Thoughts on how the seating is. Especially how finals is ran and the placement of podium?
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by Adequate on 2/24/2022, 4:42 pm, in reply to "Tacoma Dome"
Adequate for viewing. Far better than the 1st year post renovation.
Extremely frustrating that mats can only be accessed from the north end (from the stands).
Finals mats were too close to the stands... difficult to see more than the 2 mats directly in front.
Lack of access to the podiums was a big fail.
I personally hate the dome, but I thought it was ok.
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by Tigertown Mike on 2/25/2022, 8:22 am, in reply to "Tacoma Dome"
I was disappointed with the change in seating. From where I had to sit I could only see 2 of the 4 1B/2B mats. felt like we were cheated. I would be in favor of bringing B or even A/B back to Spokane.
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by Coach on 2/25/2022, 10:02 am, in reply to "Tacoma Dome"
Wish there was more access entry points to the floor.
Did not like that people (coaches) were not allowed on the floor during awards to take photos.
Not a fan of how they allowed coaches and wrestlers all the way up to the fence/rail for the finals. Made it harder to see the finals from certain seats near the lower section.
I understand the reasoning, but I did not like where the finals mats were positioned because the remaining mats were not able to be broken down due to USA wrestling folkstyle state happening the next day. I liked how they used to break down the extra mats and move the finals matches into more of an open location spread out in the dome.
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by coach on 2/25/2022, 10:58 am, in reply to "Re: Tacoma Dome"
What was wrong with the original seating that they changed it from before?
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by Big 9 on 2/25/2022, 12:07 pm, in reply to "Re: Tacoma Dome"
The dome remodeled a few years back so it changed the seating. After that, the layout changed to accommodate the increased seating on the south side.
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by Renovations on 2/25/2022, 1:23 pm, in reply to "Re: Tacoma Dome"
Renovations after the 2107-18 season.
Apparently the changes are great for basketball.
The changes were so bad for football that wiaa moved it out of the dome.
In 2019 the dome opened all seating on the E/W sides about 50%, cut off visibility on the closest row of mats.
I don't remember 2020, but I think it was similar to this year....it's ok not great.
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by 3a Coach on 3/3/2022, 8:52 am, in reply to "Tacoma Dome"
It doesn't make since that 3a the largest mens bracket has some of the worse seating. I would think that both 3a and girls should be on the same side with the most seating since they each include 25%+ more participants which also means possibly 25% more spectators. I would suggest that 3a should be swapped with either 2a or 1a in the future.
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by Info on 3/3/2022, 1:01 pm, in reply to "Re: Tacoma Dome"
Well the solution to this may be closer than you think with there not being a contract with the Tacoma dome next year. I know this has been said the last few years but there really isn’t a guarantee we will be in the dome next season. I imagine that they will split into two state tournaments with one being on west side and one on east side.
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by Split on 3/3/2022, 1:46 pm, in reply to "Re: Tacoma Dome"
If they split,
B-1A-2A will all be on the East side while
3A-4A-Girls will all be on the west side.
Even if they did this they would need a venue that fits the seating requirement and 12 mats. There’s not a lot of venue options
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by 2A Coach on 3/4/2022, 9:36 am, in reply to "Re: Tacoma Dome"
Yes, from my view over on the 2A corner, it is clear that 3A especially is getting the shaft. All their spectators were crammed into the upper corners, while we could easily move from the bleachers to the floor. The Mat Classic has been awesome, but maybe it is time to look at better options. I was not real fond of the lack of a lunch break. Fans and teams need to be given an opportunity to get out of there at lunch. It seems the dome was probably happy with the fact that everyone was forced to buy from their expensive vendors.
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by Marc on 3/8/2022, 9:05 am, in reply to "Re: Tacoma Dome"
After the 2020 Gut Check I received calls from both WIAA and Showare. WIAA wanted to know my thoughts of running a large wrestling tournament at Showare, and Showare asked about Mat Classic and how it could be run there. I had nothing but positive perspective for both parties. There are always 2 ways to look at a topic like this.
Perspective 1 - Does the Dome's remodel have a negative effect on the state tourney as far as seating, price of admission, cost of food, parking, etc.. The answer is yes to all of these questions. The real question is are spectators willing to bite the bullet and go to the dome no matter what....the answer is also yes. They will bitch about it but they will still go no matter what because the experience is awesome. Will WIAA continue to deal with some aspects that effect their bottom line or how they run the event?... I personally don't think so and feel their patience has run thin, hence leaving the Dome for football and gymnastics already.
Showare is an amazing sports venue. With suites, VIP seating and general seating I believe it can hold 7000-7200ish. It is a newer facility of all venues (I think 10 years old). Parking literally surrounds the building and is within 100 feet of the front door, and is also FREE! While no concessions stands are "cheap" at any venue, last I compared (2020) Showare was 50% of the cost than the Dome. There are comfortable, individual seats with cup holders too. The shape of the seating arrangement makes for great views from any seat and gets loud which we love at wrestling meets. I do love the Showare Center in all facets.
Perspective 2 - Showare is smaller for seating and floor size which effects the amount of mats. Yes, these are both true, but it was built that way purposely. This venue is privately/publicly owned 50/50 and built originally for the Seattle Thunderbirds to leave Key Arena. No one ever imagined a wrestling tournament there, but it works beautifully. As far as state goes, we are obviously used to having all classifications and fans in one building, which is great, but if push comes to shove the 8 mats that can fit on the floor could easily run 2/3 classifications over a 2 day period. I bring this up because that is the only current option in WA by leaving the Dome, breaking up the state tourney. Spokane currently has 1 facility that can hold a large event and they are building another which might be done already??
IMO, WIAA will part ways from the Dome eventually, maybe temporarily maybe not. My though is that it will be split into two locations initially, not three as most think, that might look like - B schools, 2A & 3A in Spokane and 1A, 4A and girls at Showare. This is just my opinion based on what I have heard and been asked, but who knows, we are at the WIAA's discretion.
Re: Tacoma Dome
Posted by Showare Fan on 3/8/2022, 9:30 am, in reply to "Re: Tacoma Dome"
I'm a huge fan of Showare and would LOVE to see the state tournament there. There are obvious drawbacks in splitting the tourney but as it stands I'd rather watch on Track/Flo than navigate the dome. Anybody know what the attendance was for the state tourney this year? With coaches, managers, and 16 wrestlers per weight you're probably looking at 300 people per division. Maybe an average of 4 spectators per wrestler, so 1200 spectators per division (total guess). Let's round that up just to be sure and say you'd need seating for 2,000 per division. Seems like that would be a perfect set up for 3 divisions over 2 days.