In 1990, Garth Brooks sang about his “friends in low places.”
Sorry Garth, I can’t relate.
Thanks to the magic of e-mail, I’ve discovered that I have quite a few friends in really high places.
There’s Dr. Mohamed Achour, the Nigerian Prince who values my friendship so much that he wants to wire me $4.5 million – no questions asked.
And let us not forget Mr. Mohammed Omar, Secretary to the Manager of the Foreign Remittance Department of an unspecified bank in Senegal. Mr. Omar wants my help in smuggling $20 million out of his country and into the safe haven that is the U.S. Banking System (does he not watch the news?).
Although their BLATANT MISUSE OF THE CAPS LOCK KEY and butchered English can get annoying, my foreign friends really don’t ask for much. Just a return e-mail. And a bank account number.
If you have an e-mail account, I’m guessing you have run into some of these characters too.
Now that everyone has caught onto the “strange guy needs to move money out of the country” scam, fraudsters are turning to more sophisticated methods in their never-ending attempt to pry sensitive data like social security numbers and banking information from unsuspecting computer users.
One particularly effective method is the “phishing” e-mail. These messages, which look like legitimate communications from actual companies, harvest personal information in a couple of ways. A typical phishing e-mail will contain a link along with a message asking the recipient to update their account information. Once the link is clicked, the user is redirected to a site where they are instructed to put in their personal data, which then goes directly to the scammers. A second variation installs spyware and other malicious software onto the user’s computer if they click the links contained in the message.
For spammers, the success of any phishing e-mail is predicated on fear. If a recipient is scared into believing that a problem really does exist, they will be more likely to follow the dangerous links. That’s why the latest phishing e-mail, a spoof of an IRS notice of underreported income, could turn out to be a big headache for a lot of people.
Sample IRS Phishing E-Mail
The fake IRS e-mail arrives in inboxes with the subject of “Notice of Underreported Income.” The sender name shows up as “Internal Revenue Service.”
Those two items are enough to give some people a heart-attack before they even open the e-mail.
Once opened, the e-mail instructs recipients to review their tax statement by clicking on a link supplied in the message. At that point, if you’re panicked enough to click the link, they’ve got you.
Thankfully, there are a few simple steps you can follow to avoid becoming a victim of phishing e-mails, like the IRS Notice of Underreported Income.
Never Divulge Personal Information Via E-Mail
No legitimate company or governmental entity is going to request detailed personal financial information from you via e-mail. Ever. As such, you should never give up this information just because an e-mail asks you to. If you ever have any doubt about the status of your account due to an e-mail you’ve received, pick up the phone and call the company directly or visit the company’s website (but not through the suspected e-mail). Most corporate sites have pages warning their customers of the various phishing scams that are circulating.
Keep Your Internet Browser and Virus Software Updated
The latest versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer (7.0 and up) and Firefox (3.0) contain anti-phishing toolbars that can protect you from fraudsters. These browsers cross-check the sites you are visiting or the links you are clicking against a database of known phishing sites. Should you venture down an unsafe path, you’ll get a friendly warning.
Help Cut the Phishing Line
You can help stop the scammers by sending the phishing e-mails you receive to federal authorities, who will then use the information to track down criminals. reportphishing@antiphishing.org and spam@uce.gov are two e-mail addresses that accept your forwarded phishing e-mails. When forwarding the e-mails, always send the entire original message and leave the subject line intact.
By following these guidelines, and exercising a little common sense, you should be able to avoid falling victim to internet phishing scammers – at least until they come up with something else. Which, you can be sure will happen sooner or later.
As communities across the country scramble to defend themselves against the H1N1 virus, the nation’s largest retailer is struggling with a viral infection of a different kind – one that can’t be stopped with antibiotics or layers of disinfectant.
In case you missed it (and maybe it’s for the best if you do), the latest internet craze is People of Walmart, a website that allows users to upload photos of the colorful characters they encounter while shopping at their local Walmart.
