Hopefully a new seating arrangement this year? (all seating threads merged..ENOUGH...

[Joe-×]

I'm pretty disappointed by your posting, Anakin.

You come over here into Glenn's house to post on his board, and you mention nothing about Enchant. You are losing it.

I've got many of the same gripes about the seating. I didn't get the whole we're one big happy metal family vibe when I was seeking a seat last year. It's one of the (minor) factors that had diminished my desire to return.

Joe

 

[The Invisible Guest]

I just think that if a person makes a decision to leave the seat to go eat, shop, or chat in the hallways for a while they should kindly give up their seat. If you're going to be gone for a good length of time give up the seat please. It's not necessary for groups of a people to save seats for people that are not going to be around for a while. That just makes no sense to me at all.

Britt

 

[Megawozniak]

Yeah, I've sat down a few times over the years - Redemption and Stride, and when Symphony X started doing an encore of the Odyssey (I was super tired, and I was just thinking "for fuck's sake, another 25 minutes?). For almost all bands, I'll try and get a good standing spot, and if I can't take it anymore, a 5minute sit in the hallway with a drink will help, and you might meet somebody. I don't understand the whole fuss about seats.

Although I wish there was somewhere to leave merch that I bought that night without having to spend 20 minutes doing a hotel drop and losing valuable space on the floor...

I can see where the seating would be a problem to some...my first year, I tried finding a decent seat, and there was a few of the infamous single-person-saving-a-row deals. Unfortunately, I think you need to decide on night-by-night basis if you're alone whether you want a good standing space, or a good seat. meh.

 

[squarooticus]

I said it on PM:X after PPVI, and I'll say it again:

I get to the door two hours early specifically so a few friends and I can get what are in our opinion the best seats in the venue, a few rows behind the sound board. A few of us hold about 10 seats. If you don't like it and you have a gold badge, you have every ability to get there earlier and get those seats. If you don't like it and you don't have a gold badge, pound sand.

That said, the minute Glenn tells us we can't do that, we'll stop. But at this point, I consider it a perk of the badge.

Cheers,
Kyle

 

[TBJ]

Since everyone is pretty hot on reading this board right now, I figured it would be an appropriate time to address this issue. SEATING, SAVING SEATS, GOLD BADGE SEATING?, BAGS HOLDING SEATS, ONE PERSON HOLDING 20 SEATS.....yada yada yada........

I love the festival and I love the show. I go with friends, usually 4 people in my group typically.....and I also go to SEE friends I only get to see at the show.....but first and foremost, I go to see the BANDS and that's where my dilemma comes in.

Every year so far I have ever been, there has been a MAJOR incident concerning seating for me and my group (again, usually 4 people so we aren't talking about 20 people trying to sit together.)

So let me talk about this topic for a second and see what kind of feedback I get.

Here's what I wish for when it comes to the seating situation:

FIRST COME/FIRST SERVE: Seats need to be first come, first serve. This would mean that Gold Badge Members going in early have their shot at getting seats that are pretty decent. However, this doesn't really work out because of the holding seats issue I have next.

SAVING SEATS: Here's the contradiction to the last statement. Plainly put, saving seats doesn't work and just plain SUCKS. There is no real rule of people saving seats and everyone believes something different which of course creates chaos and differences of opinion.

BAGS SAVING SEATS: Again, plainly put, this is bullshit. The way I see it, is that a bag is the same as garbage. I will move it or throw it on the floor. However, people totally freak out around you and act like you are a jackass for doing so.......and then again, you have the problem of one or two people in a row with 18 bags thrown in the seats who say those seats are saved by the people's belongings.......which brings me to my next point.

PEOPLE SAVING MULTIPLE SEATS: I understand that people want to sit with their groups of friends. Hell, that's why I am writing this. I want the same thing. Not just for me, but for everyone. 3 or 4 people sitting in a row saving one or two seats.....fine.....no bitch here. It's the single individual saving a fucking ROW that creates a problem. This happened to me last year literally 10 times......I got so fed up, I just sat down and in turn created an "issue" with people who came back to their seats RIGHT before the lights turned off for the next band. They were all crazy wanting their seats back. TWO FUCKING ROWS with one person per row......that's 14 SEATS where I was trying to sit EMPTY but supposedly held. So me and my three friends sat down and I basically told the guy I was sitting here like it or not. So of course here comes the 14 other people back trickling in over the next 20 minutes or so after buying music or using the bathroom or getting a drink........and of course here I am being the asshole supposedly for trying to actually grab a seat and WAIT OUT the intermission in a seat so I could see the next damn show.

What's the solution here? Who's at fault? Is this unfair of me to sit in a seat with a bag in it? Is it unfair to take a group of seats that are supposedly held? Would it be a nice perk for gold badge members to have an assigned seat somewhere with their name on it or something? Or maybe even a section roped off for GB Members only regardless of being filled or not by a warm body?

