How to enjoy the Rockies again and not feel shame
“And for heaven’s sake, don’t buy any merchandise while at the ballpark. This would be like walking up to Charlie Monfort during the game and putting a $100 bill in his G-string. “
There are plenty of people who have quietly refused to participate in the Monfort’s annual shit show at 20th and Blake. But their refusal to line Dick and Charlie’s pockets goes unnoticed because the sacrifice they’ve made –foregoing live baseball- is not a sexy topic for talk radio. It’s a boycott that doesn’t register on the stat sheet, and surely doesn’t move the needle of hot talk, because the seats in the stadium are usually full.
Yet the people who’ve decided to not spend any money at Coors Field deserve a pat on the back. And ultimately deserve to watch some live baseball. They’ve fought the good fight, but if they ever went to a Rockies game, they’d know that their boycott is not preventing thousands of other people from enjoying a day at the park that they’re missing out on.
And that’s why I urge anyone who’s taken this path to lift their personal boycott and join us all down at Coors Field for some baseball this season.
But if the thought of walking through the gates of #MonfortNation make your skin crawl – trust me, it makes mine crawl every time I settle in to those sweet Club Level seats – you can justify your presence there by one simple maneuver: limit the money you spend there and it will make all the difference in the world.
When you lift your boycott, you will still have to buy a ticket. That is the reality of going to see the Rockies. If you can get a free ticket, bonus. But most people will have to suck it up and pay for admission. That’s fine, because if you look at where the money from that particular revenue stream is going, the ticket you buy is by far the least problematic way of supporting the Monforts.
#MonfortNation makes most of its money from the television revenue and concessions. You are probably stuffing more cash into Charlie Monfort’s dirty flop house futon by watching a game on Root Sports than you are by actually going to a game. If you really want to make a stand against the worst owners in baseball, then you probably should stop watching the team on TV just to be safe.
So buy a ticket, try Stub Hub or a similar service or hit up a scalper outside. Just don’t go to the box office because that’s a direct deposit to the Monfort’s bank account. But do get in the park. Once you’re inside, that is the real test about whether you want to support the Monfort’s or not.
The Monfort’s make most of their money by people going to the game and buying a $7 beer, $6 hot dog or a foam finger in the Rockies Dugout store. If you can avoid these aspects of going to Coors Field, than you’ve beaten the Monforts at their own game.
Coors Field will allow you to bring in a soft sided cooler no larger than 16 X 16 X 8 inches, plastic beverage containers, insulated beverage containers smaller than 22 ounces, all food items including fruit no larger than a grapefruit. No watermelons please. Gallagher night is the one exception.
This means you can bring in lunch for you and your family and not spend a dime at the efficiently run food stands throughout Coors Field. I love grabbing a Rockie dog and laying some Schlereth’s Green Chile and jalapenos on it over at the condiment stand, but if you’re hell bent against spending any money while watching the Rox, bringing your own food should be part of your plan.
But if you don’t want to bring in a lame lunch, eat before you go in. There are dozens of restaurants around the ball park and even more in the surrounding area that will certainly serve you before the game. Fill up with some great food before you push through the turnstile so you’re not tempted, all while supporting a local business that isn’t associated with Monfort.
And on that note, the Monforts make an enormous amount of money selling booze. Selling a cup of Coors Light for $7 that would sell for $4 or less outside the ballpark, cranks up their profit margin to the high heavens. They know people want to catch of buzz while the sun is shining and baseball is being played, so they count on this revenue to make them richer. If you’re intent on getting drunk, do your drinking at one of the many aforementioned booze palaces outside the stadium. These are all managed and manned by hard working Coloradoans and they will gladly take the extra money you would have blown inside the park for beer at half the cost.
Catch a nice buzz outside and then put your wallet away. You will have supported the local economy while simultaneously not giving the Monforts a dime. And don’t forget flasks exist.
And for heaven’s sake, don’t buy any merchandise while at the ballpark. This would be like walking up to Charlie Monfort during the game and putting a $100 bill in his G-string. If you have to buy something with the Rockies logo on it, buy it online because that will at least mitigate some of the money heading the Monfort’s way. The best solution is to not purchase anything at all because this is just another area they have excelled in making their record profits that they only see fit to invest back into the hallowed #PartyDeck. But if you must have it, buy it online or better yet, go to a thrift store and look around. That way no money at all goes to Dick and Charlie and you’re also helping the less fortunate.
I firmly believe that voting is a waste of time, and speaking with your money is the only way to have a voice. And it doesn’t matter if you’re rich or poor, you can have a say with how you decide to spend your money. But sadly, staying away from Coors Field is not putting a dent in the Monforts’s profit margin. Dick and Charlie will never sell the team and will make their money regardless if you’re there or not. But you can still enjoy baseball and support local business by carefully selecting what you will and will not open your coin purse for. And since no one else has decided to stay away from mediocre baseball, this may truly be the only way to send a message the Monforts can decipher. Hit them where they actually make money, and they may just decide the product on the field is more important than the product in the steamer trays.