Cleanup on Aisle 6? No species is exempt from the mockery of People of Walmart.Com
If you’ve ever been to Walmart at two in the morning, you may already have a good idea of the subject matter involved here. Think mullets, outrageous tattoos, profanity-laced ball caps, and ridiculously undersized clothing, all captured on camera phone and shared with the world.
People of Walmart, launched a month ago as an inside joke between three friends, has gone viral with thousands of visitors and hoards of media attention.
Based on the site’s success, it is clear that people find humor in seeing someone browse the cereal aisle with a live parrot perched on their shoulder. What isn’t as clear is what, if any, effect the website will have on Walmart’s new makeover strategy, Project Impact.
The premise behind Project Impact is straightforward: improve the Walmart shopping experience by providing customers with better service, more attractive store layouts, and higher quality merchandise in areas such as apparel.
Anyone who has spent an hour fighting their way through the big-box retailer’s crowded, narrow aisles only to spend another thirty minutes waiting for a cashier can tell you that an improved shopping experience is a noble goal for Walmart.
But, creating a better atmosphere for existing customers is only part of Walmart’s new plan. The real hope is that Project Impact will help the Bentonville, Arkansas based company expand their already dominate market share by luring customers away from competitors like Target and Toys-R-Us.
Walmart has lost the hyphen and created a new logo as part of their Project Impact strategy
Unfortunately, the popularity of People of Walmart suggests that Walmart may have a hard time winning over the loyalties of Target shoppers who expect a more “upscale” experience. Even though the site’s original purpose was to poke a little fun at the most extreme Walmart shoppers, People of Walmart has unwittingly become a microcosm for how the public perceives the store.
Walmart’s “always” low-prices have earned them the reputation of being a store that caters to society’s lowest common denominator. It’s as if the Yellow Smiley Face logo of Walmart has been saying “give me your most eccentric, possibly unstable shoppers yearning for Ramen Noodles by the case load.”
If that sounds elitist, it shouldn’t. I shop at Walmart every week. But, the truth is, you won’t find a People of TJ Maxx or a People of Target or even a People of KMart.
And since the “shopping experience” includes store aesthetics and the makeup of the shoppers, the idea that Walmart can go upscale by throwing out a few nice sweaters is questionable.
Walmart’s problem is as much about image as it is about inventory, and a website highlighting the store’s anything goes demographic isn’t helping matters.
So, now we’ve come to Walmart’s viral dilemma. They can try to shut down the defamatory, yet beloved, website or just ignore it. As B.L. Ochman of Advertising Age points out, both paths have complications.
“If Walmart tries to squash the site, they’ll quickly become the laughing stock of social media. If they laugh with the site, they’ll be accused of laughing at their own customers.”
Ochman’s conclusion is that Walmart should lay low and wait for the internet crowd to move onto something else, which will eventually happen, as Lol Cats and Awkward Family Photos have proven.
For the time being, Walmart appears to be taking Ochman’s advice, having declined the opportunity to speak with ABC News on the matter. In addition to sparing Wally World from the wrath of “social media,” this approach helps keep the website on the internet fringe and out of the six-o-clock news.
What this approach doesn’t do is address the fact that many of the stars of People of Wal-Mart are unwitting participants, snapped covertly by fellow shoppers. Nor does it address the potential damage the site could have on Walmart’s brand.
At some point, Walmart may be forced to respond to these concerns.
Until that day comes, you may want to double-check yourself in the mirror before heading to your friendly Walmart.
There’s a fine line between “gimmick” and “promotion.” Most businesses stay safely on the promotional side of that line. Minor League Baseball, on the other hand, embraces the line – sometimes blowing past it like an out-of-control baserunner speeding through a third base coach’s “stop” sign.
The two approaches could not be more different.
For example, your local bank may run a promotion that promises to give new customers a $25 credit when they open a checking account.
In the Minors, they give away the same $25, but instead of executing an electronic transfer or handing someone a check, they have fans step into a phone booth full of swirling, wind-blown cash and urge them to grab all they can in 30 seconds.
Another example.
Your local bank probably puts suckers at the teller window for everyone to enjoy. (I personally enjoy the Blue Raspberry ones).
