The Garage Games
At this time it is obviously not about making money, because with the number of freebies we are giving away and the small number of people we expect to attend (relative to a large sporting event), it won’t add up to much. But it is about establishing a mentality. Our greatest end goal, is to help promote the sport to professional, and the judges to officials. The only way any sport becomes professional, is if people are willing to pay to spectate.
Now let me backslide just a bit here, because we see The Garage Games series as largely being a place for the scaled and beginner athletes to take part, but we also know that when the stage gets large, the bigger named athletes want to show up and compete. Period.
We don’t know how willing people are to pay, but we believe the willingness will grow, and we want to promote that. As it grows, then at first it is about investment, as people who pay, and then pay more, will begin to expect immediate access to scores, replays, color commentary, etc. They will expect that they will see the action, and if they miss something because they were tearing open one of their pre-packed paleo snacks, they won’t mind because it will be on the jumbotron in a second. So those fees in turn provide value directly back to the spectator, and eventually that allows for better venues, with better capacity to utilize technology to further the sport.
The OC Throwdown charged $30 for a weekend pass and had thousands, look at the picture. That is California where people are fired up for the sport. Nate Schraeder did awesome there, he is coming here to Garage Games One in Woodstock, which makes me think we have to charge. I get this image of Brandon Phillips, and all the training videos that he posts where he is performing something in the gym at The Walker School. A hefty Snatch, or a back tuck. Either way, at this time, a 3-time CrossFit Games Competitor, is in need of a day job. And I would guess that you would have to pry that job out of Brandon’s fingers, but the point is, CrossFit competitions aren’t paying his bills.
If we can get people moving towards spectating, eventually it means we can put $10,000+ up for a one day competition. That is what it will take to get these guys to be able to minimize their outside commitments, and let their training be their career. And from where I am sitting, they deserve that opportunity. Whether it will take off at the local level, is yet to be seen. With The Beast of The East joining The Garage Games, we are adding another competition that has successfully brought in gate receipts. Again, it wasn’t enough to change much, but it moves people into the direction of thinking “is it worth it to pay $15 to watch a competition”.
Well, it won’t be to some, but with the growth of the sport, it will be to others. We aren’t trying to cut anyone out of watching, we are only trying to improve the quality of what you get to watch. Thanks for caring enough to read!
I’m going to compete. I participate in road and trail races too. Sometimes my wife comes to cheer for me. These events don’t charge for her to spectate. I don’t show up to win, and I would imagine most folks who show up for the Music City Marathon in Nashville don’t show up thinking they’re going to hang with the Kenyans. Thousands line the course to cheer/observe/spectate and it doesn’t cost them. Seems like the key to those prize purses is from sponsorship/advertising. Just offering a different perspective on the merits of charging, not hating. Watching the top dawgs might be worth money, but watching my scrub-ass struggle to finish a workout ain’t providing much bang for the buck. It’d be nice if my wife/family were there when I get done suffering, but my cheap bone gets itchy when I think of her having to pay to be there. Money for finals? Sure. Charge plenty for beer, yep, I’ll buy, but I disagree about paying to watch mediocre athletes (yeah I know we’re all “elite”, right?) workout. That said, I’ve happily paid to compete and appreciate all that goes in to staging an event of this scale. Thanks for reading.
Michael,
I agree with you. I don’t think my family that supports (has to put up with) my training, my entrance fees into events like this (NOT cheap), and traveling to these events need to be charged to come watch their dad compete. I compete for the love of it. I know I have no realistic chance of winning these events and taking home any money. By the time I do the math I’m out an easy 300-400 dollars for the weekend….but I love it and choose to do it. Having my family pay spectator fees is another check in the “this makes no financial” sense column. I love Schrader and Phillips but your argument to increase the winner’s pot size so that athletes like them can train more really falls on deaf ears….and then there is the why are the “semi-pro” / “Pro” athletes competing in local throwdowns? If there was a “Pro Only” event….then sure charge away.
Then that raises the question of what determines your “pro” status?
Events like garage games are still primarily driven by people paying a lot of money to compete for fun…..not for dreams of taking home some loot. I agree with Michael that there needs to be another source of revenue to raise money. Raise the vendors fees, raise the concession fees, whatever….but adding a “viewing tax” to stand in a soccer field to watch mostly regular folks exercise is pretty damn “iffy” in my opinion.
