So what was it like inside BMS?

[roost3r]

I guess we can thank UBL for the security that caused you guys not getting to your seat on time. Its the price you in this post 911 world. I know for a fact that BMS sent message after message and had a very detailed track plan posted on its website with information on getting in and the extended amount of time that it would take a very long time to get thru security. Could the metal detectors been moved further out say a different level perimeter? Yeah sure they could. Could you have gotten there earlier? Oh yeah you could. I watched the Vol walk and then walked all the way around the track to gate 7 and got in just fine. What pisses me off is the vast number of you that carried in coolers even though you were told everywhere that you couldnt. And those of you that attempted to carry in items you knew were prohibited or in bags that werent approved. I dont think BMS shoulders all the blame here. Having been going there for 35 years to races Ive never had an issue at the track getting in or thru security. The extra level of security to keep YOU safe was ordered by whom? Ive never seen it at BMS before but glad it was there so I wasnt on the news as a victim.

Concessions sucked! Lines were long and the youth groups or church groups manning the concessions didnt get in any hurry. Was that BMS's fault, no! Could it have been managed better? Sure but who should do that?

And traffic? Get real people. So freaking what you had to wait to get in or out. Think about how many different directions people leave at Neyland and how spread out that is. The area at BMS was compacted into a geographic area. There were 156,990 people there. I expected it, I was fine with it and Im not on here *****ing about it. I guess the world you live in is just special.

The view? Mine was awesome. Was it bad for some? Im sure it was. Would I go back? HELL YES! It was awesome and as with any event Im sure the second time around would be better ran. But given they turned the place from a shortrack speedway to a football field in what 19 days and hosted 156,990 people, 75% of which looked to be Vols Im fine with it and think they did a tremendous job!!!

 

[BigOrange04]

I guess we can thank UBL for the security that caused you guys not getting to your seat on time. Its the price you in this post 911 world. I know for a fact that BMS sent message after message and had a very detailed track plan posted on its website with information on getting in and the extended amount of time that it would take a very long time to get thru security. Could the metal detectors been moved further out say a different level perimeter? Yeah sure they could. Could you have gotten there earlier? Oh yeah you could. I watched the Vol walk and then walked all the way around the track to gate 7 and got in just fine. What pisses me off is the vast number of you that carried in coolers even though you were told everywhere that you couldnt. And those of you that attempted to carry in items you knew were prohibited or in bags that werent approved. I dont think BMS shoulders all the blame here. Having been going there for 35 years to races Ive never had an issue at the track getting in or thru security. The extra level of security to keep YOU safe was ordered by whom? Ive never seen it at BMS before but glad it was there so I wasnt on the news as a victim.

Concessions sucked! Lines were long and the youth groups or church groups manning the concessions didnt get in any hurry. Was that BMS's fault, no! Could it have been managed better? Sure but who should do that?

And traffic? Get real people. So freaking what you had to wait to get in or out. Think about how many different directions people leave at Neyland and how spread out that is. The area at BMS was compacted into a geographic area. There were 156,990 people there. I expected it, I was fine with it and Im not on here *****ing about it. I guess the world you live in is just special.

The view? Mine was awesome. Was it bad for some? Im sure it was. Would I go back? HELL YES! It was awesome and as with any event Im sure the second time around would be better ran. But given they turned the place from a shortrack speedway to a football field in what 19 days and hosted 156,990 people, 75% of which looked to be Vols Im fine with it and think they did a tremendous job!!!

It's not the fans fault that they had 8 or 10 metal detectors for all of gate 8. We got to the gate with well over an hour before game time. It was a cluster f***! They are very lucky no one got seriously hurt. Also, the holding of the lots was beyond stupid. The road that takes you away from lot E at times wasn't full yet we sat and waited. The inside stadium experience was awesome! But, the only way I would do it again would be if I had a camper.

 

[temptn]

The next run of 45-3 changed the mood veeeeeery quickly. Most fans around me thought the fix was in and the refs were pulling for UT. The refs don't fumble the balls 5 times.

.
I heard that they were going to change the name of interstate 81 from Bristol to Blacksburg to "The Trail of Tears".

.

 

[25801VOL]

Was a good experience. I think there was a football game going on, but can't confirm. I was happy to have gone and happy I don't have to go back.

 

[volspeach]

It's not the fans fault that they had 8 or 10 metal detectors for all of gate 8. We got to the gate with well over an hour before game time. It was a cluster f***! They are very lucky no one got seriously hurt. Also, the holding of the lots was beyond stupid. The road that takes you away from lot E at times wasn't full yet we sat and waited. The inside stadium experience was awesome! But, the only way I would do it again would be if I had a camper.