Kids participate in Quad Cities "Mega Candy Drop" promotion
I’m not saying that either approach is wrong. When we go to the bank, we expect a certain degree of professionalism. Most people would not enjoy seeing their loan officer brandishing a squirt gun while sporting a cartoonish mascot outfit.
However, when we go to a ballgame, we expect to enjoy the experience. That’s why the tongue-in-cheek, don’t be afraid to laugh promotional style used by many Minor League franchises is so successful. It’s the right approach in the right environment.
High school athletics could be marketed in that same vein. Unfortunately, local amateur sports are either a). marketed like banks as opposed to family-friendly entertainment or b). not marketed at all.
A little creativity can go a long way towards changing that, and a good place for high school athletics to start is by implementing small contests into their game day schedules.
Getting Creative with Contests
As I discussed in the last post, Minor League teams fill down-time between innings with fun, interactive games that involve the fans. Since these contests are only 1-3 minutes in length, they could easily be integrated into any athletic event (half-time of basketball, between quarters in football, etc.).
Coming up with a good contest idea is surprisingly easy. Just think of your current sponsors and ask “what do they do, and how can we turn that into something fun our crowd can interact with?”
By using this line of thinking, you might end up with something like a Subway “Sing for Your Supper” contest where two fans sing the “$5 foot long” jingle. The best jingle, based on audience applause, would win a Subway gift card (provided by Subway, of course).
The Blue Eye pulls ahead during the Cedar Rapids Kernels' Eyeball Race
Even service businesses can get in on the act. The Cedar Rapids Kernels stage a between-inning eyeball race at every home game. If you’ve never seen an eyeball race, it is exactly what it sounds like. Two fans, each dressed in a huge eyeball costume, race across the field. It’s quite a spectacle. And it’s also quite an advertising opportunity for the local optometrist that sponsors it.
These are just two examples. The possibilities are as endless as your own imagination.
Providing advertising opportunities that go beyond signage on the field and logos on the back of a program provides a unique value for sponsors. It helps make their brand “sticky,” or memorable. When other businesses in the community see this, they will want to develop partnerships with the school as well.
Getting Creative with Theme Nights
Contests are great, but why settle for a few minutes of fun when you can go the extra mile and provide a whole evening’s worth of memories? That is the idea behind the ever-popular “theme night,” a promotional strategy mastered by the Minor Leagues.
If you’ve never been to a theme night, the premise is simple: the team picks a topic and then weaves it into every aspect of what goes on at the park on that given night.
And, as the Minors have proven, any topic is fair game for a theme night. Here is a short sampling of some of the more popular theme nights from the past year, with links to their descriptions:
Theme nights like these help Minor League franchises make a connection with fans. Instead of simply being spectators, the fans become a part of something bigger. They also create publicity for the teams involved. People want to know what happens at an “Awful Night,” or a “Face Your Fears Night,” and that curiosity often leads to attendance.
Why Get Creative?
For those involved in high school athletics, theme nights and contests provide an opportunity to do something that’s simply not being done at the amateur level. In Indiana, there will be over 1,000 high school football games played this year. Triple that in basketball and baseball. The approach to these contests is pretty much the same. Schedule the games, and if people show up, they show up.
For large high schools with powerhouse programs, this type of hands-off approach is fine – people will still pack the stands. But, those schools are in the minority.
If the student-athletes at your school are playing in front of more empty seats than filled ones, maybe it is time to get creative.
Next Time: Using technology to make a fan connection
There may be better ways to spend a summer vacation, although I can’t think of any. For two months this summer, I traveled around the country watching Minor League Baseball games, thanks to a Teacher Creativity Grant from the Eli Lilly Foundation.
A large crowd looks on at Smokies Park in Kodak, TN
Officially, the idea was to study the marketing methods used by Minor League Baseball teams, which happen to be so good that they’ve helped some Minor League franchises across the country to record attendance, recession be damned.
Unofficially, I am never at a loss for an excuse to go watch baseball.
