I hesitate making a thread just for this but there aren't any other relevant threads or sub forums I can throw this in.
I had just gotten one of those emails asking me for my feedback via survey so I figured I'd share it here too and give an unsolicited opinion from an outsider. I was 20 rows up in Section 154 (end zone)
A friend of mine who went with me (who's from Cincy) asked me what I thought and the first thing I told him was I actually felt like I was at a football game and not a show. It just had a pure football feel. To me most venues/parks/stadiums are more family oriented and thus there's somewhat of a feel like you're at an amusement park. Going to Cowboys games sometimes feels like the actual game is background noise. (Didn't feel that way at the old stadium). Same for virtually all stadiums/arenas I have visited that were built in the modern era. I get why it feels that way though.
I thought the crowd energy was great...I was pleasantly surprised with how loud it got and it motivated me to be even more excited....I found it odd random fans trying to shush people as if they've never attended a football game in their life. This was the first time I've seen fans do that to other fans (but my sample size is limited to Texans and Cowboys games). I guess one could argue it's a good thing...i'm not sure how to feel about it.
My only dislikes can probably be directly tied to the crowd size:
*going to the bathroom is a shit show. There doesn't seem like enough bathrooms and because of that, people just swarm all entrances/exists with two-way traffic.
*post game pedestrian congestion was absurd. I left my seat 30 minutes after the game ended and I was still somehow shoulder to shoulder with 10k other people just trying to cross the street.
*not enough pro shops or gear vendors. This seems like a missed opportunity. I waited in line for 40 minutes pregame just to buy a pair of gloves.
My favorite part of the game was the final score. :)
-The only bengals fan that has never set foot in Cincinnati 1-15-22
I do not understand the exits on the east side of the stadium onto the street. Every game it feels like you're being herded like livestock. I can't recall this happening in previous seasons and think it's actually a pretty dangerous situation. I have no idea why the metal barriers are in place, but they are probably my least favorite part of going to games.
Yeah, bathroom breaks can be an adventure. If you wait until halftime, just like everyone else, you'll be fighting your way through shoulder-to-shoulder pedestrian traffic and standing in line forever. And you can forget about getting any concessions if you want to get back by kickoff. I just decide to sacrifice the last 5:00 of the second quarter so I can hit the restroom and still get concessions and be back in my seat on a timely manner. Usually it works out, but I have missed a good play or two, like AJ's Hail Mary TD a few years back against Cleveland.
(01-18-2022, 05:48 PM)basballguy Wrote: My only dislikes can probably be directly tied to the crowd size:
*post game pedestrian congestion was absurd. I left my seat 30 minutes after the game ended and I was still somehow shoulder to shoulder with 10k other people just trying to cross the street.
CJ was on Dave Lapham's podcast and he addressed the post game crowd so that might kind of explain the congestion that long after the game.
Thank you for whoever put up the video of Uzi.
The comments about the massive throngs of pedestrian traffic seem possible because there doesn't seem like there's much parking nearby, like the stadium was plopped into the place where all those bars used to be. I haven't been to PBS yet, but the stadiums I have been to for football are Schaefer Stadium, Arrowhead, Riverfront, the Superdome, and Lucas Oil. The worst was Schaefer, which was the old place the Patriots used to play. It had metal benches and it was in December and my 13-year-old butt got really cold. Arrowhead was fantastic, though. Superdome, of course has a party atmosphere with the French Quarter nearby. At Lucas Oil, we had seats way up at the top and it was like watching football-uniformed ants.
(01-18-2022, 05:56 PM)Awful Llama Wrote: Yeah, bathroom breaks can be an adventure. If you wait until halftime, just like everyone else, you'll be fighting your way through shoulder-to-shoulder pedestrian traffic and standing in line forever. And you can forget about getting any concessions if you want to get back by kickoff. I just decide to sacrifice the last 5:00 of the second quarter so I can hit the restroom and still get concessions and be back in my seat on a timely manner. Usually it works out, but I have missed a good play or two, like AJ's Hail Mary TD a few years back against Cleveland.