I hurd that and couldn't agree more. I don't care what time one got to the gate, it should've been manned better with quicker security.. It isn't the fans' fault period, and kudos to anyone that didn't wait in that mess.. same feeling about where we were in Lot E.. sat there, no movement because of all the darn school busses being used as shuttle busses... complete disorder.. Love me some traffic control around Neyland!

 

[roberthunter]

Those are great pictures. Were those with a camera? I took several with my phone, and the lights and fireworks are not clear.

Just my phone. Samsung S6.

 

[roberthunter]

I get the feeling that most Vol fans had the same gates printed on their tickets. Without having been before, it was hard to know that you could enter through any gate and get to your seats.

Basically BMS dropped the ball - told everyone to go to the same gates and they weren't prepared for the bottleneck.

And to whoever suggested that BMS isn't responsible for the concessions situation, I'm not sure where you're coming from. Why wouldn't they be. If they want to outsource it to a company who mans the booths with local charities, BMS is still ultimately responsible for the poor concessions.

As I've said before I had an incredible time and would love to go back in about five years, but that doesn't mean some things couldn't have been handled much better.

And one more note - if you're going to show a live raffle, maybe announce the winner then. Ha! That part was hilarious.

 

[VolnJC]

We got to Gate 5 at 6:45 and stood for nearly an hour. They did tell people to get there early, and I know there are 50k more fans. But they were clearly not prepared to get people in quickly. As gametime neared, they opened up all of the metal detectors and didn't even check bags or anything on you.

That was my gate...I left Knox at 2 and sat down in my seat at 7:30 the last 3 hours spend sitting in traffic, walking 2 miles, and standing at my gate...did you notice all the knives stacked up on the stone wall? bet they weren't there when the guys left the game

 

[knoxvol24]

I'm guessing a large chunk of the people complaining about getting out of there have never watched a race there before. If you park in any of the big parking lots, especially the ones on the road that runs by the track you can wait up to an hour+ for them to even allow you to exit the lot... and that's after a race, with half the people. That's just the way they do it at Bristol. I always come in on the state route through Blountville and do a Uie and park somewhere in the grass off the shoulder of the highway... usually next to the big white church. Can walk from the track to it in about 30 - 45 mins and its a straight shot back out to the interstate... No waiting in a parking lot. If you just there to see the game- or race... and aren't tailgating or any of that.. then that's the best way to do it.
On another note... kinda sad to hear they didn't allow coolers. One of the best things about going to a race there is the ability to pack a cooler and bring in your own drinks and snacks, don't seem like it'd feel like Bristol otherwise. Glad I opted to stay home.... I'm sure the view from my 60 inch while in my recliner was better than watching colossus the entire time.

 

[VolGee4]

I get the feeling that most Vol fans had the same gates printed on their tickets. Without having been before, it was hard to know that you could enter through any gate and get to your seats.

Basically BMS dropped the ball - told everyone to go to the same gates and they weren't prepared for the bottleneck.

And to whoever suggested that BMS isn't responsible for the concessions situation, I'm not sure where you're coming from. Why wouldn't they be. If they want to outsource it to a company who mans the booths with local charities, BMS is still ultimately responsible for the poor concessions.

As I've said before I had an incredible time and would love to go back in about five years, but that doesn't mean some things couldn't have been handled much better.

And one more note - if you're going to show a live raffle, maybe announce the winner then. Ha! That part was hilarious.

As we were waiting at Gate 5, we heard some people say that they tried getting in another gate and were told that you had to go to the gate on your ticket. Now that I think about it, BMS only had about 15 gates for 150k while Neyland has 30? (not exactly sure) for 100k. Huge difference. Someone said earlier that people come in at different times for a race, so it is not a problem. I have never been to a race so I don't know. But they had to know and prepare for a vast majority of people showing up between 6:00-7:00. I like to be in a little early, but I do not care to sit in the stands an hour before the game. Too much nervous energy.

As far as traffic, it's to be expected. Just have to roll with the flow. Anytime you have 150k (and even more who didn't go to the game) on one location, you have to be patient.

 

[VolGee4]

That was my gate...I left Knox at 2 and sat down in my seat at 7:30 the last 3 hours spend sitting in traffic, walking 2 miles, and standing at my gate...did you notice all the knives stacked up on the stone wall? bet they weren't there when the guys left the game

They just started letting everyone in without checking anything and as we went through the metal detector, a staff guy said that they can't stop us...and please don't stab or kill anyone. Seriously.

 

[ajvol01]

The wife and I had an amazing time. Tent camped at Dave and Kay's Campground. Drove up Friday and relaxed all day at our spot on Saturday, before walking in for the Vol Walk. Plenty of people partying and having a good time around us, but everyone had plenty of room and it seemed like a good time was had by all.

We went in right after the Vol Walk. There was no wait at our gate. We had to wait a little bit at the elevators, but probably only 15 minutes or so.

