MESSAGE TO NEW ENGLAND LAX FANS – By: Dan Freshman
Kanye West came to Boston last week. Thugs, divas, pubescent boys and girls from suburbia and middle-aged adults alike had no problem justifying themselves to see him.
Sure, it’s not the first time Kanye’s come to Boston. In fact, he really didn’t come to Boston. He came to Mansfield’s Tweeter Center, an aging open-air venue out in the boonies of southern Massachusetts. It’s too south of Boston to be even miles within the Greater Boston Area; it’s not close enough to the shore to be a part of the scenic Cape; it’s still too North to be considered near Providence; and it’s definitely too east to be accessible to the lost souls of Worcester and Springfield.
Nevertheless, over 20,000 New Englanders found no problem making the trek to the most deserted and undesirable part of the Bay State. Nor did they have a problem surrendering up to $90 per ticket for a single three-hour concert on a weekday. Then again, Kanye’s the closest thing to “flow” in the hip-hop world. Stunner shades. Flashy jewelry. Hooded sweatshirts with insignia I don’t recognize emblazoned from seam to seam. Staunch belief that George Bush hates black people. Except for the buzz cut, he exudes flow.
So critics unanimously agreed that the concert was worth every penny—no matter how much the concert cost, no matter how inconveniently it was placed in the week, no matter how desolate and underwhelming the venue.
Ergo, here’s a crazy thought: if some show, event, sporting team or group visits your backyard for what seems like a once-in-a-lifetime-but-really-not-the-case experience, try to go to it. Even if you don’t really like the group, but your really-hot-at-least-by-your-standards significant other really wants to see it.
Then if that show comes to your backyard for the first time in that event or group’s 38-year history, you should really attend it. Logic says you’ll regret it later. If the venue were a state-of-the-art complex with some of the best amenities in the world, then it wouldn’t hurt to spend time there. And if you can avoid any stiff gas prices with a free commuter rail that travels non-stop from the middle of your city to the event, definitely attend it. They’re begging you to attend it.
But if you still aren’t convinced, if that event is really a three-day showcase where a single, relatively inexpensive ticket admits you to the entire extravaganza, where you are likely to be exposed to an unbelievable and surreal environment where everyone around you lives, breathes and sweats unyielding respect and admiration towards that group, then you have no excuse whatsoever to miss out…
So Boston: why have less than 20,000 of you bought tickets for the NCAA Final Four Weekend?
Would more New Englanders step up for yet another Kanye West concert, rather than attend the first-ever NCAA Championship Weekend in Massachusetts? Would nearly twice as many Bostonians rather spend $50 at the very minimum to attend one of 81 home Red Sox games, while the Mecca for the fastest-growing sport in America visits just 25 miles away? And would the region home to the largest chapter of US Lacrosse supply fewer fans in its own backyard than the scattered packs of people traveling from around the country?
Boston fans aren’t ready to join New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia as the lacrosse “hot beds.” Because we won’t pay $70 for the five best lacrosse games of the year in three days.
Boston fans are blessed. This weekend, Red Sox and Celtics attendance figures combined will outnumber the tickets sold in Foxboro. Actually, they won’t. Both the Celtics and Red Sox are out of town this weekend, creating an ideal opportunity for all lacrosse fans to flock down to Gillette Stadium and pretend they’re lacrosse fans. Even the Boston Cannons are stepping up, hosting a Friday evening game as an interlude into the weekend festivities—all the more to leave the NCAA Championship committee scratching its heads, wondering why only 19,000 New Englanders have purchased tickets for Championship Weekend, as of early May (the 36,000 total tickets are still the fastest pace to date).
But who needs to root for Danowski, Greer, Rabil, Rubeor and Leveille when we have Papelbon, Manny, Big Papi, Pierce, Garnett and that old bald man who is now the enemy of Beantown because he can’t run down the floor with surgically-repaired ankles? We have our own hometown heroes. It’s not as if we have our own hometown stars returning to Boston come this weekend…
Except for Max Quinzani, the most decorated high school player in Massachusetts lacrosse history. The pride of “Duxbury Academy,” a prestigious Massachusetts prep school, as noted in yet-another horrifically reported story by a certain lacrosse store that thinks it can pretend and be a media outlet as well. Odds are, he’ll be in the finals game, just miles away from the public school from where he rose to fame. Too bad that more New England natives will be watching a Red Sox game later that day, which will undoubtedly garner more press in the local media.
In fact, I haven’t seen one local news spot thus far advertising the lacrosse weekend. Does Quint Kessenich really have to be the sole ambassador of lacrosse into the New England? Must all of New England link lacrosse with his pastel ties and aqua blazers as well? It would be nice if the local media helped out as well. But maybe it’s too late to salvage this weekend.
So I salute the real fans in Foxboro starting this Saturday. Thank you for realizing that each game costs as low as $14 per person. Thank you for supporting a sport that was believed to be thriving in this state. Thank you for choosing to watch this game in person rather than on a television screen like every other year. Thank you for proving that you are truly a fan of the sport, unlike the dozens of others hauling SUV’s around the Bay State, adorning lacrosse stickers on your windows and bumpers, even though coming down to Foxboro became an afterthought.
I’ll be seeing you this Saturday.
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