In the course of my travels, I was also hoping to get some ideas to bring back to the classroom.
Ah, the classroom – where I teach Business to high schoolers who are sometimes (most of the time) more interested in shooting arrows at balloons with a cartoon monkey (God bless internet games) than learning business fundamentals.
And while I did come up with the inspiration for a handful of great lesson plans, I realized that nearly everything I was seeing at the ballparks – the wacky promotions, the entertaining mascots, and the carnival-like atmospheres – could easily be applied to high school athletics.
It may sound outlandish, marketing high school sports in the same manner that a professional sports league markets its product, but, the reality is that Minor League Baseball and high school sports already have a lot in common.
I’ll give you a few examples in friendly, bullet point format:
Due to athlete turnover, both the Minor Leagues and high school athletics typically promote teams as a whole as opposed to individual players
In most markets, fans will attend Minor League games regardless of how well the team is playing. In other words, it doesn’t matter much if the team wins. Fans attend the games to have fun and see young talent develop. Is high school that much different?
Minor League teams, especially in the lower levels where the teams play in smaller towns, are a big part of their communities. As a result, the fan mix at most MiLB games is a cross-section of hardcore fans, casual observers, uninterested socialites, and hyper-active youngsters. In a lot of ways it is the same type of crowd found at a high school sporting event.
Any high school athletics program, regardless of size, can adopt a Minor League mindset to help boost community interest, fan support, school spirit, and attendance – all of which lead to more money for the school.
A group of mascots discuss their gameplan.
So, as a back to school gift for Athletic Directors everywhere, I will be offering a four part blog series on the tenets of the Minor League Mindset and how they can be applied to high school athletics.
Part I: Focus on the Fan
It is hard to create a caricature of the “typical” Minor League Baseball fan, because the crowds that attend the games are so diverse. All age groups and levels of interest are represented at the ballpark. Yet, for all their differences, fans at Minor League games seem to have one thing in common: they all have fun.
So, how do these franchises go about entertaining fans ranging in age from infants to octogenarians? Most minor league front office people readily admit that it’s not always about the team on the field.
Sure, some of the fans are there to watch baseball. But, even big baseball fans would have a hard time mustering up enough excitement to go see a lineup like this:
Means – RF
Sappelt – CF
Puckett – 2B
Mendez, C – 3B
Brown, T – LF
Coddington – DH
Day – 1B
Wideman – C
Rojas – SS
Janke – P
Not exactly household names. Nevertheless, 8,584 people piled into Fifth Third Field in Dayton, Ohio to watch these Dayton Dragons take on the Fort Wayne Tincaps on July 2nd.
If it’s not the game itself, what’s drawing 8,000+ fans a night to Dayton, and other ballparks across the country?
Minor League baseball teams have an unrelenting focus on the fan. Everything they do is designed to entertain, and most of the entertainment is interactive. Downtime between innings is filled with contests, with the participants being plucked right from the crowd. Fans may race one another around the bases, sumo wrestle, dance on dugouts, sing karaoke, and play “Let’s Make a Deal” – all before the seventh inning stretch.
As one front office executive put it to me, “baseball is just a backdrop we use to perform our shtick.”
Fans not participating in the “shtick” are treated to what basically amounts to a live-action reality show. What nine-year old will be able to put on a Dragons uniform and race around the bases the quickest? Tune in between the fourth and fifth innings to find out!
All of these contests provide family fun and help turn spectators into participators and casual fans into season ticket holders. In addition, they provide a unique opportunity for your sponsors – an issue we’ll discuss next time.
A fan participates in a dice rolling game at Bowling Green Ballpark
Focusing on the fan also means providing a comfortable atmosphere. I visited over 20 Minor League stadiums this summer, and I don’t recall seeing a single scrap of paper laying on the ground in any of the concourses or men’s rooms. All of the stadiums were clean, all had good food (some obviously better than others) and regardless of where I was at, it was always easy to spot an usher if I needed something.
Adopting a Minor League mindset requires more from an Athletic Director than scheduling officials, chalking the field, and turning on the lights. It’s about creating an environment where people are always wondering “what are they going to do next?”
