Spinoff: What can St. Louis do to make Arch Madness...

WANTED: Passionate Sycamore Fanatics. That You?

Register NOW to join our community of die-hard Sycamore fans.

Register Log in
Jason Svoboda

Jason Svoboda

The Bird Level
Administrator
Since this has pretty much been the only topic to give the site a pulse recently, what could St. Louis do to make Arch Madness more enjoyable/interesting/accessible/desirable to you?
 

Become a Supporting Member to remove this ad and help support the site.
One of my favorite things about the tournament is just seeing all the other fans around St. Louis walking around, at bars, by the arch, etc. I know we don't usually have a great "presence" there but lasts years was respectable and should be our minimum regardless of how the season has gone. I know the teams were gone early but i could have counted on one hand the Bradley, Drake, loyola, and Evansville i saw the entire weekend. It seems as though it's almost up to each school to market the shit out of it and get at least 1,000 core fans there from each school.

But to answer your question jason, i really don't have a good answer as far as quick fixes are concerned. Obviously, a better nightlife would go a long way but that takes years and years to establish.
 
I believe that there needs to be a more complete directory of places to go downtown. 'Boda, I've seen your comments regarding this and there are TONS of great bars, restaurants and nightlife downtown. Go 3 blocks north of Ballpark village and turn west you'll find Washington Ave - the downtown loft district. There is the LaClede's landing by the riverfront and just south of Busch Stadium there are a half dozen Blues and Jazz clubs. Soulard has music venues for every taste and great restaurants. A short cab ride to the Italian "Hill" and you'll find one of the few 4 star restaurants in the midwest. Want a great steak Shannons and Ruth Cris. Don't want to Cab it? Take the Metro Link to University City for great shops, restaurants, music, etc. Its all there, and if there a failing its the not letting fans know how accessible it really is.
 
There has to be some form of organized, central entertainment area for fans to go in between games. Take the bus parking lot across the street from the arena...I dont' know...and turn it into a big tented beer garden with food vendors, etc.

The problem with the tournament is there's no one place where fans go between games where you can interact, talk trash, etc. with one another. That would build up the rivalries and fun of the tournament. Everyone goes to the games and leaves and disperses around the city; it's kind of a bummer. Every year me and my friends go to Joe Buck's a couple of blocks away from the arena. That's about as close as it gets, and most that work there act like the tournament is more of an annoyance than a real EVENT. The city just doesn't embrace it enough.

The games themselves are entertaining enough, so there's no need to make a change there. The total fan experience should include the entire weekend, and more could be done. The "fan hangout" they have is depressing. It's a piss-poor attempt at best and it's almost a deterrent more than an attraction. Anyone that's been to it would easily tell you that.

So...in short, I go to the tournament to watch basketball (check), see my friends from ISU that I rarely see but maybe once a year (check), and have fun in between games at places easy to find that cater towards MVC fans (uncheck).
 
Last edited:
bluestreak said:
I believe that there needs to be a more complete directory of places to go downtown. 'Boda, I've seen your comments regarding this and there are TONS of great bars, restaurants and nightlife downtown. Go 3 blocks north of Ballpark village and turn west you'll find Washington Ave - the downtown loft district. There is the LaClede's landing by the riverfront and just south of Busch Stadium there are a half dozen Blues and Jazz clubs. Soulard has music venues for every taste and great restaurants. A short cab ride to the Italian "Hill" and you'll find one of the few 4 star restaurants in the midwest. Want a great steak Shannons and Ruth Cris. Don't want to Cab it? Take the Metro Link to University City for great shops, restaurants, music, etc. Its all there, and if there a failing its the not letting fans know how accessible it really is.
Click to expand...

It's not that there aren't things to do in St. Louis. There are. It's a major metropolitan city, so of course there are great restaurants and bars. The problem is, those restaurants and bars don't embrace the event, have no specials specific for the tournament, and they aren't universally known as "places to go" by the fans that attend the tournament.

I find plenty to do because I look hard for it, but I rarely see that many other MVC fans where we end up going.
 
REDUCE THE PRICE OF BEER 10 bucks is too much for a beer especially if you are there all day long
 

Become a Supporting Member to remove this ad and help support the site.
Jason , what can St. Louis do?... 1. Become Chicago. 2. Get Billikins out of the Atlantic 10 and into the MVC (the MVC pitch being that the Billikens have a better chance in the MVC of becoming the Big Dog then they will ever have in the Atlantic 10 and additionally get the promise from the MVC that Arch Madness stays at home for, ,ooohh, 10 years).
 
Defintely need somewhere where fans can go to build up the excitement for the tournament. Which leads me to believe its more on getting the city of St Louis behind the tournament. They need to do a better job of advertising. Also maybe each school can provide buses for some fans who cant drive...in particular students.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top