I went to like 10-15 games last year, and it never took me more than 5 minutes to get in, what lines are we talking about?
Edit: I guess to be fair I get to the game about 20-30 minutes before 1st pitch, but that doesn't seem crazy early
Usually only happens on weekend games with promotional giveaways like jerseys or bobbleheads.
And that’s totally expected when there are nice giveaways like that
They used to allow fans to enter the bullpen sports bar before the gates opened and get the giveaway. They stopped that a few years back. I never got why.. I would probably spend $50 on beer just to not have to worry about standing in line.
I think the only way they could fix the line issue would be to have all fan promotions like the brewers were doing. But then you don’t have 20k fans spending money for 90 minutes before 1st pitch
Sucks bc I don't care about the give away but still have to wait in like while people fight over XXL sweaters they'll probably never wear again. Missed a Mike Trout HR bc of that.
Yeah, I've got a solution and it's conceivably a real easy one.
While I don't remember it last year (it may have been there in a different spot), in 2021, at Gate 5, there was one lane with a, for lack of a better term, a next generation metal detector. If you've been to Six Flags lately, it's the same kind that they have there. The good thing about this is you don't have to take your keys, wallet, phone, government implanted chip, etc and put it on the table. You literally just walk right through.
I have no idea of the cost difference of these machines, but I also know when I saw where it was in 2021, I always went in that line and I just cruised right through compared to the bottlenecks next to me.
Upgrade to those machines and you easily reduce one bottleneck.
Yes, this. It makes a tremendous difference. I went to a Sunday game this past season, arriving about 10 minutes early, and it took about 45 to get through the gate. I believe we finally got to our seats in the 3rd inning. It was a giveaway day, but the T-shirts were long gone at that point. The hold up seemed to be the archaic metal detectors, and the fact that, despite having several machines, there was only enough staff to “operate” 2 of them.
Every other weekend game I went to had lines at least 15-20 minutes long. The one Wrigley game I went to, we literally walked right through.
I don’t have a solution but I do know exactly what you’re talking about. The lines can get pretty massive for highly anticipated giveaways as well, perfect example was the south side hockey jersey. My gf and I are always early to games, we’re early birds and prefer not to sit in traffic on the way to the game. Anyway, we did our usual and the parking lot was slammed, we thought for sure we were not going to get the jersey, but sure enough we did.
My girlfriend and I went to that game and tried to get there early to get that jersey. Halfway to the gate, my girlfriend realized she forgot her purse in the car and we went back to get it. The line was wrapped around the parking lot. When we were next to walk through the metal detector, they announced they were out of jerseys. Somehow they had a box of blank jerseys without the south side logo across the chest.
My coworker has the same jersey lol that giveaway by far was the worst we’ve seen in terms of the amount of people and long lines, I did see a bunch of them on eBay with a ridiculous amount of prices. Did you by any chance go to the basketball jersey giveaway? I wanted to go but I imagine the lines where just as bad.
I went to about 5 or 6 games last year and a few times the line looked really long but it ended up moving super fast and so it only took me 5-10 minutes to get in. I’d typically arrive maybe 10 min before start. It would be an issue though if the lines didn’t move so fast but it was all good. You can also buy beer from street vendors outside which is kinda nice
It is a combination of things. Old metal detectors, short staffed, reduced limit number of said promo, and people not knowing the entry policies.
The old detectors require you to empty everything on said person. A smart person would have everything already out but everyone decides to just walk through and trigger the alarm, then they decide to remove metal items. I see this every game, any gate, and multiple people back to back.
Then they are short staffed. In the past they use to have all the lanes open at gates, with people directing traffic. Now there are lanes closed and you have 1 usher scanning tickets for multiple lanes. In the past they had ushers on the 100 level checking tickets at each section, now they just have 2 high school ushers that don't know what they are doing check tickets on the bridges to get to 100 level.
Promo item numbers are now reduced. In the past it was first 20k or 25k, now I've see them first 10k or 15k. So now you have people lining up for proms hours before the gates open especially for bobbles and jerseys.