And, the beautiful thing is, adopting a fan-friendly focus doesn’t take a lot of extra money or staff. Work with students to develop theme nights and contests. Leverage your school’s existing website to advertise your programs (a topic which we’ll cover in part three). Partner with the booster club to find volunteers to serve as ushers/fan assistants.
In the end, fans that have fun at a sporting event will continue to come back. The Minor Leagues have proven that. There’s no reason why the same wouldn’t hold true at the high school level.
Next Time – Part II: Get Creative and Get Fans
What do these eyes have to do with drawing fans and providing value for sponsors? Find out next time.
Pewter shows off a few pieces from his Ortiz collection
To step into Jon Pewter’s home in Topeka, Kansas is to gain an understanding of the far-reaching pull of Red Sox nation.
Like many heartlanders, Pewter discovered the Nation during Boston’s World Series run in the fall of 2004 and immediately became enamored with the team’s two biggest stars – sluggers Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz.
To commemorate his newfound fandom, Pewter began turning his basement into a Sox shrine, amassing a collection of Ortiz/Ramirez memorabilia that would make Ben Affleck drool.
There’s the eight autographed bats (six Ramirez and two Ortiz). And the twenty-eight autographed baseballs (an even fourteen-fourteen split between Ramirez and Ortiz). And the six framed autographed jerseys (one home, road, and alternative jersey for both Ramirez and Ortiz, Pewter explains). And the Ramirez autographed batting gloves. And the Ortiz autographed spikes. And the dozens of gem mint, professionally graded Ortiz and Ramirez rookie baseball cards. And the list goes on.
All of this, collected by a man who lives nearly 1,500 miles away from Boston, and has never seen Ortiz or Ramirez play in person.
“It all started with this ‘Papi’ (David Ortiz) jersey,” Pewter said with a chuckle, “I got it for $799.99 from mlb.com right after the Sox won the series in 04’.”
Overall, Pewter estimates he has invested nearly $18,000 in Ramirez and Ortiz memorabilia. It’s value today?
“Take off a few of those zeros, and you’d be in the ballpark,” Pewter said, this time without the chuckle. The value of Pewter’s memorabilia collection is yet another casualty of baseball’s steroid era, which recently expanded to include both Ramirez and Ortiz.
“After I heard about their involvement, I went through the same emotions that every fan has: denial, anger, betrayal,” Pewter said, “but at the end of the day I just felt like I should do something to send a message on behalf of fans everywhere.”
Pewter’s message is coming – in the form of litigation. With the help of attorney Robert Holder, Pewter is organizing a class action lawsuit against Ortiz, Ramirez, and other major leaguers implicated in the steroid scandal.
“Many of the pieces I have, I bought as investments,” Pewter explained, “and I bought them based on the performance of the athletes. Those performances turned out to be artificial.”
As part of the lawsuit, Pewter is hoping he and other fans will receive compensation for the loss of value in their memorabilia collections.
Holder believes that the lawsuit has potential. “Our stance is that these athletes are no different than the CEO who inflates his company’s earnings to make its stock price go up. By using performance enhancing drugs, these ballplayers were able to generate inflated statistics that encouraged fans to buy their memorabilia. The athletes profited. The teams profited. The fans were left holding the bag. We’re going to try to rectify that.”
One of the greatest baseball movies of all-time, Bull Durham introduced the general public to a number of sacred bush league traditions. There’s the Baseball Annie. The use of the word “meat” as a nickname. And of course, the consequences that come from shaking off the catcher.
In addition to Kevin Costner, Tim Robbins, and Susan Sarandon, the movie also starred the Durham Athletic Park, and its “Hit the Bull, Win a Steak,” sign that resided above the right field wall.
The smoking bull has relocated to a new $100 million dollar ballpark in downtown Durham, but the old Durham Athletic Park lives on. It is currently undergoing a $6.3 million renovation that includes a new playing surface and upgraded seating in the grandstand.
