Disappointment

[barrett]

Originally Posted by chuck

Just to follow up on this idiocy - those of you who are season ticket holders will have received a message last week that said:

"In Game Stats

You may have noticed that we moved our closed captioning display to the scoreboard adjacent to the large video board on the north and south ends of the stadium. We feel this is the best spot for the hearing impaired community to not only be able to see the captioning but also the corresponding video board. The display that is now being used for closed captioning was used previously for in game stats (yards rushing/passing, first downs, time of possession, etc). In game stats can now be found:

a. On the lower ring of LED signage on both the east and west side of the stadium

b. On the main video board several times per quarter

c. Adjacent to the main video board during all time outs as a replacement of the score, down and distance information"

Despite the explanation of where the information might be (I already knew this) I found the availability of the signage at the game to be completely unacceptable. Moreover, the out of town scores are NOT displayed during time outs when the attentive fan would be looking for them but only during game-time action.

These idiots are intent on putting a substandard product on the field for an entire decade AND they are intent on creating an in-game experience that irritates longtime PSL owners to the point where we will not renew our tickets.

As I've indicated I was promised a call tomorrow by some lackey who was not with the team last year. I'll let everyone know if I get such a call. I'll also send a registered letter to Bob McNair, the leader of this billion dollar disaster, and his chief lapdog Jamey Rootes that will explicitly enumerate my in-game grievances and plainly outline the conditions under which I will renew my season tickets. I would think that the team would be sensitive to a committed fan such as myself who in reality wishes to renew his tickets. But the truth is I am totally willing to dismiss the team altogether and loudly publicize why I am doing so if it comes to that.

How many others here are season ticket holders? How many of that group are PSL owners?

I was with you through this whole thread until this last part. You would actually walk away from a team based on what the scoreboard shows? That would be like refusing to buy a car brand over the cup holder.

The Texans have given fans plenty of reasons to walk away but this is just a weird crusade you have chosen. Either way I hope you find your grail and the scores are put back up when and where you want.

[popanot]

As a single-income family of five, we just don't have it in our disposable income to purchase PSLs and season tickets so maybe my opinion doesn't matter... However, I do try to make it to a few games a year and was able to make it to the Hags game. Putting my disgust of what happened on the field aside, I was somewhat disheartened (I won't say shocked) at how degraded the stadium experience was this year.

1. There's no ryhme or reason on the parking. We had Blue Lot parking passes, and even though we got there early and there was ample parking all over that area, we were instructed to park over at the loading dock of the Reliant Area (or whatever building that is on SE side if the blue lot). We asked why and the parking attendant said "The guy up on the roof instructed me to route 4 cars over there". Say wha...??? In addition, there were people parked in section that they apparently blocked off again for some reason. We were really looking forward to the tailgating experience, but were totaly detached from it. We still had a good time, but were disappointed we weren't in the main tailgate area. We wanted to mingle with some Texans "neighbors". Maybe there was some reasoning for what they were doing, but we couldn't figure it out and I don't recall them doing it this way in years past.

2. Coming into the main stadium gate, they had lines for Men/Women/Family where they check for weapons. Cool, post-9/11 times, I'm good with that. However, the mens line was MUCH longer than the womens line, and when we finally get through the gate and reach the checkpoint, they have 1 male security guard checking the men and 2 female security guards checking the women!?? Isn't this sort of backwards??? Needless to say, the womens line was flowing quite nicely (empty most of time) and the 2 female security guards were having an easy day at work, while the mens line was moving rather slow and the male security guard was busting his ass. And no, they would not allow the women guards to check the men.

3. The consession quality has gone down, IMO. I had to walk about 10 sections over just to find some soft pretzels. Not a big deal, but jezzus, each concession stand has like ~4 soft pretzels machines in them. If this is (apparently) such a hot sale item, can't someone order enough supplies to keep a few of them filled up?? In addition, only 1 time during the game did someone come down our section (Section 122) selling beer. 3 times they came down selling cotton candy. I don't mind walking, but I'm there for the game and would like to have the option to buy a beer or soda from time to time without missing game action or disturbing other fans (by getting up and walking down the row).