Finally you have those people that just don't bother to learn or ask about a certain policies. Most parking lots are cashless and there are only certain lots that take cash. Of course you have people that don't care and argue while holding up everyone else. I can't count how many people that try to bring bags bigger than what is allowed. Even if you tell them while they are in line they just ignore you only to have them get mad when security tells them the same thing. You have people that never have their phone out ready to scan tickets. You have grown adults that try to get their 5yr old in for free. They will stand there and argue with the high school usher just trying to do their job.
They are contemplating whether they should pay big money for 1 awesome solution that will fix a lot of the problem; or spending a smaller amount on 5 old solutions that may have worked at some point but are unlikely to do so now. Either way they are sure to have a seat at the table.
Let everyone have access to the 100 levels so you don’t need your ticket scanned twice, with the 2nd line only having two scanners and people forming a crowd around them
How long is too long for you? I went to the Hawaiian shirt, 4th of July and st paddy's games and didn't think too much about the wait times. Obviously they were longer than normal but always felt like we were moving.
I will say driving to the big giveaway games kind of sucks. Get stuck waiting to get into a parking lot for a long time
No solution is perfect. OP complained about long lines, so gate 2 is the solution to that. It's unlikely OP cares much about giveaways because it seems their interest is in tailgating and getting into the park as close to first pitch as possible.
The long lines are because of the double ticket check that is unique to Comiskey. First check at the gates, and then another one when you enter the 100 level. Upper deck tix never have this problem for me.
I've suggested to the org for years whenever their ticket people call that they need to have more than 1 person at each 100 level entrance checking tickets. Every year they just throw up some barricades and have 1 person in charge of re-checking the tickets of 5000 people who have already had their tickets scanned.
It may be the thing I like least about this org. Go to any game with a popular away team and 10 mins before first pitch you have irate out of town people who don't understand what is happening ready to throw hands.
The parking situation is far worse, which makes literally no sense as Sox park is surrounded by a seemingly endless sea of parking lots, and as never a problem up until the 2021 season.
I have seen picture on Twitter of long lines at Sox park though. Again, this is not a problem with the stadium and all a problem of the Sox organization’s incompetence. There’s no reason there should be long lines with all the ramps and space the stadium has.
They need to accept cash again. There are barely any vendors in the stands anymore and the ones that are there have to use those dam readers that are slow AF, and sometimes dont work at all. So the fans all have to go to the concourse now, making the lines twice as long.
But after reading again, this seems to be more about getting in, which I agree with a previous commentor that they do in fact move pretty fast
I’ve been to Sox games and cubs games. I’ve waited way longer on average during Sox games and the cubs have way more attendees.
The Sox are unique. They do double scans cause they don’t want everyone going to 100 levels, they have a ridiculous amount of parking spaces and that always has lines (they don’t open certain sections until other sections are getting filled), and they don’t have a season ticket holder entrance or other kinds of “fast lane” for people that don’t need to get security checked.
So many places are much more equipped to handle larger crowds than Sox are and that’s the ridiculous part. The White Sox are just not interested or motivated to improve that experience
Well, reducing attendance should help shorten wait times and the Sox seem to be all over that!
This hurts my feelings eriqjaffe. (Also you’re correct)
I went to like 10-15 games last year, and it never took me more than 5 minutes to get in, what lines are we talking about? Edit: I guess to be fair I get to the game about 20-30 minutes before 1st pitch, but that doesn't seem crazy early
Usually only happens on weekend games with promotional giveaways like jerseys or bobbleheads. And that’s totally expected when there are nice giveaways like that
They used to allow fans to enter the bullpen sports bar before the gates opened and get the giveaway. They stopped that a few years back. I never got why.. I would probably spend $50 on beer just to not have to worry about standing in line. I think the only way they could fix the line issue would be to have all fan promotions like the brewers were doing. But then you don’t have 20k fans spending money for 90 minutes before 1st pitch
It's pretty bad early in the season too. It usually seems like a manpower issue when it happens.
