since I know you can't wait... Milwaukee tickets

I'm sure all of you were thinking today, after spending money on Albany, maybe Minnesota, and who knows what else:
"Fred, how can I drop another several hundred dollars for something that will give me not benefit for over a year, if ever?? In fact, it would be ever better, if there could be a chance of being rejected, yet still giving up several hundred dollars for nearly 5 months, only to have it returned without any benefit of interest!"

Well, today's your lucky day, the NCAA is now taking ticket applications for *next* year's Frozen Four in Milwaukee (actually, they have been since Friday).
[ebill.securebills.com]

Prices have increased again, albeit as minimally as could be expected - individual tickets: $48 -> $50, meaning a set went $144 -> $150. Plus the same $6 order handling fee. Applications are due buy June 1st, so I think I'll wait until pretty much then.

There's no advantage to applying early is there?

Nope. I made sure of that.

[Q]Q: Does it matter when I apply for tickets during the April 1 to June 1 application period? Are my chances better if I apply early?

A: No. It makes no difference when you apply for the tickets as long as you do so by midnight Eastern time, June 1, 2005. Whether you apply in April or late May, your chances are the same.[/Q]

[Q]DeltaOne81 Wrote:

I'm sure all of you were thinking today, after spending money on Albany, maybe Minnesota, and who knows what else:
"Fred, how can I drop another several hundred dollars for something that will give me not benefit for over a year, if ever?? In fact, it would be ever better, if there could be a chance of being rejected, yet still giving up several hundred dollars for nearly 5 months, only to have it returned without any benefit of interest!"[/q]

"Or, if I'm really lucky, get stuck with three extra tickets and take a $450 bath!"

I plan on scrawling "FUCK YOU" across any ticket applications I find lying around in Columbus and submitting them that way.

So you pay up front? Why not sell options instead?

[Q]A-19 Wrote:

So you pay up front? Why not sell options instead?[/q]
Um, because they can sell out making people pay up front? As we've seen year in and year out there are plenty of tickets to be had in the week or two leading up to the FF, especially if any of the usual culprits fail to make it. If the NCAA only sold options they'd probably end up with a lot of unclaimed options.

In a sport as big as basketball they could sell options and make money, but everyone would exercise them (secondary market being strong enough even if you couldn't go) so it would end up being just a form of "seat license".

It should be interesting, with many of the usual suspects not making it -- nobody in the east, and nobody an easy drive from Columbus-- Will there end up being a lot of empty seats in Columbus? Will there be more tickets available for next year as a result?
One of the reasons that demand for tix is so high is that, for the last few years, you could pretty much guarantee not to take a major loss. If your team doesn't make it, some other teams with a big fan base and a short drive would, so there is no risk. You just throw them up on eBay when your team loses.
This year, I would guess, is a buyers market. That might make some of the long time ticket holders dump their tickets.


If you already have tix this year, are you guaranteed to get them ahead of any new applicants next year?

I think it's the Ohio curse. This will only be the second time an NC$$ tournament will be held in the state of Ohio (not ocunting a trio of campus sites games at Bowling Green) and many of us remember the '96 debacle in Cinci. Which was probably the last time the arena wasn't sold out in advance. Expect some minor catastrophe this weekend.

Yeah, I couldn't sell mine at all. I'm donating them the Columbus Ice Hockey Club, a charitible organization for kids. They'll be bringing under privilaged youth. If anyone wants to do so, you can still overnight it and get it there, especially if you do it first thing tomorrow. The address is:
Eric Martineau
22 E. 4th Ave.
Suite 1A
Columbus, OH 43201

Please email Eric, Club President, at edm AT wowway.com, to let him know they're coming.

What's ridiculous is that I'll be getting a larger tax writeoff off face price (25% (or is it 28%?) of $576 = $144) than I could have gotten for all 4 tickets total. Although I have to wait almost a year to claim it. Of course, my seats are dreadful, but still. I wouldn't mind if it pushed down demand for next year.

is that the only way to get tickets or would the Cornell ticket office, on the off chance Cornell were to make the Frozen Four, get a couple hundred tickets for students?

They'd get a couple hundred tickets, but not for students. 90% of them go to boosters, adminisration, player's families, CHA insiders, etc. Very few are left for students.

When I got them for Buffalo, I did so through USCHO and eBay. That year, it was a seller's market. This year, the reverse. Great.

[Q]Mike Nevin Wrote:
If you already have tix this year, are you guaranteed to get them ahead of any new applicants next year?[/q]

Nobody is guaranteed to get tickets through this process. You have a "priority number" which represents the number of times you've bought tickets through this process since a particular year (I think 1998 at this point). After all the applications are in for the 2006 FF, they'll assign tickets first to those who applied and have a priority of 7, then to those with a priority of 6, and so on down the line.

It's entirely possible, depending on the vagaries of each year's lottery process and the capacity of any given rink hosting the FF, that everyone who bought tickets through the lottery for 2005 who wants tickets in 2006 will get them, and thus likely so will some of the people who are applying for the first time. But I don't think it's anywhere near a safe assumption.

Beeeej

[Q]DeltaOne81 Wrote:

They'd get a couple hundred tickets, but not for students. 90% of them go to boosters, adminisration, player's families, CHA insiders, etc. Very few are left for students.

When I got them for Buffalo, I did so through USCHO and eBay. That year, it was a seller's market. This year, the reverse. Great.[/q]

So basically, you are saying it's impossible through the Cornell ticket office?

The reason I ask is that the regionals this year was fairly easy. Also, I would rather sit in the Cornell section and those seats are better than the ones I have gotten. I was in the upper level in a corner at Buffalo. I'll be in the upper level again in Columbus.

If you aren't on campus, you aren't getting them through cornell. For buffalo, most went to the parents etc. and then a few were given away in a lottery to students during a practice. I got a couple of those lottery seats, and there weren't many students around me. Chances are pretty slim of getting them through Cornell.

[Q]Jacob '06 Wrote:
If you aren't on campus, you aren't getting them through cornell. For buffalo, most went to the parents etc. and then a few were given away in a lottery to students during a practice. I got a couple of those lottery seats, and there weren't many students around me. Chances are pretty slim of getting them through Cornell.[/q]
Oh yeah, I forgot about that lottery. And you know it's not fixed when a guy named 'Ezra Cornell' wins them - he was my landlord the following year.

[Q]Jacob '06 Wrote:

If you aren't on campus, you aren't getting them through cornell. For buffalo, most went to the parents etc. and then a few were given away in a lottery to students during a practice. I got a couple of those lottery seats, and there weren't many students around me. Chances are pretty slim of getting them through Cornell.[/q]

The announcement of the lottery is still up:

[cornellbigred.collegesports.com]

IIRC there were about 10 lottery entries per pair of tickets.

bump, just a reminder that ticket apps are due before midnight tonight.. I nearly forgot so I thought I'd bump this

Just about to post a reminder myself:

[ebill.securebills.com]

Just applied. Thanks for the reminder.

Like I'm really going to get a ticket

[Q]Jeff Hopkins '82 Wrote:

Just applied. Thanks for the reminder.

Like I'm really going to get a ticket [/q]
From personal experience I've seen 2 out of 3 non-priority apps accepted. My parents and I both applied for '04 in Boston. They got it, I didn't. Then I applied for '05 and got it. 2 out of 3. We may've been unusually lucky, but the odds don't appear to be dreadful.

Thanks for reminder - I did apply again, this is my 3rd attempt - no luck first two.