Once completed, the park will serve as the home of the North Carolina Central University baseball team. Minor league baseball (which has an office less than one block from the field) will also use the facility for training umpires and other baseball personnel.
I’ve been spending some time trying to get caught up on all of the photos and park reviews from my summer baseball trip. I still have about 15 parks to post, a few stories, and some other goodies. Look for those over the course of the next two weeks.
In the meantime I thought I would share a few photos from the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. The Hall holds a special place in the hearts of baseball fans, and rightfully so. The museum is packed full of artifacts from every era of baseball, many of which make you drop your jaw and say “how did they get that?”
I took a lot more photos than what I have posted below. If there is a specific item you would like to see, let me know.
Captain Awful, the original face of Awful Night (www.milb.com)
There’s a bizzaro-world of Minor League promotions. A twilight-zonesque place where fans are given their freebie on the way out the door. A place where elderly ushers dressed in drag escort fans to their seats. A place where half-eaten hot dog buns are tossed into the stands. And yes, God help us, a place where the music of David Hasselhoff is used to pump up the crowd.
The place is Altoona, Pennsylvania. The theme is “Awful Night.”
In its 7th incarnation, the Altoona Curve’s signature event is a satirical take on the everyday ballpark experience. As far as promotions go, Awful Night is, by design, as bad as it gets.
Among the high (or low) lights from Awful Night 2009:
Slugfest 2009 – A blistering race ran by two slugs, Milli and Vanilli, who were liberated from underneath a rock by a member of the Curve grounds crew. Depicted on the videoboard, the race began in the middle of the first inning and concluded four innings later when Milli slimed his way to victory.
Bun Toss – Hungry fans were relieved in the second inning when the Curve’s mascot, Steamer, tossed plain hot dog buns into the crowd.
Watching Paint Dry – Fans were riveted during the third inning by a videoboard demonstration of paint drying.
Stick Pony Race – Admiral Awful races across the outfield on his trusty stick-pony.
7th Inning Fan Cam – Proving that the double entendre is alive and well, the 7th inning stretch featured a “fan” cam that highlighted some of the best electric fans the park had to offer.
Gross Growing Contest – The seventh inning concluded with a grass (of the legal variety) growing contest between two Curve groundskeepers.
Awful Giveaway, Part I – Fresh new t-shirts have no place at an Awful Night. So, in their place Curve staffers chucked “gently used” t-shirts into the crowd.
Awful Giveaway, Part II – The last five fans to leave the park saw their diligence rewarded with a photo of the Curve PA man sitting on a horse.
You Call That Music? – The soundtrack for Awful Night consisted of satisfyingly annoying amounts of Celine Dion, Ashlee Simpson, Cher, and David Hasselhoff.
The awfulness extended beyond the music, bad puns, and between-inning entertainment. On the field, the Bowie Baysox pitching staff turned in a performance befitting of Awful Night, giving up 12 runs on 12 hits while walking 9 and helping the Curve run away with a 12-3 victory.
With their seventh Awful Night, and other theme nights like “Salute to Quitters” and “Please Come to Altoona, Will Ferrell” officially in the books, Altoona has cemented a reputation as the Minor League’s Master of the Irreverent.
Parking: $2 in large, paved lot next to ballpark on South Gaines Street. An additional, unpaved overflow lot is located underneath the Centennial Bridge.
Location, location, location. What holds true in real estate holds true in baseball as well. In no sport is stadium location as important as it is to baseball, where the backdrop of a ballpark can be as recognizable as the ballpark itself.
When done right, a stadium’s surroundings can provide aesthetics while also interacting with the playing field in ways that create lasting memories. Whether it is the memory of fans swimming after a Barry Bonds home run ball in the Bay of San Francisco’s AT&T Park, or the image of “2,131” being unfurled on the brick warehouse overlooking Camden Yards in Baltimore, some of the most iconic moments of modern baseball were enhanced because of stadium location.
And while the Major Leagues have their share of famous backdrops, one visit to Davenport, Iowa proves that the big leagues do not have a monopoly on stadiums with a view.
