Allentown attendence

[GMichael1230]

I asked too. I got 13,500. surprise surprise...varying figures with no public release...and it's no secret the place got horrible reviews. they have all but admitted that. I have heard from many sources 12-15k, hence I listed that. i asked directly and got 13.5k. that's Orlando range. that's not good.

discounts aren't bad. you get something. but...empties get you the same as freebies...$0.

after all, in 02, Madison ran the deal for buy 1, get one free for OC finals. it worked great, huge crowd ( for OC)....and they haven't done it since. so...how did that work out for them?

but....if you keep offering freebies or discounts, people will come to expect it....and be ###### when they are taken away.

simple business logic. something too often DCI lacks

I heard just under 14,000 Last year. I asked somebody who I know has access to this stuff.

G

[Jeff Ream]

not all businesses are the same. just because you follow a business leader doesnt make it success for you.

remember back in the day when you got cell phones for free every time you signed a contract? it was awesome wasn't it.....then guess what...one company stopped. a lot of customers left them. then another company stopped....and a lot of people left them. then companies started buying everybody....and you got no more free phones.

and the first company that stopped? yeah the one that got bought first of all the big mergers/takeovers.

sure, now everyone has a phone...but why did the companies that kept giving em out get bought? yeah they went broke.

[purenjoyment]

I asked too. I got 13,500. surprise surprise...varying figures with no public release...and it's no secret the place got horrible reviews. they have all but admitted that. I have heard from many sources 12-15k, hence I listed that. i asked directly and got 13.5k. that's Orlando range. that's not good.

discounts aren't bad. you get something. but...empties get you the same as freebies...$0.

after all, in 02, Madison ran the deal for buy 1, get one free for OC finals. it worked great, huge crowd ( for OC)....and they haven't done it since. so...how did that work out for them?

but....if you keep offering freebies or discounts, people will come to expect it....and be ###### when they are taken away.

simple business logic. something too often DCI lacks

Empties do not get you the same as freebies. Aren't you overlooking those who attend for free may attend with someone who pays? Also,some of these freebies may spend money on souveniers. Then there is the goodwill factor. Also,it makes DCI a better business partner bringing more fans to Indy. It helps the local businesses as well as the concessions.

[DrumCorpsFreak]

We had a terrible experience Saturday night! There was a group of French Canadians sitting next to us that were drinking alcohol and were some of the most out of control, rude people I have ever experienced at such an event. We had three seats and one of these jerks was sitting in one of our seats and refused to leave. One of them threatened my wife and I almost grabbed this idiot by the throat. It was a pretty ugly scene and it ruined several corps performances for me. Basically, my wife, my sister and I had to squeeze into 2 seats. We contacted DCI and they are going to look into the situation further.

Please don't lump all French Canadians in with the bad behavior of a few! What section were you in? We would be considered French Canadian but we are also sometimes ashamed of the behavior we witness of our fellow citizens. Believe me we have witnessed this ourselves at various events we have attended where they should be well aware of where they are, e.g. another country and try to fit in with the situation. We noticed this before in Orlando as well as on an Alaskan cruise last year. It's embarrassing to us and not all of us deserve to be put down because of a few jerks.

I hope that something is done to rectify your experience and that next time something like this would happen that you contact the security person of your section to have them remedy this immediately. There is no excuse for bringing alcohol into the stadium nor for their ignorant and obnoxious attitude.

Sorry to hear about your experience and I hope that you never have to sit through something like that again.

Marc

[Jeff Ream]

Empties do not get you the same as freebies. Aren't you overlooking those who attend for free may attend with someone who pays? Also,some of these freebies may spend money on souveniers. Then there is the goodwill factor. Also,it makes DCI a better business partner bringing more fans to Indy. It helps the local businesses as well as the concessions.

the return on your investment is hardly the same.

[purenjoyment]

the return on your investment is hardly the same.

What do you mean?

[van]

This was my first visit to Allentown, after watching drum corps for 25+ years. I decided that after last year's finals, I had to try something different. I am not going to LOS this year.