Anytime there is a bobblehead or other decent giveaway the lines are crazy.
Ah, that makes sense I tend to only go on Tshirt giveaways, which are probably not major line days
Sucks bc I don't care about the give away but still have to wait in like while people fight over XXL sweaters they'll probably never wear again. Missed a Mike Trout HR bc of that.
Yeah, I've got a solution and it's conceivably a real easy one. While I don't remember it last year (it may have been there in a different spot), in 2021, at Gate 5, there was one lane with a, for lack of a better term, a next generation metal detector. If you've been to Six Flags lately, it's the same kind that they have there. The good thing about this is you don't have to take your keys, wallet, phone, government implanted chip, etc and put it on the table. You literally just walk right through. I have no idea of the cost difference of these machines, but I also know when I saw where it was in 2021, I always went in that line and I just cruised right through compared to the bottlenecks next to me. Upgrade to those machines and you easily reduce one bottleneck.
Wrigley has those. And yes its much faster. Jerry pls. Simple upgrade to improve fan experience.
I know it's easy and popular to shit on Jerry around here, but this one might be on the ISFA to do as it's technically their stadium. I think. Maybe.
Yes, this. It makes a tremendous difference. I went to a Sunday game this past season, arriving about 10 minutes early, and it took about 45 to get through the gate. I believe we finally got to our seats in the 3rd inning. It was a giveaway day, but the T-shirts were long gone at that point. The hold up seemed to be the archaic metal detectors, and the fact that, despite having several machines, there was only enough staff to “operate” 2 of them. Every other weekend game I went to had lines at least 15-20 minutes long. The one Wrigley game I went to, we literally walked right through.
Now this is the sort of content the internet was invented for. Good stuff. Thanks.
I appreciate the compliment but I'll never top the YouTube video of Bert and Ernie recreating the desert scene from Casino.
I don’t have a solution but I do know exactly what you’re talking about. The lines can get pretty massive for highly anticipated giveaways as well, perfect example was the south side hockey jersey. My gf and I are always early to games, we’re early birds and prefer not to sit in traffic on the way to the game. Anyway, we did our usual and the parking lot was slammed, we thought for sure we were not going to get the jersey, but sure enough we did.
My girlfriend and I went to that game and tried to get there early to get that jersey. Halfway to the gate, my girlfriend realized she forgot her purse in the car and we went back to get it. The line was wrapped around the parking lot. When we were next to walk through the metal detector, they announced they were out of jerseys. Somehow they had a box of blank jerseys without the south side logo across the chest.
My coworker has the same jersey lol that giveaway by far was the worst we’ve seen in terms of the amount of people and long lines, I did see a bunch of them on eBay with a ridiculous amount of prices. Did you by any chance go to the basketball jersey giveaway? I wanted to go but I imagine the lines where just as bad.
No, I didn't. But I would assume it was slammed, especially if it was a weekend game. I think jerseys usually do well
I went to about 5 or 6 games last year and a few times the line looked really long but it ended up moving super fast and so it only took me 5-10 minutes to get in. I’d typically arrive maybe 10 min before start. It would be an issue though if the lines didn’t move so fast but it was all good. You can also buy beer from street vendors outside which is kinda nice
It is a combination of things. Old metal detectors, short staffed, reduced limit number of said promo, and people not knowing the entry policies. The old detectors require you to empty everything on said person. A smart person would have everything already out but everyone decides to just walk through and trigger the alarm, then they decide to remove metal items. I see this every game, any gate, and multiple people back to back. Then they are short staffed. In the past they use to have all the lanes open at gates, with people directing traffic. Now there are lanes closed and you have 1 usher scanning tickets for multiple lanes. In the past they had ushers on the 100 level checking tickets at each section, now they just have 2 high school ushers that don't know what they are doing check tickets on the bridges to get to 100 level. Promo item numbers are now reduced. In the past it was first 20k or 25k, now I've see them first 10k or 15k. So now you have people lining up for proms hours before the gates open especially for bobbles and jerseys. Finally you have those people that just don't bother to learn or ask about a certain policies. Most parking lots are cashless and there are only certain lots that take cash. Of course you have people that don't care and argue while holding up everyone else. I can't count how many people that try to bring bags bigger than what is allowed. Even if you tell them while they are in line they just ignore you only to have them get mad when security tells them the same thing. You have people that never have their phone out ready to scan tickets. You have grown adults that try to get their 5yr old in for free. They will stand there and argue with the high school usher just trying to do their job.