I know a lot of people will respond with the typical "If it's empty, sit in it regardless......." But you know, that blanket statement doesn't really work either. There are cases where someone gets up and literally does go to the bathroom and come back.......or get a beer and come back. By themselves. And that's not fair to them. So you can't say saving seats is ridiculous because in those instances, that's unfair to those people who were holding the chair for the friend who left.

Am I alone here? Doesn't anyone else have these problems? I am not in the "in" crowd enough to have some kind of rite of passage to be able to choose where I seat either.......so the "niche" groups always seem to be able to find seats and that's fine, but it's just little old me and my friends who drive all the way from Texas to see a good show and want to sit down during certain bands and stand up for others.......but it would sure be nice to sit in a group of seats without nearly getting into fights or being so frustrated about NOT sitting somewhere even though the venue is half full of people and half full of seats with bags that I can't enjoy the show any longer.

I have said this is a MAJOR issue for me with the show before and I figured at this rate, there's probably no solution.....but I would even pay extra to avoid this frustration in the future......

Glenn? Comments?

Thanks in advance.

Anakin

Ok, not to knock on ya or nothing but please, have we already run out of things to bitch about?

I always find a place to sit down, hell, last time I went with 3 friends and if one of us didnt want to see X band up close, he just sat down and saved our seats, if someone takes our seats, well, we go somewhere else, if we all like the band, then we all stay close to the stage...there is ALWAYS some empty seat somewhere, i mean, the place is never full to capacity so stop yer bitching and just LOOK around, you will find a place to sit on.

Sorry for my tirade but I just think people bitch just to bitch.

 

[No-Mercy]

my opinion, i dont mind, infact i too would, save a seat for a friend if they went to the bathroom or grab a drink during an intermission or what not. although i totally agree with you on the subject of people saving seats forever, especially when the people they are saving them for have yet to sit in them! i dont tend to get a seat, providing i like to be as close as possible.

 

[Petethedrummer]

I have a gold badge. I get there as soon as doors open, I throw shit down on a seat. And I save it. For me. A couple of my friends do the same thing. It happens.

 

[Andy Laudano]

Each year it seems a bigger group of friends go to PPUSA with me. We also come all the way from Texas. Because of our varied tastes, we rarely all sit together. Some of us like to stand up close and some would rather sit. Everyone likes to shop and collect autographs from the bands. I've never had a problem finding someplace to sit. The best thing to do is just get in there early, save some seats of your own and make friends with the other people sitting around you. They'll be happy to save your spot if you want to shop or need a bathroom break if you just ask nicely, maybe buy the guy next to you a beer and return the favor if they want to get up for a while. I've also found that in some cases you can sit for a bit in someones saved seat, as long as you promise to get up whenever the person they're holding the seats for returns. For the most part this is a very well behaved and polite crowd. Just show a little courtesy towards the other attendees and you'll be surprised how easy things go.

 

[Pellaz]

The most interesting thing about the original complaint is that this guy was told 'we're saving these whole rows for a bunch of people,' which -- to me -- would have seemed like bullshit........but sure enough, 14 people trooped back in, right on time for the next band.

I could understand being upset if 5 or 10 of those seats had remained empty during the next band, but they weren't -- they were being honestly held for a big group of people.

Nothing wrong with saving seats for friends......just make sure they're real and not imaginary. --And pizza crusts and their Beer friends should buy Gold Badges.

 

[adaher]

I agree that it's rude to save like 10 seats. At most, you should save one for a friend or two, not whole groups. What, does everyone go to the bar and send one dude to save their seats for them?

As for the bag rule, I'm cool with that. There's no way people can sit down for eight hours without needing refreshment or to relieve themselves, or to go buy stuff from the vendors. I would think that leaving your bag on YOUR seat shouldn't be a problem.

 

[Dark One]

My opinion is that if you have a group larger than 5 people, you should definitely split up into separate groups so you're not saving more than 2-3 seats at a time for extended periods. You can always switch back and forth between groups if you want to mingle with different friends inside the main seating area. Saving more than 3 seats in the same row that remain empty for long extended periods (especially in prime seating areas behind the soundboard) is supremely lame IMO. I have no problem at all with saving seats for groups of 5 or less, epsecially if you're constantly rotating who stays and watches the seats, etc. That said, if I left my bag on my seat with all kinds of merch, etc. in it, came back to my seat and found my bag thrown on the floor somewhere with my seat taken, there would definitely be trouble.

Ultimately though, I've lately just stood for bands I want to see and when I want to sit/hang out, etc., I just go into the bar area or the main concourse area.

Jason

 

[General Zod]

I personally can't undertsand it becuase I think I may have sat down for a total of two songs for the whole 5 PPUSA's I have been too...

I'm with you. I have no clue why anyone would want to sit during a Metal show. I wonder if these people read during sex.