Modern Woodmen Park, home of the Low-A Quad Cities River Bandits, offers one of the most unique vistas in all of
The Centennial Bridge provides a unique backdrop for baseball
professional sports. Situated underneath the Centennial Bridge on the banks of the Mississippi River, Modern Woodmen Park combines classic stadium architecture, modern amenities, and dramatic river views to create a ballpark experience that is one of the best in all of Minor League Baseball.
Ballpark Features
Literally and figuratively, the star of Modern Woodmen Park is the Centennial Bridge. The iron bridge, with its graceful arcs, dwarfs the stadium below as it connects Iowa and Illinois, giving fans a dramatic view of the structure from nearly any seat in the ballpark. At dusk the bridge lights up, providing illumination that further accentuates its curves. It’s that view that had Hollywood calling in 2008, when producers picked the stadium as the main shooting location for the movie Sugar, a “fish out of water” story that portrayed life in the minors through the eyes of a Dominican pitcher.
On the ground, Modern Woodmen Park successfully combines old and new elements. The exterior of the park was constructed in 1931 and, aside from a few name changes to the front of the building, its classic red brick exterior and white concrete accents are still present in their original form – no small feat considering that the park was victimized by major floods in 1965, 1993, 2001, and 2008.
The interior of the stadium was gutted and redone as part of a massive $12.5 million renovation that was completed prior to the 2004 season. As part of the upgrade, the 78-year old ballpark now boasts a concourse that circles the entire ballpark, two outfield berm seating areas, a picnic and kids play area, a sky deck, 20 luxury suites, two souvenir shops, covered batting cages, and a pair of new scoreboards. The renovation has paid dividends at the gate, as attendance has increased nearly 56% since 2003.
In addition to the modern amenities, Modern Woodmen features two quirky, if not conflicting, twists. The area beyond the right field wall is home to Tiki Village, a three hut establishment where fans can relax and enjoy Mississippi Mai Tais
The Modern Woodmen Park Field of Dreams
amid a tropical setting. While Tiki Village does have a water view and lounge beds, it feels somewhat out of place thanks to its neighbor across the field – 10 rows of Iowa corn that inhabit the area next to the left field bleachers.
Seating options at Modern Woodman range from $5 to $12 and include club seats, box seats, bleachers, and berm, with the best spots – those that offer a view of the Centennial Bridge and the Mississippi River -residing along the third base side.
Stadium Atmosphere
For a stadium that has a tiki-village in right field and a fully functioning cornfield in left, the atmosphere at Modern Woodmen Park is surprisingly low-key. Between inning entertainment, a staple at most Minor League parks, is kept to a minimum and is unobtrusive. Even the mascot Rascal, a tall raccoon decked out in a bandana and a cowboy hat, was scarcely seen in the seating bowl on the night I was in town.
The fans at Modern Woodmen were on the older side, with fewer kids at the park than I had encountered during other stops in the Midwest League. As a result of the older crowd, the action on the field seemed to be the number one attraction. This was especially true for two of the gentlemen seated next to me. One was a season ticket holder who was capable of giving scouting reports on every Cardinal farmhand who was playing with Quad Cities, and the other was a gifted heckler who found plenty of opportunities to hone his craft during the lopsided 12-3 affair. Even as the score grew out of hand early in the game, few fans left the stadium – a further testament to the high-level of interest River Bandit fans bring to the park.
I also had the chance to chat with an usher, Dave, who gave me an impromptu history of the ballpark as well as details on the filming of the movie Sugar. After one evening at Modern Woodmen, I left convinced that the park never has a shortage of friendly, Midwestern folks ready to talk baseball.
Conclusion
The turnstiles have been clicking at a rapid pace in 2009 for the Quad Cities River Bandits, and for good reason. Modern Woodmen Park is a complete baseball experience in a one-of-a-kind setting. Fans who find their way to this diamond on the Mississippi will not be disappointed, as it is one of the gems of the Midwest League, if not all of Minor League Baseball.