Yup, and then go rushing to the tunnel when you hear the crowd roar, lol. It's honestly the only way to do it and keep my sanity. I haven't been in a few years, and there wasn't a good weekend for me this year. I hope to be there at some point next season.
I think sometimes the crowd shushing is just a product of the immense emotional investment. If the residual crowd noise is elevated when the offense is huddling then loonies like me will want to ensure perfect silence for Joe and company. I’m sure we go overboard. Forgive us.
I have never been to a game at PBS. We're hoping to go to the game at Raymond James in Tampa next year though. We'll all be decked out in Burrow and Chase jerseys.
I remember when you used to be able to talk to your companions at the game for more than a few seconds without something blasting from the PA system at a deafening level. I love loud crowds when the other team comes to the line of scrimmage but the constant barrage of music\yelling\chanting\squawling over the speakers gets annoying.
But I'll bet that is everywhere now. Not just PBS. I have not been to another NFL stadium since Nashville in 2011.
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I don't know about other stadiums and the atmospheres, but PBS is usually pretty bad-ass!
Long lines to wait to get into the bathroom are a *****.
Does anyone know how tailgates are near other stadiums? I haven't been to one at PBS in a few years, but, back in college (and even for a while after before everyone had kids), the tailgates in the lots not far from the stadium were AMAZING!
There could be more bathrooms and other things like gift shops and maybe more food/drink venders. Is there any way to add more or are we looking at a new stadium before that ever comes to fruition?
More gift shops would sell a lot now that we have a playoff win and a promising future.
Usually pretty friendly crowds. There were Raiders fans in the seats in the section below us and no one gave them any trouble. I was talking (typing) trash to some Raiders fans in a bar downtown pre-game but it was just harmless banter and joking.
Bars near the stadium are also pretty nice.
It could definitely add some things to make the fan experience even better but I generally enjoy the games!
(01-19-2022, 05:01 PM)XenoMorph Wrote: bathroom breaks/concessions is all about timing.... and waiting lol...
This wasn't my first sporting event, silly, it was my first Bengals game at PBS. What I am talking about is not a timing issue. :) Yes i'm sure I could go to the bathroom just fine with 8 minutes left in the 4th quarter.
(01-19-2022, 05:01 PM)XenoMorph Wrote: But im not sure ive ever been to any stadium or venue that did not have that issue.
I did say my sample size in terms of venues (maybe a dozen?) was limited but in that limited sample size there was never a swarm at the bathrooms.
However replying to this now makes me sound like a hater which is not what i'm going for. I will now make it a point to go to more PBS games for the sake of changing this opinion.
-The only bengals fan that has never set foot in Cincinnati 1-15-22
(01-19-2022, 05:18 PM)basballguy Wrote: This wasn't my first sporting event, silly, it was my first Bengals game at PBS. What I am talking about is not a timing issue. :) Yes i'm sure I could go to the bathroom just fine with 8 minutes left in the 4th quarter.
I did say my sample size in terms of venues (maybe a dozen?) was limited but in that limited sample size there was never a swarm at the bathrooms.
However replying to this now makes me sound like a hater which is not what i'm going for. I will now make it a point to go to more PBS games for the sake of changing this opinion.
Remember this is the Fanbase that consumes the Most beer on average per person lol...
Last Saturday was pretty surreal from a long time ticket holder's perspective. Aside from the record crowd, we haven't had that strong a *home* crowd in PBS since the early Lewis/Palmer days.
When PBS first opened the majority of the seats were sold as season tickets to Bengals fans. In the years since the Bengals fanbase has eroded and PBS has become a popular destination for opponent fans. Good seats always available. In the later playoff games fans had lost so much faith that we had substantial opposing fan presence which only made losing those games that much more miserable.
So yeah, it seemed like there were a lot of fans there on Saturday who had never been to a game because they probably hadn't been. Welcome to The Jungle.
The bathrooms have always been inadequate for a crowd that drinks beer the entire first half and then converges on the bathrooms at halftime.
Historically the little pro shops besides the main pro shop have rarely been busy. Those people are used to standing around for most of the day without much to do. Not surprised that they didn't handle the crowds well. PBS concessions have also always been a mess. They use a lot of volunteers who often seem to be figuring things out from scratch every weekend.
