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Pitt announces partnership to help improve tailgating experience at Heinz Field

I'll be interested to see how popular it remains once they end the free for all tailgating that many people live for.
 
If I just want to see the game, TV is better, I admit, I go in person sometimes just for the party. You never see the game as well inside the stadium as you do on TV.
 
I'll be interested to see how popular it remains once they end the free for all tailgating that many people live for.
hence the reason why professional venues are building up the areas around these stadiums. the days of putting three rivers stadium in the middle of a concrete desert with zero entertainment around them is over. They know people want to be entertained all day, not just from kickoff to the last whistle. To get people off the couch, you need more than just the game and an empty parking space..
 
hence the reason why professional venues are building up the areas around these stadiums. the days of putting three rivers stadium in the middle of a concrete desert with zero entertainment around them is over. They know people want to be entertained all day, not just from kickoff to the last whistle. To get people off the couch, you need more than just the game and an empty parking space..
But some, like me see the allure of the old school tailgate party, is being outside, not in a crowded venue and not having to wait in line for your next beer. I honestly hate going into the bars on the North Shore before or after games, I hate wall to wall crowds and waiting for stuff as one bartender tries to serve 50 people at once, I'd rather sit next to the Art Rooney statue with a plastic bag full of cans of IC Light rather than that.
 
But some, like me see the allure of the old school tailgate party, is being outside, not in a crowded venue and not having to wait in line for your next beer. I honestly hate going into the bars on the North Shore before or after games, I hate wall to wall crowds and waiting for stuff as one bartender tries to serve 50 people at once, I'd rather sit next to the Art Rooney statue with a plastic bag full of cans of IC Light rather than that.

Ditto. And true of a great percentage of fans. They love the old way and it agrees with the pocketbook for that matter. But that's not profitable to the city or Steelers (as mentioned above, Pitt really doesn't get much cut of anything no matter what). I am not vilifying either, it's the capitalist way, but to paraphrase Seinfeld, they're killing Independent tailgating.

Most Steeler fans no doubt feel the same ... And many grizzled ones likely have bailed with tailgating disappearing ... it's just that due to their success, they have that many more fans willing to take their place under the current conditions. We generally have stunk in comparison, so we don't.
 
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But some, like me see the allure of the old school tailgate party, is being outside, not in a crowded venue and not having to wait in line for your next beer. I honestly hate going into the bars on the North Shore before or after games, I hate wall to wall crowds and waiting for stuff as one bartender tries to serve 50 people at once, I'd rather sit next to the Art Rooney statue with a plastic bag full of cans of IC Light rather than that.
dude, I loved it, LOVED IT. I was at the steelers-jags game in '96, got there at 5am for a 4:30pm game, didn't leave til 1:30am the next day. the dude in the street sweeper was going around us til the whole parking lot was clean except for us, then he started yelling at us, told us to leave or he'd call the cops. I was hungover for a 2 1/2 days..
 
Ditto. And true of a great percentage of fans. They love the old way and it agrees with the pocketbook for that matter. But that's not profitable to the city or Steelers (as mentioned above, Pitt really doesn't get much cut of anything no matter what). I am not vilifying either, it's the capitalist way, but to paraphrase Seinfeld, they're killing Independent tailgating.

Most Steeler fans no doubt feel the same ... And many grizzled ones likely have bailed with tailgating disappearing ... it's just that due to their success, they have that many more fans willing to take their place under the current conditions. We generally have stunk in comparison, so we don't.

The irony is that while they are able to squeeze more dollars from each fan who attends, more fans will decide that it is preferable to 'tailgate' in your own backyard and then watch the game in comfort on a giant big screen in your own living room, all for much cheaper. So more money from each fan, but perhaps less overall if attendance keeps declining.

Maybe the next stadium should be ALL club seats and luxury boxes, with each ticket purchase requiring valet parking and a per-paid tailgate package. 30,000 seats, but all really expensive.
 
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The irony is that while they are able to squeeze more dollars from each fan who attends, more fans will decide that it is preferable to 'tailgate' in your own backyard and then watch the game in comfort on a giant big screen in your own living room, all for much cheaper. So more money from each fan, but perhaps less overall if attendance keeps declining.

Maybe the next stadium should be ALL club seats and luxury boxes, with each ticket purchase requiring valet parking and a per-paid tailgate package. 30,000 seats, but all really expensive.
Maybe we'd have to. The Steelers and Penguins don't, because they keep winning.

If you have winning teams, there would be enough fans willing to put up with whatever conditions (crappy stadiums and or terrible parking with no tailgating etc). A certain bunch of drunkards and cheapos who would not tolerate this will drop out for them as well as us. But the winning teams would have fans immediately willing to take their place. It would not be noticed. But with us ...oh yeah it would ... will, I should say.

The trick is for those teams to keep winning, though. Or they'd face the same problem as we do... eventually.
 
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Maybe we'd have to. The Steelers and Penguins don't, because they keep winning.

If you have winning teams, there would be enough fans willing to put up with whatever conditions (crappy stadiums and or terrible parking with no tailgating etc). A certain bunch of drunkards and cheapos who would not tolerate this will drop out for them as well as us. But the winning teams would have fans immediately willing to take their place. It would not be noticed. But with us ...oh yeah it would ... will, I should say.

The trick is for those teams to keep winning, though. Or they'd face the same problem as we do... eventually.

If they keep making it less desirable (independent of wins) then there will be less demand for tickets. At what point that means empty seats for the Steelers, I don't know. Maybe never.
 
If they keep making it less desirable (independent of wins) then there will be less demand for tickets. At what point that means empty seats for the Steelers, I don't know. Maybe never.
A study in the news this week said for the first time, Americans spend more on eating out than on food prepared at home. So perhaps there will be no penalty as tailgating disappears. More people willing to tolerate going to restaurants before and after games rather than the effort needed to put tailgates together.

We better hope so anyway.
 
The irony is that while they are able to squeeze more dollars from each fan who attends, more fans will decide that it is preferable to 'tailgate' in your own backyard and then watch the game in comfort on a giant big screen in your own living room, all for much cheaper. So more money from each fan, but perhaps less overall if attendance keeps declining.

Maybe the next stadium should be ALL club seats and luxury boxes, with each ticket purchase requiring valet parking and a per-paid tailgate package. 30,000 seats, but all really expensive.
I get what you are saying and obviously there is a cost benefit factor to consider, but the cost for Pitt tickets is unbelievably low, so it is kind of hard to make the "cost" argument.
 
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