4. I agree with Chuck. Found lots of advertising but finding other game scores was a chore. And when I did find it, they offered no real-time game/player stats that I could see.

5. The restrooms seem to be less maintained than I recall from years past. I guess they've reduced housekeeping staff so they could maintain the quality of play on the field. The only problem is the game play is about at sh%tty as the restrooms (rimshot).

6. It's 2009... They should recognize the stadium has some sort of cellular interference going on and offer wireless access. For-pay or free, it should be available if you want it.

Most of these issues are annoyances rather than big problems and we still had fun being together and enjoying a Sunday game. But if I noticed these things and a reduction in the quality of service, I'm sure a season ticket holder would notice them and be a little more perturbed since they have more invested.

[chuck]

Originally Posted by barrett

I was with you through this whole thread until this last part. You would actually walk away from a team based on what the scoreboard shows? That would be like refusing to buy a car brand over the cup holder.

The Texans have given fans plenty of reasons to walk away but this is just a weird crusade you have chosen. Either way I hope you find your grail and the scores are put back up when and where you want.

I understand that my crusade and my line in the sand will seem awfully Quixotic to a lot of people. And I don't begrudge anyone for feeling that way. But for me the issues point to a larger truth. The in-game statistics are available only intermittently (by the way, the rotating game stats were not displayed during every time out, only perhaps two out of three time outs). The out of town scores are shown only while the game is in progress and NOT during time outs, which of course is when anyone interested in actually watching the game in progress would be looking for the scores. Plus, as I've mentioned, the out of town scores are now displayed with very small lettering and are very difficult to see. The kick in the nuts here is that during time outs when the signage is being employed for advertising the area where the out of town scores would otherwise be displayed is not even being used in the ads that are being shown.

And of course whoever mentioned that you cannot possibly receive a 3G signal in the stadium was quite correct, so there's no gathering this information on your own during the game.

The larger truth for me is that the emphasis of the in-game experience is now tilted away from football in favor of commerce. This is my impression and it is true for me. I am not thinking that anyone else will or should share my opinion or mirror my actions.

I think it's probably reasonable to think that if the team were coming off of a playoff season and were 3-0 I would be less irritated by the changes, but I would certainly have noticed them and would have acted on them in a similar way.

I did not in fact receive the promised phone call yesterday. I'll send the team a letter today.

[Joel]

over the years, chuck, i've tended to align pretty consistently with your take.

and - never having been to a texans game - i have no difficulty imagining that it's all about the almighty dollar. with ya so far.

what i'm having trouble getting is why this strikes you as noteworthy or as any more objectionable than the way the rest of our society is organized.

[Fonz the Boss]

A little off topic here but I have been to the first 2 home games. One of the things i dont like is that I have to sign receipts when I pay with my debit. Its a debit card not a credit card damnit. They take ridiculously long to print the receipts. Then they go looking for their pen while ppl next to me that are paying in cash are done before me. I thought paying with debit was supposed to be swipe, type pin, and go... come on man!!!

[chuck]

Originally Posted by Joel

what i'm having trouble getting is why this strikes you as noteworthy or as any more objectionable than the way the rest of our society is organized.

Good question. It's not more objectionable, it's that the tipping point for me has just been reached.

I rarely go to Astros games at MMP because I find it nearly impossible to watch the game. The signage is plentiful and not the issue; the in-game experience at MMP is marketed to casual fans and families rather than hard-core fans who want to follow the game in a contemplative way. And that's fine, but I just elect not to participate. On the other hand I love spring training games at Kissimmee because it's 100% baseball and 0% BS.

The Reliant Stadium experience for me is tilting more towards BS and less towards football. If it continues in that way I'll elect not to participate in that either.

[EndZoneSeats]

This week they had the out-of-town scores posted even during time-outs, so I appreciate whoever made that change.