There have been few times in PBS history when an entire sellout crowd has stayed until the end of the game (or later). Many Bengals fans are inveterate third quarter leavers. I never understood that. Add a lot of newbies with no clue where they are going, anti-terrorist barricades, street beggars, and buskers happy to block egress and you get a mess. It's all part of the fun.
Just be glad that they've relaxed security. The last few seasons it was like dealing with the TSA to get into the stadium.
(01-19-2022, 03:31 PM)Earendil Wrote: I have never been to a game at PBS. We're hoping to go to the game at Raymond James in Tampa next year though. We'll all be decked out in Burrow and Chase jerseys.
I live in Largo…I’ve been waiting for what seems like forever for the bengals to come to Tampa!!! I’ll be there in a DEYDRINKIN jersey with about 10 other bengals fans.
If you park under the Reds stadium typically $20 you will never have an issue getting to your car or leaving the stadium... although I go across the bridge to KY so my view point is likely wrong for Ohio residents. Takes me 10 min from stadium to car to across the bridge.
This was the largest crowd in years... lots of new fans. Never got shushed but do feel a lot of pressure to sit down if the fans behind me refuse to stand.
Typically the bathroom goes fast for men... as a huge beer drinker unfortunately I go 3-4 times a game.
Agreed concessions is a mess and a waste of time... eat before the game and only get beer inside the stadium from the vendors.
Definitely a football stadium.. helps that it's now one of the older stadiums in the league.. I wouldn't mind some more flash and upgrades however.
(01-19-2022, 06:53 PM)QueenCity Wrote: If you park under the Reds stadium typically $20 you will never have an issue getting to your car or leaving the stadium... although I go across the bridge to KY so my view point is likely wrong for Ohio residents. Takes me 10 min from stadium to car to across the bridge.
Haha, this reminds me...I had an airbnb in the Mt Adams neighborhood which wasn't too far a walk....or so i thought.
I ubered to the Holy Grail to pregame but with all the pedestrian traffic decided to walk back....big mistake.
Had i known I was gonna have to walk up 12 thousand steps to get from one side of (checks map) Colombia Pkwy...to the actual neighborhood, i probably would've just ordered an uber. My god so many steps after 8 hours of drinking, standing, and cheering.
-The only bengals fan that has never set foot in Cincinnati 1-15-22
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(01-19-2022, 06:53 PM)QueenCity Wrote: If you park under the Reds stadium typically $20 you will never have an issue getting to your car or leaving the stadium... although I go across the bridge to KY so my view point is likely wrong for Ohio residents. Takes me 10 min from stadium to car to across the bridge.
This was the largest crowd in years... lots of new fans. Never got shushed but do feel a lot of pressure to sit down if the fans behind me refuse to stand.
Typically the bathroom goes fast for men... as a huge beer drinker unfortunately I go 3-4 times a game.
Agreed concessions is a mess and a waste of time... eat before the game and only get beer inside the stadium from the vendors.
Definitely a football stadium.. helps that it's now one of the older stadiums in the league.. I wouldn't mind some more flash and upgrades however.
Season ticket member since 05.
When we used to go to every home game, I remember one older lady in the boxes right behind the crippled section getting mad at us a few times for standing up after big plays to celebrate (I do stand at some big moments), and I understand they pay a lot for those boxes but we couldn't be blocking too much unless the play was at the nearest side of the field, she could have gone up one level of the box and likely been fine, they have TVs in the box, and the Bengals are built for the average fan!
Again, I respect their rights when they pay for a box, but it's a sporting event! If you want quiet and sitting, buy a box at a golf or tennis match!
Been going to most games since '05 (some games in '03 and '04) but just haven't bought season tickets because of the seat license when I don't sit in a seat, plus I don't know if they'd make the people with me buy seat licenses (and season tickets) because it's not always the same people.
Might just bite the bullet and get season tickets for next year. We do have connection that gives us first dibs on tickets before the season but I'm just hoping they don't let all these non-crippled people buy season tickets in the crippled section and give them priority over us if they already had season tickets (doubtful because I think it was just packed for this game but never know).
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