The Lakers Fan Jam Jabs Its Fans - Share Your Experience
Posted: Sunday, March 21, 2010
by Teresa Ortiz
Freelance writer/Speaker
We saw the commericals(**) during each game; "Come - meet the players, see the Laker girls, get the autograph of your favorite players and even some of the old greats!"
Without hesitation my daughter ordered tickets for everyone in the family; this is a must! Almost like going to church - okay, well not almost like that, but well, talk to my daughter...
After an anxious week of waiting, the results are in - was it werth it?
We we were standing is a sea of purple, white and gold - many people, including my daughter sportin' their black, purple, and gold Kobe's - for over an hour just to walk through the doors. No Problem.
Once inside, the music roared - excitement filled the air. Where do we go for the autographs? Avoiding all the booths and basketball trivia games and the all too inviting Toyota booth, we searched - this is afterall, the main reason we were there. "This sucks - what a let down, I can't believe we waited for this." That was an encouraging piece of a conversation we heard while on our hunt...and then we saw it - another line. No problem. This is to be expected. The Lakers have a lot of fans.
2:10pm - My huband graciously agreed to stand in the line while the rest of us wandered around. The two jumping balloons were are great hit for the little ones, along with the basketball bouncy-balls. What a treat it was to see all the fans having such a good time. Hhmm, where were those Laker girls and where was all the interaction with the "greats" of Laker history?
3:10pm - The crowd roared! Nice, the players came out on state to give autographs - the line will start moving.....
4:30pm - With my husband graciously remaining in line for his daughter, the rest of us scatter - Britt to find out how long the wait ACTUALLY will be, and my mom and I went to stand in to spin the wheel for a great prize - the "mini first aid kit" the size of a match book with one bandage and some ointment isn't too shabby. To be fair, others did win a Lakers poster and a mini basketball the size of a gulf ball.
Feeling a bit guilty, Britt and I decided to join Art in the line while my mom and dad go get something to eat.
5:00pm - a bit closer in line now and a few players later we just might get our turn. We did feel bad about the hundreds of people after us who are standing in the wrong line that went all around and zig-zagged through the convention center. Twice I told the officals that the line split and poeple are in a line that leads to nowhere.."I'll take care of it".....
7:10pm - "Sorry folks, there will be no more autographs for the day, enjoy the rest of your stay." Not a good thing to here - everyone was furious - most people missed everything waiting in the line/s.
Odom, bless his heart, came through the doors while unprotected because the security was not informed as to which door he was going to come out of - he escaped unharmed though rushed by the fans. Still, not so bad considering we did get a few glimpes of the five players that came and went on stage as we waited. Kudos to the players who were there taking pictures with the fans who stood in line for 6 hours for two signatures.
8:00pm - "Britt, some people are still standing in line", "Mom, I'm gonna be...if they started autographs again". I don't think so, what if no body told them it cut off almost an hour ago?"
We walked back over to the crowd where the final group were still waiting for their turn, and I heard someone complaining about the line not moving... I walked over and asked if anyone told all those people about the cut off - oops!
8:30pm - Angry people shouting "Refund' and "Rip-Off", others walking away with tears of joy because they got their picture taken after a 7 hour wait.
My husband over heard several men ganging up on one of the lady security guards, he was about to join them, but then regained control of his own frustration and came to her rescue. What followed was a reporter from the local paper interviewing several people including my husband.
What made they day worth it? The fans. The fans were patient and courteous with one another, we joked and made the best of our time together - In the end, it was an unorganized event, that left most everyone dissapointed - what we don't know is were the Lakers in on this? I would like to think that this was put together by some unrelated party.
Nevertheless fans are fans and tonight's game will be watched - perhaps they will give an apology - or will they highlight the few happy fans? I guess time will tell.
Did this article flow? Do you feel I put it together well, or does it seem thrown together and you are left wondering why you are still reading? Well, maybe now you know how we felt at the end of the day.
How about you - did you attend the Jam? Please - do tell. What would you have done differently?
* This article will be sent to the Lakers Fan Club email box.*
** By the way, all of the mistakes in this artickel are intentional **
(C) Teresa Ortiz www.teresaortiz.com
Without hesitation my daughter ordered tickets for everyone in the family; this is a must! Almost like going to church - okay, well not almost like that, but well, talk to my daughter...
We we were standing is a sea of purple, white and gold - many people, including my daughter sportin' their black, purple, and gold Kobe's - for over an hour just to walk through the doors. No Problem.
Once inside, the music roared - excitement filled the air. Where do we go for the autographs? Avoiding all the booths and basketball trivia games and the all too inviting Toyota booth, we searched - this is afterall, the main reason we were there. "This sucks - what a let down, I can't believe we waited for this." That was an encouraging piece of a conversation we heard while on our hunt...and then we saw it - another line. No problem. This is to be expected. The Lakers have a lot of fans.
