I'm a semi-recent PSU grad, so I'm now sitting in the "normal" seats with the rest of you all for the first time since my pre-college years. I preface with that because I apologize if these are commonly discussed complaints, but wow there are some major logistical/safety issues at Beaver Stadium right now. I hope that a decent chunk of the ~$750 million is going towards rectifying these, because the fan experience is piss poor in some areas of the stadium currently.
- At halftime, the concourse between EGU and EHU was completely overfilled and in my opinion, was starting to get worryingly close to mass crush territory. The Chickies and Petes is right next to the mens bathroom, so what you end up with is like 5 different flows of crowd traffic trying to get to different places (bathroom line, Chickies and Petes line, EGU, EHU, and other misc places).
- The concourse was body pressed up against body levels of crowded. People started to get extremely impatient and angry. I started to grow weary and couldn't help but think of the various European soccer incidents and the Astroworld Festival incident.
- To even get from our seats up in the 70s rows of EGU to the start of the concourse it took about 10 minutes. To get from concourse to the mens room right around the corner it took around 20-25 minutes. I got back to my seat with around 12:40 remaining in the third quarter. Of course I felt like a total dick as I had to "excuse me" my entire way through the row as a drive was underway.
- However, the time it took wasn't even my main concern. I get it, theres 109,000 people, the lines are gonna take a while (although my girlfriend was in and out of the womens room to the left in minutes). My main problem was the extreme safety issue in the bottleneck area between EGU and EHU where the Chickies and Petes and mens bathroom are. The concourse is way too narrow and it was nearing crush event territory. The EMS personnel had a tough time of moving their stretcher/supplies through as there was just no room to move. People started getting angsty and agitated, adding to the situation.
- I admittedly haven't read through the entire plans for the renovations, but I hope that some of these funds are going towards:
I've been to many a sporting event throughout my life including being in the student section when it was overfilled for the 2021 Auburn whiteout I believe. This was by far the worst fan experience I've ever experienced at a sporting event. I understand that 109,000 people in one area is an extreme clusterf--k to manage, but safety of the fans needs to be priority.
- At halftime, the concourse between EGU and EHU was completely overfilled and in my opinion, was starting to get worryingly close to mass crush territory. The Chickies and Petes is right next to the mens bathroom, so what you end up with is like 5 different flows of crowd traffic trying to get to different places (bathroom line, Chickies and Petes line, EGU, EHU, and other misc places).
- The concourse was body pressed up against body levels of crowded. People started to get extremely impatient and angry. I started to grow weary and couldn't help but think of the various European soccer incidents and the Astroworld Festival incident.
- To even get from our seats up in the 70s rows of EGU to the start of the concourse it took about 10 minutes. To get from concourse to the mens room right around the corner it took around 20-25 minutes. I got back to my seat with around 12:40 remaining in the third quarter. Of course I felt like a total dick as I had to "excuse me" my entire way through the row as a drive was underway.
- However, the time it took wasn't even my main concern. I get it, theres 109,000 people, the lines are gonna take a while (although my girlfriend was in and out of the womens room to the left in minutes). My main problem was the extreme safety issue in the bottleneck area between EGU and EHU where the Chickies and Petes and mens bathroom are. The concourse is way too narrow and it was nearing crush event territory. The EMS personnel had a tough time of moving their stretcher/supplies through as there was just no room to move. People started getting angsty and agitated, adding to the situation.
- I admittedly haven't read through the entire plans for the renovations, but I hope that some of these funds are going towards:
- Widening the concourse
- Adding additional bathrooms throughout the stadium
- Hiring a logistics consulting firm to better manage the flow of crowd traffic in the concourses. There is no reason there should be a popular restaurant right outside a tunnel and right next to a bathroom. It creates too much of a bottleneck.
I've been to many a sporting event throughout my life including being in the student section when it was overfilled for the 2021 Auburn whiteout I believe. This was by far the worst fan experience I've ever experienced at a sporting event. I understand that 109,000 people in one area is an extreme clusterf--k to manage, but safety of the fans needs to be priority.