Overall, a very, very good experience. I was sitting in section J on about the 35 yd line, about 22 rows up (and I believe 1-2 rows in front of the French Canadians someone spoke about earlier -- it was not pretty, but I wouldn't lump all persons of a particular ethnicity for the poor actions of a few). Sound was fair on Friday night, but was much better Saturday night. I think I may (as someone suggested earlier) make Allentown my 'finals' while DCI still uses LOS. And hey -- it's cheaper too ($25/night to see corps 1 week before finals is much better than the price for the shows during finals week).

Parking was an issue. I'm glad I was told I needed to arrive early (about 1.5 hrs before showtime), as parking is at a premium.

Concessions and restrooms were also an issue (not enough of either), but I dealt with it.

Again, this was my first time to Allentown, and if the experience was as positive as the one I had, I'll be back!

Van

[JimF-LowBari]

West! Why?

If BD and SCV are gone that is alot of travel for corps. Unless DCI has a new sponsor out west.

Know bunch of people who went to Pasadena from PA simply because it was a chance to see Cali-forn-i-a and be in the Rose Bowl (just like Penn State ). IOW, some wanted to see the West Coast for the first time and this was a good an opportunity as any. And IIRC (someone can correct me) the Dome details had come out and they wanted to see DCI in the open. Half of them haven't been back to DCI since but economy had a lot to do with that.

Edited August 11, 2010 by JimF-LowBari

[INSIDETHEFORTY]

Some hard-corps Drum Corps fanatics would go to DCI Championships if were in Indianapolis, California, England, Japan, or even Siberia!

Some so-called drum corps fans would not travel more than 20 miles to see a drum corps show.

Many, many people both traveled long distances and braved the elements to see the corps in competition in Allentown this year! Ii am thankful that it was not extremely hot in Allentown last weekend! It could have been a bad scene had the Heat Index been over 100 degrees! There were more people in the stands on Friday and Saturday than I have seen since the show returned to J. Birney Crum Stadium in 2003. It wasn't a record crowd, but it was a very big one! Coming directly from Syracuse, NY to Allentown, I know about riding a Greyhound/Transbrige bus for more than eight hours to get to Allentown. I also know about getting overcharged by taxi drivers in Allentown. Experiencing performances from Jersey Surf, Pacific Crest, Cascades, Mandarins, Troopers, Colts, Crossmen, Academy, Pioneer, Blue Stars, Boston Crusaders, Glassmen, Madison Scouts, Blue Knights was a wonderful experience!

The highlight of my weekend however was when I was giving the opportunity to see and hear the Lehigh Valley Percussion Ensemble outside the stadium! Seeing these young kids perform took me back to the days when I was just getting started in Drum Corps! It also reminded me of a promise I had made, so I got on the phone on Monday and contacted the leader of the Wally Howard Memorial Drum and Bugle Corps, sponsored by the Syracuse Elks Club. I offered my services to help promote the corps. I also intend to assist with recruitment of new members and the training of those members in basic music and marching techniques.

Amazing how attending a drum corps competition can change one's life! Ain't it great??!!

Gotta go. A good friend is flying into Indy and I promised to meet him at the Airport!

Yours in Drum corps,

Ron Gunn

Edited August 11, 2010 by INSIDETHEFORTY

[pistolpete]

the one thing I found very annoying were the people who bought crappy seats and then felt it was okay to go into the upper deck and sit in the first three rows. if you aren't aware, they do not sell tickets for the first three rows of the upper deck because the heavy black fencing blocks your view. My brother and I purposely purchased our tickets in the 4th row of the upper deck so we would have alittle more leg room and noone in front of us. Well until people who had crappy seats felt it was their right to sit in seats they had not paid for and disturb those of us who planned ahead and made sure we had good seats with lots of nice legroom.

The ushers need to do a much better job of keeping those without upper level tickets out of the upper section.

Phil, my son and I were directly behind you in Row 5, and you are 100% correct about the ushers not doing their job in the upper deck.