Fort Report

Wow, that was a bad sequel.  And how dated are Space Soviets?  Not that 2001 was a great movie (how and why they went to a different planet than the novel which was written at the same time as the script is beyond me).  However, the year which was promised to be spectacular by 80’s era Hollywood has let me down thus far.  No Commie tanks rolling into Afghanistan (oh wait, that was 1985 in The Watchmen) err I mean Central America prompting some star-hopping concrete slab to set humanity straight.  No no, the big battleground in our country today is whether or not to turn DC into Brussels West with the accompanying army of pencil pushers burdening and warping the system we once had.  Keep in mind I’m talking about bureaucrats, not zombies.  A movie called “2023″ forecasting the dangers of that will have no space laser fights, no scantly clad femme fetale kung fu, no Micheal Bay explosions.  I pity the younger generation.  What’s there to look forward to?  Certainly not mutual nuclear destruction and the vengeance that would have followed it.

So I’m not big on 2010 so far.  However, this Saturday the Revs open up their home schedule at Gillette Stadium.  I have to admit, I hadn’t been too excited about the team or league during the off season.  However, thanks to Kenny Mansally, I feel the bug coming on.  For reasons beyond my control, I’ve missed all of the fan-related festivities.  The 1st ever supporter’s summit, the Rider’s meeting, and the season ticket holder gathering.  Truthfully, I was only mildly disappointed about missing some of the team stuff.  Some great news did come out of all that, some of which has me excited about the upcoming campaign.

The first and foremost are the changes to The Fort.  Take a look at this picture:

Looks like they are truncating the supporters sections.  Not to “toot” my own horn about that idea, but “toot-toot”.  Now, let’s see how it all plays out.  Since I vowed to make this blog a Fort-centric theme, lets get cracking on some predictions:

Prediction #1: On “normal” nights, we won’t fill the sections enough where everyone is standing.  That’s a cruel prediction to start off with, but I think I’m spot on with this.  I’ll get to ways we can rectify this later.

Prediction #2: The capo stand will take some time getting used to, but will become vitally important. For those who don’t know, they have installed a bit of an elevated stand at the bottom of the 142-143 aisle

Prediction #3: No matter what, people will complain. Some people are going to be bent out of shape not being able to lounge up top.  I hope they have a section open on the other side of the field to accommodate them.

Let me elaborate further on how I think this will go down.  For the game this Saturday, I foresee a fairly packed Fort.  We usually get decent crowds there for our openers.  With the reduced space, section 143 will fill up quickly.  It’s where people are used to standing.  The new supporter group, The Rebellion, has claimed section 141.  I am not privy to their numbers, but if they can fill their first eight rows, I’ll be very impressed.  That leaves the middle section 142, where Rev Army will need help getting standing supports.  If not, it’ll look divided and weird.

The key to this will be getting multiple rows of supporters, from 141 to 143, standing, singing, and waiving flags, to purge the area of people who would sabotage the effort of improving the section from a “participating supporter” perspective.  Providing The Rebellion does it’s job of securing the front rows, some people need to get in there 10-15 mins before kickoff and start saving spots, especially in 142.  Rev Army had been around rows 7-15 in 142 for most of last season, so just getting the first 3-4 rows could be the key.

This may seem like bullying other types of supporters, and in a way it is.  The team has been making “concessions” to make The Fort a better area for them to use to better the experience at Gillette, and thus progress the fan base.  What about someone who just bought the cheapest tickets available and  wants to sit down and enjoy some good soccer?  They do have every right to a seat, and that’s where the team needs to be there come game time to kindly relocate.  Because I guarantee, some will take issue with the changes.

However, it may just come down to them moving over a section or two.  The key is we need to become territorial to the way the sections are set up.  Oh, and be polite as possible.  The new rules don’t give us the right to kick people out of their seats.  Which is why I think it’s important to start the singing 5 mins early.  A lot of the problems may be alieviated just by those who don’t wish to be around us finding another seat.  I remember watching a mass exodus of rows 5-15 of 143 right at kickoff of the 2008 opener.  But again, I hope the team has representatives there to facilitate any issues we have with fellow Revs fans.

And they may not have to go far.  I’m hoping we can pack all three sections with standing supporters.  By past experience, I think 143 and 142 is a real possibility.  But I think I’m going to go with my gut and predict there will be people sitting in the upper roes of at least 141 and 142.  That’s just a sober prediction, something I won’t be at kickoff tomorrow.

If The Fort is packed enough week over week, we’ll successfully claim it as an area for a specific kind of Revolution supporter.  That’s been one of the clear goals from the start.  If experience is any guide, it’ll be a bumpy road getting there.

I’ll be back next with a review oh how all these changes went down on Saturday.  Remember, bring your scarf and some blue streamers if you can hack it.