2:10pm - My huband graciously agreed to stand in the line while the rest of us wandered around. The two jumping balloons were are great hit for the little ones, along with the basketball bouncy-balls. What a treat it was to see all the fans having such a good time. Hhmm, where were those Laker girls and where was all the interaction with the "greats" of Laker history?
3:10pm - The crowd roared! Nice, the players came out on state to give autographs - the line will start moving.....
4:30pm - With my husband graciously remaining in line for his daughter, the rest of us scatter - Britt to find out how long the wait ACTUALLY will be, and my mom and I went to stand in to spin the wheel for a great prize - the "mini first aid kit" the size of a match book with one bandage and some ointment isn't too shabby. To be fair, others did win a Lakers poster and a mini basketball the size of a gulf ball.
Feeling a bit guilty, Britt and I decided to join Art in the line while my mom and dad go get something to eat.
5:00pm - a bit closer in line now and a few players later we just might get our turn. We did feel bad about the hundreds of people after us who are standing in the wrong line that went all around and zig-zagged through the convention center. Twice I told the officals that the line split and poeple are in a line that leads to nowhere.."I'll take care of it".....
7:10pm - "Sorry folks, there will be no more autographs for the day, enjoy the rest of your stay." Not a good thing to here - everyone was furious - most people missed everything waiting in the line/s.
Odom, bless his heart, came through the doors while unprotected because the security was not informed as to which door he was going to come out of - he escaped unharmed though rushed by the fans. Still, not so bad considering we did get a few glimpes of the five players that came and went on stage as we waited. Kudos to the players who were there taking pictures with the fans who stood in line for 6 hours for two signatures.
8:00pm - "Britt, some people are still standing in line", "Mom, I'm gonna be...if they started autographs again". I don't think so, what if no body told them it cut off almost an hour ago?"
We walked back over to the crowd where the final group were still waiting for their turn, and I heard someone complaining about the line not moving... I walked over and asked if anyone told all those people about the cut off - oops!
8:30pm - Angry people shouting "Refund' and "Rip-Off", others walking away with tears of joy because they got their picture taken after a 7 hour wait.
My husband over heard several men ganging up on one of the lady security guards, he was about to join them, but then regained control of his own frustration and came to her rescue. What followed was a reporter from the local paper interviewing several people including my husband.
What made they day worth it? The fans. The fans were patient and courteous with one another, we joked and made the best of our time together - In the end, it was an unorganized event, that left most everyone dissapointed - what we don't know is were the Lakers in on this? I would like to think that this was put together by some unrelated party.
Nevertheless fans are fans and tonight's game will be watched - perhaps they will give an apology - or will they highlight the few happy fans? I guess time will tell.
Did this article flow? Do you feel I put it together well, or does it seem thrown together and you are left wondering why you are still reading? Well, maybe now you know how we felt at the end of the day.
How about you - did you attend the Jam? Please - do tell. What would you have done differently?
* This article will be sent to the Lakers Fan Club email box.*
** By the way, all of the mistakes in this artickel are intentional **
(C) Teresa Ortiz www.teresaortiz.com
This Article has been viewed 1,204 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
More commentsI went to the fan jam today. What a joke! There were no lakers. No autographs.total false advertisement. I want my money back. And you are right, the fans were well behaved.I wondered how they would pull off autographs today when there is a game tonight. What a shame, it was still being advertised this morning. I really hope hundreds of people will speak out. It was definitely false advertisement. Except where the little kids are concerned, the bouncy balls and jumping balloons are a lot of fun. Or if you wanted to pay to go shoot hoops with your buddies at the convention center, then it was great too. I seriously want to know who was responsible for putting this on. I sent a copy of this article to the LA times and the Lakers feedback email. I don't know if it will do any good, but it is worth a try. It's only a big deal because the advertisement made it a big deal - otherwise we wouldn't have much to complain about if they just said it was going to be a day for the fans to come together and maybe a few players will show up and give autographs sporadically. I just don't want to see this happen to thousands of fans again.Thank you for sharing!
I agree! This event was such a rip-off! You buy tickets for this event with hopes on meeting players and getting autographs as was stated, but you stand in line for a VERY VERY long time, only to find out that there will be NO autographs nor chances to meet ANY players! I paid for my family to get in and this event was not worth the paper the tickets were printed on!Hi Synn, what a shame, thank you for sharing your experience - IF they do this next year, I sure hope there are some changes, like not promising anything. We are not dumb people, we knew it would be crowded. All they had to do was be up front and say that not all the players would be there, and they should have said autographs were not going to go on all day long. They could have stressed "a chance" to meet a player or two. I think they would have sold just as many tickets if they were up front about how it was really was going to be. Our expectations wouldn't have been so high. I saw a lot of upset people. The biggest joke was the so-called staff who knew nothing. Where was their training? How long did you stand in line for food at one of the three little food stands - was your water cold? I don't blame the Laker players or cheerleaders, at least not yet.