Zod

 

[JonnyD]

Seat Saving is Bullshit IMHO ... there is no need for entire rows to be "Saved"

 

[Harvester]

My take is simple:

I cannot enforce any seating rule when as the show is general admission. It simply isn't possible. My personal opinion is that saving 3-4 seats is 100% ok. I do not condone one person saving an entire row.

Glenn H.

 

[BABS]

I wholeheartedly agree. Year after year I've had to contend with that sort of behavior. This year, if someone claims they are holding a seat I'm giving them five minutes. If no one comes back, then I'm sitting my ass down and I'll tell the person that too.

I think 85% of the time people just don't want someone sitting next to them.

 

[BABS]

Man...I don't know where to begin with this one...

Hell, last year my group witnessed a styrofoam plate with pizza crust hold down a seat for an entire night. Occasionally, someone would come and sit in the seat for a short while, then very carefully replace the pizza crust, and move on...amazing courtesy...kinda dumb, but amazing!

That's f@cking hysterical - you guys should have taken the toppings and arranged it so it looked like a human face or something (giggle) and then given it a nickname!

 

[Bryan316]

I think 85% of the time people just don't want someone sitting next to them.

Fuck that! Cool people wanna sit next to me! Shit... two years ago, the guys from Into Eternity were camped out in front of us and I got to turn into a total fanboy for a few minutes as they checked out the other bands after their set! If I was so paranoid as to not want people sitting next to me, I wouldn't have got someone to take our picture for us with my camera!

But I do understand that this is a very touchy subject.

So here's my two cents:


Don't be greedy.

Don't be chief.

Don't be arrogant.


After that, things usually get figured out quite conveniently.

 

[ashaman7122]

That's f@cking hysterical - you guys should have taken the toppings and arranged it so it looked like a human face or something (giggle) and then given it a nickname!

I think this year that there will be a seat with a sign reserving it for pizza crust...just to see how long that lasts...hehe.


Rock on!

 

[ashaman7122]

My take is simple:

I cannot enforce any seating rule when as the show is general admission. It simply isn't possible. My personal opinion is that saving 3-4 seats is 100% ok. I do not condone one person saving an entire row.

Glenn H.

Damn, Glenn...as usual, you chime in with a very common sense stand on things.

Personally, I'm suprised you did...you should just let it go...this is becoming like a Seinfeld episode...everyone examining the finer nuances of proper seat-saving technique and etiquette.

Someone said it up above...we must truly be running out of things to bitch about.

And...I won't even bother to mention those damn dark stairs...oops...


Rock on!

 

[Dustin]

Let me tell you a little story:

After years of going to this festival, I can honestly say that I only sit for maybe 3-4 of the 10 bands, due to fatigue, nothing more. Outside of that, me, my wife and others in our clan are on the floor trying to get as close to the stage as possible. Thus, this issue never seemed to rear it's ugly head for us at any time, if we had to sit in the hot-ass nose bleeds just to take a break, we did it. Just as long as me and my wife were together, all was good. We were just happy to witness the magic from any vantage point.

However... Last year was sort of an exception. My wife was 8 months pregnant, and standing the whole night was not really an option for her compared to the previous years. It was then that this "seat saving" situation became obviously clear to me for the first time.

I'm all for people saving seats, first come first serve, you name it - it's General Admission, and that's the way it goes. But in light of our temporary situation last year, we actually had to hunt for two seats that were together, which never seemed to be an issue in the past, Murphy's Law perhaps? A pain in the ass, but expected. Then again, in our quest to reside in the seated area, we came across several rows that were empty DURING the bands sets...sometimes for SEVERAL bands sets and were empty for quite some time. It was extremely frustrating.

Some of the attendees we talked to were unwilling to give up there saved seat and/or row temporarily for my pregnant wife and I. Even with explaining our situation, and promising that we'd move if their friends returned, we were still turned down. I felt like Joseph and the holy mother Mary trying to get a room in a motel and having to settle in a damned manger! LOL! I can only express my disappointment, as I hold everyone that attends this festival in high regards like family and would have expected a bit more compassion. In fact, on Friday night, I believe I had to bribe one couple and they reluctantly let us sit in their friends saved seating area (we counted 7 empty seats that they were saving outside of where we sat) NOTE: The people we replaced did not return for two bands sets nor did the rest of the group, they're group did however, trickle in off an on during the last two bands.


Saturday night was about the same, but this time we found a few people who were more understanding and allowed us to sit with them even though they had reserved seats for their friends, and I want take a moment and thank those people for their kindness and understanding as well as those whose seats we were sitting in, you are true metal, and you know who you are! Thank you!



I'm not for it, or against it.. I Just thought I'd share my insight on our experience with this sistuation, and you can take it anyway you want and maybe find solace and some humility in it.

Regardless, We'll be in attendance this year, and now that the wife isn't pregnant - I'm sure we'll be more mobile and on the floor like the previous years. Being there to witness the festival in all it's glory is the #1 priority - fighting our brothers & sisters for a seat is at the bottom of the list for me.

\m/
Dustin

NP: Karmakanic - Alex in Paradise