Chicago, why are you so quiet? [Section 8 stuff]

You know who else can´t be heard by their own fans, in their own stadium??? The Ultra Sur. Do you know why? For lack of a better answer, it´s because they´re damned_dirty spaniards. Are we turning into spaniards? Am I going to come back to Chicago and find that Colin Beer at age 6 now smokes two packs a day, likes to rollerblade because it´s fashionable, and despises americans for no good reason? Is this what we´re turning into? A bunch of swarthy, anti-bathing, anti-americans?

Don´t be like the Ultra Sur. Take pride in personal hygiene as well as your country. And sing.

All my best,
Flynn

 

I agree with those who are giving the watered down analogy. All of the people who are committed to cheering for the full 90 are spread out often and that really kills it. Sure we get a great core group in the middle front but I notice a lot of people on the sides and back who are committed but it just doesnt add up because of all the other people just standing there. I dont these "lurkers" dont want to cheer but I think that they expect this automatic atmosphere to be created and they dont feel comfortable cheering until they get that atmosphere.

I think the podium will help immensly as everyone will then have one central focus point.

Ive also had some people who never went to Naperville ask me "hey...we still do things the same now?" They also seem to be kinda hesitant to cheer since they feel its new to them.

 

I agree with GoFire. Let MDSC be the regulators up top. As long as they can hear (or read the lips of) Marcin and Mirek, they can be the loudmouths that start things up top. We may not be able to do a lot of things... like exercise self-restraint ...or read... but I know I can count on my in-country AmeriKäns to make some noise. Up Top! DownTown!

 

For clarification, I meant GoFire2001´s post. I haven´t read GoFireGo s post

 

Flynn I found it fairly hilarious that last night at Cam's party your dad insisted that you were having the time of your life in Spain and that you didn't have anything even remotely bad to say about the country or the people. Don't worry your secret is safe with us.

 

haha, don´t worry.... I´ve told him as well as all of my professors at school. strange thing is that most of the professors agree with me to a certain extent. they also fully agree when I say "Hola, soy guapo."

another funny thing: I got an email from my dad today that was like "your friends Benny and Ian made sure that I say hi to you." No mention of Cameron, Carl, Abby or You. But if you´re out there Benny and Ian: HALLAH!

 

mmm... this conversation is probably one of the reasons they invented pm´s. Andrew, check your email.

 

Things I would like to see but won't ever happen:

Dueling section 8's.

I know that there was a reason that the Ultras were brought into section 8 back in 99 or 00, or whenever it was.

I still think it would be cool to have Section 8A in the north endzone. Then, you'd have full stereo instead of mere mono. You could coordinate with walkie-talkies.

But, the numbers aren't there yet. And no one asked my opinion. But I'm offering it anyway.

That said, I thought the stadium was louder Saturday then it was the first game, but that may have been more of a product of the whole stadium being into things. And it was a pretty awesome game.

 

why not put MDSC in the north endzone? perhaps the reason no one is cheering is out of sheer fear/admiration for the Men in Black. But I´m pretty sure that Cameron, Andrew "Barry White" Mason, and Benny alone could (and have) make enough noise to rival 14,000 spaniards (roughly 300 - 500 US citizens).

 

This is very true, me and Benny had a talk with your dad about Japan.

HaLLAH bACK yo

 

I think Saturday was a step up from the re-opener. Don't worry about the first half; almost nobody was cheering--50 people at most, sometimes maybe a 100 for 10 seconds. In the second half, we got the things organized a little bit and the chants worked sometimes. We need the nest and without it it will be difficult to conduct things in the section.

"Who's the best" chant worked almost perfectly--I don't think we ever had such an intensity as the second time we asked this question. We can certainly be heard. YSA had to be powerful because Garlic would not even attempt real goal kicks; he would just pass to the nearest defender unmarkedly do diffuse the chant. A few other times I got almost the entire Section 8 to clap together--I would say 80%. Sometimes people from the Firehouse ($15 seats) would look at me and join in.

The stadium would join in many times during simpler chants with clapping. I think this was very significant.

I think the issues in Section 8 are not very important right now. The biggest "problem" is that the entire stadium is so loud. It is electric. I think it is awesome. What the "problem" is, is that there is a lot of ego and people in different sections start their own cheers. What did I say? Organized chanting is like organized crime--much more powerful in outcome. The stadium has to learn to listen to Section 8 or other sections and try to do the chants in unison. The result will be overpowering. The wave is one product already although the simplest and a little unnecessary at times (i.e. some think it should not be done if the result of the game is not decided yet, that is the Fire don't win by a few goals).