Hey T! I saw the title and KNEW it was yours. You had an er....interesting day. You must really love Britt! Thanks for sharing your experience. I have heard of these fan days being sort of a rip off. I don't think there are enough hours in a day to do all the promoters promise. So, would you go again?Hi Lorrie, thanks for reading :-) No, would not go again, and either would Britt.
I totally agree with your assessment of how things went. I went on Sunday. what made it worst was the players didn't sign anything and that I DID NOT see any players. the lines were long and unorganized. Definitely not worth the 15 dollar admission price!!. I believe with all the talent and huge organization, they could have planned a better event. maybe next year.. maybeI agree with your assessment as well. Thank you for reading and for sharing. Take care!
We went on Saturday and got completely ripped off!!!! By the time we arrived at 4:00pm, only Shannon Brown was there and the line looked MILES long. We didn't even attempt the wait! I heard a woman say that she had waited to get autographs for three hours and the line didn't even budge! We decided instead to get our photos taken with the trophies. About an hour into the hot, boring wait, we decided to give up because we hadn't even made it half way! We just went home! For two people trying to see some of the Lakers (old and new) as was promised, we spent $54.50 for this crap fan jam, including parking to see absolutely NOTHING! Oh wait, we did see something! Tons of fans walking around carrying basketballs that they were going to get signed without one autograph on them. This includes us as well. Sad.Hi, thank you for sharing - I do hope these and many other comments are taken into consideration by the officials - if anyone is even searching out feedback. I agree, my daughter carried her basketball around all day as well, and yes, factor in the parking and the food expense, it was an expensive day. Grand promises, little delivery, do you suppose there will be an apology? I wonder how common this is - Like Lorrie said, there are not enough hours in the day. Thanks again. Take care!Thanks so much for taking the time to care and for posting this! I personally really appreciate it! All of us fans deserve so much better and I truly hope that this gets back to the appropriate people that need to see it! There should absolutely be an apology, but sadly I'm sure there won't be anything. I wouldn't go again next year if I was given free tickets!You are welcome. Funny thing is, I am not even a fan of basketball, or of sports at all. I get involved because of my daughter and husband. And I just felt so bad for all the truly upset fans. Me, I was tired and frustrated with the whole thing, but wasn't crushed like all the true fans, like yourself and I am sure, thousands of others. I agree, we will never go again - no apology, nothing said. Thanks for coming by again. I appreciate the feedback..
I also went to the Laker fan Jam on Saturday...very disapointing. I waited in line just like your husband and got nothing out of it at the end of the night. There were 3 people ahead of me, and Gasol was on the stage. I was next to step on the stage, and he immediately left. I waited about 7-8 hours in line to get an autograph, and he just left. Its honestly my last time attending an event hosted by the lakers.I am so sorry that happened to you and all the others near you - so close! We won't be attending again. One thing I am happy about is that there was no boasting about how successful the event was during half time at last night's game. Thank you for sharing and take care.
Well, I wouldn't go see the Lakers anything, even if you paid me . . . a lot! If it wasn't for Kobey, I might even watch them on the TV. He's a poor example for the kids, to be sure. And I'm not surprised at the disappointment. LA is often more hype than follow-through on the goods. My wife and I and the kids stood in line for about 4 hours to see some Big Time display on the then upcoming Jim Carey Christmas Carol movie. Expected a 10 got a 2. And they didn't even email us our morphed pictures (to look like one of the characters). After many a disappointment, I'm not surprised to be under-whelmed in LA. ;o)Hi Jeff, good to hear from you. From your experience with the Jim Carey thing, it sounds like this could be the norm for these types of things.
Hi Sis!I would be hesitant to attend such an event if the Spurs had one. I remember Fan Fair in Nashville a few years ago. It was very similar to your experience.No one is going to get close to celebs like Kobe without being a celeb themselves or EXTREMELY lucky. Still, you guys had a great family experience, worth many times more than any star encounter, yes?Hi Bro-bro!You are right, thanks for bringing it all into perspective, we did spend a great day together - and I mean close together :-)
Now I know why I haven't been to a game in years and years... wow what a disappointment!Hi Marijo,I was kind of hoping I was going to get some fans that disagreed, that had a blast, and came home with everything they had hope. Obviously, I am not a big-time, well-known author, but still, every comment here is the same. Too sad.
Ripped Off. horrible experience. fans were extremely patient and courteous.
laker fans deserve better. we should all demand a refund!Hi Anon,I agree, here we are a week later and the only thing I am happy about is how quiet the announcers have been about the whole thing. The one thing I can say, is that I do not believe the players had as much to do with not being there as it was the organization officials. And my level of respect for the few players that were went up. Odom did not have to come out into a crowd like he did without security the man was rushed and he still came out smiling for his fans that he readily admitted to and seemed humbled by, that waited since 9 am Sat morning. And truth be told, without any real security, I just don't think I would go out into a crowd without proper security if I were Koby Bryant. Still, very disappointed, poorly organized and an all around rip off to the fans. Thanks for reading and commenting. Blessings to you!
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