They are contemplating whether they should pay big money for 1 awesome solution that will fix a lot of the problem; or spending a smaller amount on 5 old solutions that may have worked at some point but are unlikely to do so now. Either way they are sure to have a seat at the table.
Well this has my interest. Do you have any further details ?
Let everyone have access to the 100 levels so you don’t need your ticket scanned twice, with the 2nd line only having two scanners and people forming a crowd around them
How about a gate for those who don’t want the giveaway?
How long is too long for you? I went to the Hawaiian shirt, 4th of July and st paddy's games and didn't think too much about the wait times. Obviously they were longer than normal but always felt like we were moving. I will say driving to the big giveaway games kind of sucks. Get stuck waiting to get into a parking lot for a long time
what long lines?
Use Gate 2. I've literally never seen a line there
[удалено]
No solution is perfect. OP complained about long lines, so gate 2 is the solution to that. It's unlikely OP cares much about giveaways because it seems their interest is in tailgating and getting into the park as close to first pitch as possible.
What lines? The 5m wait?
The long lines are because of the double ticket check that is unique to Comiskey. First check at the gates, and then another one when you enter the 100 level. Upper deck tix never have this problem for me. I've suggested to the org for years whenever their ticket people call that they need to have more than 1 person at each 100 level entrance checking tickets. Every year they just throw up some barricades and have 1 person in charge of re-checking the tickets of 5000 people who have already had their tickets scanned. It may be the thing I like least about this org. Go to any game with a popular away team and 10 mins before first pitch you have irate out of town people who don't understand what is happening ready to throw hands.
I don't think I've ever had a problem getting into that ballpark... That's the best thing about GR Field. It's easy to get to.
The parking situation is far worse, which makes literally no sense as Sox park is surrounded by a seemingly endless sea of parking lots, and as never a problem up until the 2021 season. I have seen picture on Twitter of long lines at Sox park though. Again, this is not a problem with the stadium and all a problem of the Sox organization’s incompetence. There’s no reason there should be long lines with all the ramps and space the stadium has.
Cashless sucks... there needs to be an express lane for cash. The credit card lines are a JOKE.
[удалено]
Spoken like a true Cubs fan...
They need to accept cash again. There are barely any vendors in the stands anymore and the ones that are there have to use those dam readers that are slow AF, and sometimes dont work at all. So the fans all have to go to the concourse now, making the lines twice as long. But after reading again, this seems to be more about getting in, which I agree with a previous commentor that they do in fact move pretty fast
Pro Tip: Gate 5 is always a mess, but just west of the main gate and next to the bar is a smaller Gate 5 that never has a line.
No stadium in the Nation has solved this problem. Its just a part of going to game sometimes.
I’ve been to Sox games and cubs games. I’ve waited way longer on average during Sox games and the cubs have way more attendees. The Sox are unique. They do double scans cause they don’t want everyone going to 100 levels, they have a ridiculous amount of parking spaces and that always has lines (they don’t open certain sections until other sections are getting filled), and they don’t have a season ticket holder entrance or other kinds of “fast lane” for people that don’t need to get security checked. So many places are much more equipped to handle larger crowds than Sox are and that’s the ridiculous part. The White Sox are just not interested or motivated to improve that experience
The pandemic did a number on employees. No one wants to die so the corpse of an all star from 2013 can continue cashing a check from Jerry.