Ticket Line Procedures

[Dave]

i agree that the current system works, but I think it can be improved without resorting to random numbers. I'm still very uneasy about the official start time for the line at 4:45 pm... I just have a feeling that there's going to be a crazy mob or an unofficial line that they allow to form a bit before 4:45... hopefully I'll be proved wrong.

I think they should allow people to line up to get line numbers more or less whenever they choose... or just say you can get line numbers x days before you actually start the paying/seat selection process. And then once the line numbers are handed out... start doing random checks from that point on. I know Cornell will never do this because they can't condone missing class, but this is the student's choice to skip class, and frankly I think he/she has that right. And plus most students are responsible enough to borrow class notes from friends or work out some system of having friends hold line numbers while they attend class, etc... we're cornell students, we're smart enough to engineer that kind of system.

I know this is easier said than done, but if Duke can support Krzyzewski-ville... Cornell can support Lynah-ville.

[ugarte]

IF they are not going to allow a Schaferville (baaaaaaaaad!) and IF you want to avoid a dangerous mad rush to the door at 4:45 (good), I think allowing a line to start forming at ~4:30 (4:40) and assigning random numbers to anyone already on line by, say 4:50 (I think your time tolerances are a little too tight, Cornell Fan) is an excellent solution.  

Your response, Anthony, fails to appreciate that Cornell doesn't acknowledge two-day waits.  If CUPD really is going to keep breaking up the lines, there is no reason to get there any earlier than they will allow the official line to form.  If they AREN'T going to enforce the "no early lines" rule, then the whole "announcement" is a joke.  The only way to make a bad rule worse is to enforce it haphazardly, thereby encouraging people to break it.

[am243]

[Q] If they AREN'T going to enforce the "no early lines" rule, then the whole "announcement" is a joke. The only way to make a bad rule worse is to enforce it haphazardly, thereby encouraging people to break it.

 [/Q]  
Sadly this is exactly how Cornell has handled the situation the last few years.

[Jim Hyla]

I'll say what I've said the last few years; do it like the "old days". You have an official time and date, which is when the U starts maintaining it. However you let people (we still do think students are people, don't we?) start their own line whenever they want to, and they maintain it themselves.

This idea that you can't allow a line when classes are in session is ridiculous. They don't stop students from eating lunch, do they? You assume that they will make arraingements for someone else to take their place, when they need to.

That system worked well, except that tickets were then sold much later in the year and it was alot colder. When it got to be a line of a couple of cold nights it wasn't too nice. Now and especially this week that's a piece of cake.

All you need is an administration that will let students do it, and not worry about what a lawyer might say about the risk and students who are willing to police the unofficial line. When I had to stay in line we never had an official line. We set up our own rules which were decided upon by the first few people and went from there. I know that someone might say the first people would make the rules to fit themselves, but I doubt it would make a big difference. However you do always have to have someone there to keep a list and tell the rules to the new arrivals.

[DeltaOne81]

[Q]Your response, Anthony, fails to appreciate that Cornell doesn't acknowledge two-day waits. If CUPD really is going to keep breaking up the lines, there is no reason to get there any earlier than they will allow the official line to form. If they AREN'T going to enforce the "no early lines" rule, then the whole "announcement" is a joke. The only way to make a bad rule worse is to enforce it haphazardly, thereby encouraging people to break it.[/Q]
Very true... it also makes the assumption that fans who show up 3 days early are necessarily much better fans than those that 'only' show up 1 day early. I think I'm a pretty damn good fan, going to Albany, Buffalo, and garnering 10 points in Judy's system for the N.C. trip last year - 8 hrs from Ct.

Still, I'm not gonna camp out the night before I have to go to classes and/or skip classes to get tickets. Anyone who shows up by 4:45 pm on Friday is a pretty damn good fan and would make a fine section B-er. Showing up 3 days early indicates you're a very good fan, but it also indicates you care a bit less about class attendence and sleep. I think the random thing is a fine idea.

-Fred

[DeltaOne81]

[Q]This idea that you can't allow a line when classes are in session is ridiculous. They don't stop students from eating lunch, do they? You assume that they will make arrangements for someone else to take their place, when they need to.[/Q]
Only problem, that allows for massive amounts of cutting if you let people come and go... and unfortunately, that's a definite issue.

[Jim Hyla]

[Q]Only problem, that allows for massive amounts of cutting if you let people come and go... and unfortunately, that's a definite issue.[/Q]No you don't allow cutting. As I said you always have to have someone there to tell the rules and they keep a list of names, in order, and tell everyone when line checks will be held, etc.. Believe me, with bright enough students they can figure out a system to work.

[cquinn]

[Q]No you don't allow cutting. As I said you always have to have someone there to tell the rules and they keep a list of names, in order, and tell everyone when line checks will be held, etc.. Believe me, with bright enough students they can figure out a system to work.[/Q]

The university was perfectly willing to do just this up until the stampede in '92.  The orderly list of names that I signed the evening before didn't mean a whole lot the next morning when I couldn't take a full breath because of the crush of people.  I'm sure the university views the complaints on the current system as minor compared to what they had to deal with then, and they were lucky it didn't turn out worse.  Sure I would like to see the most faithful of the Faithful rewarded with good seats, but I don't want to see any of them get hurt in the process.

[Greg Berge]

With what the university gets in revenue from hockey, there's no reason why they can't station a couple dozen rent a cops for line monitoring 2-3 days before the sale.  Line people up outside, aggressively check the line, and yank the IDs of cutters until after the sale.  Pretty simple.

[KeithK \'93]

How long you are willing to wait in line isn't a perfect proxy for dedication.  But overall I suspect it's a pretty good one.  It seems like a simple economic model - the more you want the tickets the more you are willing to pay (in time) to get them.

[Luke]

The university calendar says that there will be a band playing from 8-10PM in the Ramin room saying they will be joining the ticket line.  Makes me think they will move people inside as soon as they start lining up.  just my 2 cents

[Dave]

Apparently people are already lining up, well before 24 hours of the stated time... security? security??? Bueller?

[atb9]

someone confirm

[Sgt.12]

That crowd will be dispersed before daybreak.

[CowbellGuy]

Confirmed. Don't ask me why I'm at work. There are about 15 people there starting an informal list.