In professional sports you have big market teams and small market teams. And then you have the Beloit Snappers, a Class A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, who play in a market so small, it almost warrants classification as a micro-market.
Indeed, if there were a baseball franchise version of life-support, the Snappers would be on it.
What exactly has the Snappers gasping for air?
For starters, the Snappers play in a stadium that was built in 1982, long before owners and stadium architects realized they could print money by constructing luxury boxes and club seating. Aside from the addition of patio areas down the left and right field lines, Pohlman Field is largely the same as it was when it was constructed nearly thirty years ago.
And while many baseball fans find Pohlman Field to be a charming throwback to a less-commercialized era of Minor League Baseball, the stadium’s lack of modern amenities was largely responsible for ending Beloit’s twenty-three year affiliation with the nearby Milwaukee Brewers, who dropped the city and moved to a newer ballpark in Charleston, West Virginia following the 2004 season.
Beloit's Pohlman Field Remains Largely Unchanged Since Constructed in 1982
Then there’s the city itself. Beloit, a town of 37,000 just beyond the Illinois border in South Central Wisconsin, has no radio or television outlets. With no local media available, coverage of Snapper baseball must come from the neighboring cities of Rockford and Madison, which each have their own teams – the Madison Mallards participate in the Northwoods League, a summer collegiate baseball league, while the Rockford RiverHawks play in the independent Frontier League.
No media coverage. An outdated stadium. A small fan base. To say that Beloit is a challenging market would be putting it lightly.
Good thing Beloit General Manager Jeff Vohs enjoys challenges.
Vohs began his baseball career in 1999 when he served as a Scouting and Baseball Operations Intern for the Milwaukee Brewers. His hopes for a career with the Brewers were dashed after a front office shuffle saw many of his bosses leave the organization after the 99’ season. Undeterred, Vohs found his way to Beloit, where he worked his way from up from intern to General Manager over the course of five seasons.
Like many Minor League GM’s, Vohs wears a number of different hats. When I caught up with him at his ballpark office on a sunny Friday afternoon in late June, he was wearing his groundskeeper’s hat, watching the weather radar on his computer for rainstorms that might threaten that evening’s game against the Quad Cities River Bandits.
Rain is a familiar enemy in the Midwest League, where teams schedule 140 games a season, but usually only end up playing around 135 due to inclement weather. “In an environment like this, where a lot of fans are local, rain definitely hurts,” Vohs said, “if people think the weather is going to be bad, they’ll just stay at home.”
On this day, rain not only threatened the game, but also the cancellation of one of the team’s most popular promotions – a postgame fireworks show.
“We try to stick with what works,” Vohs said, explaining his back-to-basics promotional philosophy, “in this market, fireworks and beer promotions work. We could do like Kane County and schedule Myron Noodleman or Zooperstars, and those things might do well after two or three years, but as a non-profit team, I can’t justify spending $3,000 to $4,000 a night on those performers and not have it make an immediate impact at the gate.”
In addition to overseeing the club’s marketing efforts, Vohs is also heavily involved in baseball operations, communicating with the Twins front office regarding baseball matters on a regular basis.
His acumen as a baseball guy has not gone unnoticed. In 2006, the Twins arranged for Vohs to attend Major League Baseball’s Scout School, an intensive ten day camp designed to teach the intricacies of scouting major league talent.
Someday Vohs may trade in his job behind the desk for a job behind the radar gun, but for now, he is content with the Snappers. “It’s never dull,” Vohs said, “you’re always working on something different. Everyone here has a title, but everyone also helps take care of whatever needs to be done, whether it’s selling tickets, serving food, or cleaning the stadium.”
Despite the best efforts of Vohs and his grounds crew, baseball and fireworks were not meant to be on the day I visited, as a rain storm drenched the area about an hour before game time.
It’s not all dark clouds for Beloit, though. According to Vohs, the team is “in the process of finishing up a site plan and engineering study on some land in the Gateway area at the intersection of I-43 and I-90.”
Not only would a new stadium be a boon for the Snappers, it would also ensure the future of baseball in Beloit for decades to come.
Recent Comments