As others have said, they weren't prepared for the concessions. My wife waited for a while in the third quarter for a couple of waters, but luckily she could see the field from the line. They were out of hot dogs.

We had probably close to the "worst" seats in the house. Wallace tower. Great for pics, but hilariously far from the field. I watched the game through binoculars.

Overall we had an amazing time. Felt more like Bonnaroo than a football game at times, which was fun. I'd go again in five years, but would try to get seats along the sidelines.

I'll just leave this here

 

[ATC_VOL]

It probably should've been alleviated because of the time to plan but at the races you can bring in your own coolers and contents so the track has NEVER had to supply concessions for 160k people or employ the manpower.

Didn't think about that, good point.

I was prepared for bad traffic/sitelines but the insanely long concession lines/running out of water really detracted the experience a bit for me and my wife.

I'm very glad we went though, and as an added bonus we got to take our son to his first game. Lots of cool memories for me.

Someone asked about the airplane that did the fly by. I had seen online it was a C-5 but swear it looked like a C-17 as it flew over. Anyone have a good pic to confirm?

Edit: It was a C-5

 

[VolnJC]

Didn't think about that, good point.

I was prepared for bad traffic/sitelines but the insanely long concession lines/running out of water really detracted the experience a bit for me and my wife.

I'm very glad we went though, and as an added bonus we got to take our son to his first game. Lots of cool memories for me.

Someone asked about the airplane that did the fly by. I had seen online it was a C-5 but swear it looked like a C-17 as it flew over. Anyone have a good pic to confirm?

Wow they ran out of water? A couple of guys were handing out bottles when I left but I think they may have been with the street preachers and not the track....I didn't have any problems at Petty getting concessions..I went to the Arbys because their line was short...souvenir one was a longer wait though

 

[ATC_VOL]

Wow they ran out of water? A couple of guys were handing out bottles when I left but I think they may have been with the street preachers and not the track....I didn't have any problems at Petty getting concessions..I went to the Arbys because their line was short...souvenir one was a longer wait though

Yeah. My wife said she saw people trading beer they had already bought for water bottles other people had. I know it wasn't like that all over the stadium though.

 

[T_Vol376]

I take offense at that. I'm REALLY far from a "teetotaler", but there is no justification OF ANY KIND for people attending a public event and getting completely, sloberingly drunk. If someone can't go to a venue and enjoy whatever is taking place, without alcohol or drugs inhibiting their sobriety, then then they need to abstain from drinking.

A person HAS NO RIGHT to attend a public event, get drunk, become belligerent (as noted by many that attended), and ruin the experience for others and just because someone doesn't like or want to see or deal with drunk people around them, it doesn't mean they should "join MADD" or not attend sporting events. The burden is on the person drinking alcohol to not ruin the fun of others, not the other way around.

Thanks for this great post. That is all I was trying to say when I was told "I might want to look into joining MADD," (as if that's something to joke about). I am also far from a tee totaler - but these people I was talking about had no business being in public in the shape they were in and certainly no one has the right to push and shove and cut in front of someone - drunk or sober. We were all in the same boat.

 

[walkenvol]

Wow, that is a really lowdown comment to make about MADD - like it's a joke - and NO I am not a member of MADD just someone whose temperament does not tolerate people who can't hold their liquor and think they have a right to cut in front of me when I have been standing there as long as they have. You are out of line telling me joining MADD would be "right up alley" as if that's a bad thing. Freaking jerk.

You going to try to beat my arse too cause you don't like my comment? Maybe just call me names then?

I made no comment on the quality or lack thereof concerning MADD. I understand MADD to be an organization who's mission is to fight alcohol abuse especially while driving. You made multiple indignant comments concerning different folks at BoB who you perceived to have overindulged resulting in their poor behavior. Instead of just complaining about it on a message board, if indeed you are so annoyed about it why don't you join and support an organization who fights against it. Just a suggestion as it appeared to ruin your experience.

 

[bowlinggreenvol]

And your point is?

That crap happens every week at Neyland; its part of it. Complaining about it is like going to the Sahara in the summer and complaning it's too hot.

 

[bowlinggreenvol]

I bet Tim Priest's interview questions make you very sleepy... I don't think he has a pulse

"Micha how did you get those fumbles?"

 

[jblank]

You going to try to beat my arse too cause you don't like my comment? Maybe just call me names then?

I made no comment on the quality or lack thereof concerning MADD. I understand MADD to be an organization who's mission is to fight alcohol abuse especially while driving. You made multiple indignant comments concerning different folks at BoB who you perceived to have overindulged resulting in their poor behavior. Instead of just complaining about it on a message board, if indeed you are so annoyed about it why don't you join and support an organization who fights against it. Just a suggestion as it appeared to ruin your experience.

How do you know he didn't? The discussion is about experiences there and he's well within the topic when discussing the number of people that were drunk and it's something that has been discussed by others here and at various other sites.