. Walking from tailgate to tailgate and talking to old friends and classmates. Good food.
If the University of Iowa thought they could get away with boiling it down to a football game, they can. If they thought they could boil it down to a football game and still keep all of the money.....they can't. I can watch a football game on my TV at home, for a lot less money and no hassle.
Anyone can simulate a poor excuse for a tailgating experience, right in their own back yard. Why would I or any sane person pay $7,000.00 a year for it? That's what it's becoming.
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I have a friend who is a big donor, he is president of a money making Des Moines/Iowa City company. He is an alum. He used to go to every game with his RV, parked just between the Rec Bldg and the west side of Kinnick. Of course they moved most of those RVs out of that area, and with now having to leave right away he doesn't go to half the games. I have never really pressed him about why he doesnt go as much, maybe he just got tired of the product also. But he would park there on Friday nite and not leave for hours after the game. It was great just like many of you are talking about.

I think Lightning1 hit it on the head.
 
lightning1 said:
I think the University wants their fans to pay huge sums of money for the privilege of watching the games in person, without the other stuff surrounding it. They want you to show up, watch the game and go home. What they didn't account for was the traditional experience of the entire day that surrounds Iowa football.
Myself and others did not fork over that kind of cash to simply come and watch the football game. It's getting together with the Iowa Hawkeye community that supports Iowa athletics. Walking from tailgate to tailgate and talking to old friends and classmates. Good food.
If the University of Iowa thought they could get away with boiling it down to a football game, they can. If they thought they could boil it down to a football game and still keep all of the money.....they can't. I can watch a football game on my TV at home, for a lot less money and no hassle.
Anyone can simulate a poor excuse for a tailgating experience, right in their own back yard. Why would I or any sane person pay $7,000.00 a year for it? That's what it's becoming.
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Aren't there entire shows dedicated to the tailgating experience at college football venues? Isn't there a segment on the tailgating experience that is a regular part of ESPN's Game Day? How can the University ignore that?
 
Knight78 said:
Aren't there entire shows dedicated to the tailgating experience at college football venues? Isn't there a segment on the tailgating experience that is a regular part of ESPN's Game Day? How can the University ignore that?
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Like I said, as long as they get their money, I don't think they give a damn.
I wish there was some way to calculate all of the out-of-state, lost revenue from it. The generations of families that used to come from KC, Chi and StL to tailgate and watch Iowa football. It's gotta hurt.
 
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