Paid athletes should get family passes or something of the like. Taxing the support system is not a wise move.
That all being said. I love what you guys are doing with the Garage Games events and I’m sure you guys will continue to be successful no matter what my opinion is. There are some events that charging spectators makes perfect sense….but these local throwdowns are not the correct venue IMO.
CrossFit / Reebok gave all the competitors family and coach passes last year in Jacksonville for regionals. I think that is a pretty strong indicator about how to proceed with spectator fees.
Eh! I totally agree with KLowe on this. If you’re going to charge, at least give the athletes spectator wristbands. Also, where is the $ going to? This $ should definitely go back to judges, volunteers, and even the athletes. Increase the prize winnings … then you’ll attract some more elite athletes. You only have Nate Schrader competing as an individual … BP is on a team along with the other top Regional guys. OC Throwdown is on a different level … that was a mini Games with elite athletes who traveled all over the country to compete. It was an invite only competition. I am a supporter of Garage Games but not agreeing with the fee …
I agree with the previous comments. While I understand that The Garage Games are getting bigger and bigger, this is a competition that ANYONE (like me) can compete it. That is what I LOVE about it! But I’m just a soccer mom who loves CrossFit and I have a hard time believing that anyone would want to pay money to watch me compete. I have friends that are coming to cheer me on this year, but I feel like I should pay for their entry fee (and I will). I just don’t feel right asking them to pay to watch me work out.
All that being said, I love the Garage Games and think you guys put together an amazing event that is a lot of fun and very well run. I look forward to competing again this year, this time in RX.
I agree with the previous posts. The logic for charging spectator fees at the 11th hour does not make much sense given competitors already have committed a significant amount of cash to the event. And now, the decision to charge an entry fee for spectators as a means to provide a pot for the “professionals” defies all reason.
If you want to provide a pot for the “professional” athletes have one of the many sponsors pony up the cash or set up a separate event.
For the rest of us, let our friends and families be there to support us.
To charge fees and insist that it’s not about the money makes little sense, because it most obviously is about the money (fees charged). Your premise about the way any sport becomes professional is incorrect, as per the road running exception brought up by a previous poster. The best have to make enough money from it to make it their jobs for it to be considered a professional sport, regardless of whether people are willing to pay to watch or not. This is an important distinction, because it means that we should be figuring out how to pay the top athletes more, but not necessarily figuring out how to make people pay to watch. As you acknowledge that The Garage Games is largely a place for the scaled and beginner athletes to compete, the majority of The Garage Games spectators are going to be there to watch family/friends who are not professionals. Are we really talking about having a jumbotron with instant replays for the nonprofessionals at The Garage Games?
I completely agree with virtually all the comments posted above and I will try my best to refrain from beating a dead horse and repeating what is looking to be an overwhelming response. Charging spectators a fee is ridiculous in this venue. And to add to the “professional” comment of providing a larger prize purse to fund the top competitors allowing them to pursue their dreams full time… Well thats exactly what I do. I own my own training facility and have dedicated my entire life to it. We do not solely focus on Crossfit and compete only as a supplement to a well rounded base of fitness. Therefor it cost me and my athletes a small fortune to come to these weekend events and stand heat for heat with these aspiring professionals and I am not out looking for a cash prize for it. As the sport of Crossfit grows into a professional realm and the Garage Games wants to profile itself as a pro-event, then I guess part of athletes registration/check-in should be to submit a urine sample like other pro sports do. The second you introduced a cash prize you went from friends and members of a grass roots fitness movement gathering on a weekend to see who has the best training routine, into a very grey area of corporate sponsorships and potential “unfair advantages”.
I too love coming to these weekend competitions and attended 8 last year alone but they (like Crossfit itself) seem to be losing the soul that started the whole movement in the first place.
I am in agreement with the above concerns and finding it a little unsettling that you are charging the people that come to watch me as a “scaled” competitor under the guise that there may be “big dogs” there they can see…. while i very much appreciate the effort that GG folks go to in order to put on an event – in this particular venue, my people will be watching me and since wods are simultaneous they may never see anyone other than scaled and you think its ok to charge them????