My idea is that somebody should write an article about it that would be distributed to all in the stadium (i.e. put inside the Freekick). It would mention that the sections should work together and try to pick other things from other sections rather than starting their own things. We could have a few thousand people chanting this way.

Having said all this, I think the location of Section 8 must change next season. In its current place it is almost inaudible and its sound escapes I don't know where. Maybe it is not even the worst for the rest of the stadium but we can't even hear ourselves in the section! And I think this is the reason why the chants die so quickly and nobody joins in except for the diehards.

 

I would have to disagree with this. Part of the problem is that all the "loudmouths" are at the front. And they are all facing the field. That means that the people behind them don't get to hear what they are saying. If the principal noisemakers were at the rear then the people in front of them would be directly in line of the sounds path and would thus be better able to pick up on whatever the cheer/chant was.

I can remember one of the first times that I participated in a section 8 activity, and being a "newbie" and not knowing all the cheers intentionally got in the rear. Unfortunately, it was very difficult to pick up on the cheers from that location because all the sound is being emanated away from you.

 

Where would you propose moving section 8 to? and would this cause an increase in ticket prices?

I doubt this would affect my loyalty to Sec. 8 as you guys are friends, and that is where I feel best situated to use my vocal gifts to help the team .... but Marcin, do you have any idea as to whether or not we could move Section 8, and to where it would be moved? I know managment likes us and all, but where would we go? where could they put us? ........ and at what cost?

 

I think that would be good sections to check out after this season. I think the price could be dropped but who knows how much.

 

This is a good idea - there was a lot of "non-singers" around me, but when I raised my voice a little everyone around me started to participate.

Now, if I can only get my voice back!

 

The Fire is looking good

Major props to the Fire and its fans from the Big Apple.
Your team plays the best soccer in america. But most importantly you really support your team. The crowds since you've come back to Soldier Stadium have been great (28,000-30,000).
This is what US soccer needs.

 

Three or 4 times in the last 2 years I thought Section 8 was on the way out, and each time it came back with a vengeance. I think we can fix these problems although I am not sure we can get it together in time for the next game.
We need drums. We need the same leaders we have had in the past. We also need passionate people to stay in close proximity rather than diluting the energy with the dead wood. And we also need an absence of security incidents which would make all of this moot.
For what it is worth, I think we should stay where we are next season. Antagonizing the opposing keeper is one of our biggest responsibilities. It is amazing how many goal kicks have been shanked in front of Section 8.
I'm too old for this. Still I jump up and down and scream for 2 hours on a regular basis.....

 

The problem is the Fire are so hot and the tickets have become pretty expensive. I have a few ideas I don't want to present here. However, I do think that Section 8 should be the cheapest sections in the house.

115, 117 & 119 seem a good choice but I think 128 & 130 is a better setting. All the changes in the new season though.

A side note: the playoffs are going to be a real test. There is a long time to sell the tickets now and the dates & times are known so I am hoping for crowds as large as those during the last two games. This would be a direct opposite of the situation in all previous playoffs when we got used to empty seats. Let's see if we can get 40000 on that Sunday noon. Start you lobbying now! I also think the Fire should start their own campaign as soon as possible. Replace Red October with Red November.

Marcin

 

It makes sense that having the loudmouths (I don't know if I like this designations but ok) in the back might help other section 8 people here better. That's very true. It would also pull them farther away from the field, farther away from the team, thus defeat our purpose of being. It's certainly worth a try if that's what people want to do, but if the others who I will call deadweight for now (if we are loudmouths they can be deadweight right?) do not join in, I would immediately recommend moving back to the front. I also think that this may be a move that we do next year. I don't want to have our best support away from the playing field at our playoff game.

 

The Hunt for Red November, hmmm I don't remember ever seeing that movie.

 

Having the hardcore 10 or 15 rows back will help in two ways. One, the first 10-15 rows will be able to hear them better. Two, the first 10-15 rows will be right in front of the leader where they'll be strongly if not politely 'encouraged' to participate.

Ultimately those first 10-15 rows will become hardcore singers, or move to the back and other people more willing to sing will filter in.

Marcin, I PM'd you a few days ago. Did you get it?

 

It's because it will only be written next month.

 

Yes, and I did not forget about you. I will either write you back in a short while or we need to talk before or after some game.

Marcin