When I gave them up

[Rob]

The year was 1999, I think. The Saints were coming off of their second disappointing season under Mike Ditka and decided to stick with him for another year. I was pretty upset about that and was contemplating giving up my two seasons tickets. I was in Section 209 of the Club, formerly the Loge. I'm sure I would be able to improve on those seats for 2000. It's easier to improve your location after a down year and that's why I was on the fence and hadn't made up my mind if I was going to renew. It was getting to be an ordeal to go to the games. A typical game day schedule for me was getting on the road at 9:15 and trying to arrive at the SuperDome parking lot by 10:30AM. It was my experience that you could get to the Dome an hour early and drink beer or you could spend that hour in traffic. I was not getting home until 5PM. I digress. I was thinking, thinking, thinking, trying hard to justify another year of potential misery when I got the bill from the Saints for the first payment for the 2000 season. My seats had gone up over 40% ... after a 6-10 season. WTF? That made the decision easy for me. I missed the 2000 season and playoffs, the fantastic 2006 season and playoffs, and this even more fantastic (So far) 2009 season but I was also able to skip 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, and 2008. Long roundabout way of saying I saw two tickets in Section 211 going for $2800/ea. My tickets would undoubtedly be better than those by now. Could have sold them and paid for the rest of my tickets and have a little left over for spending money. I miss it when they're going good but not so much the rest of the time. So glad someone has stepped up and taken my place so I can see the games in my living room.

[Hyde]

Rob, I can relate to all of the sentiments you express. It's a big investment and not just financially - the time involved,the emotional investment, etc.

I had attended the majority of Saints home games from year 1 until 1992. The "first" time I gave them up was after that loss to the Eagles in the playoffs. The combination of cost, time away from home, financial drain, starting a family, etc., was taking its toll. The playoff loss was, for me, the straw that broke my back.

The "last" time I gave them up was after 2004. I had bought a pair of cheap Terrace corner end zone seats just to go in 03 and 04. The kids were older so I took one of them each week. I was debating the 2005 season and decided against it. We all know what happened in 2005. Had I kept them that year, I would almost certainly have stuck it out for 2006 and beyond.

Oh well...I also still enjoy them from my living room.

[Rob]

I went to several games that first year with Dad or my friends. 10 year old boy going to a football game at Tulane Stadium with other 10-11 year old boys? Can you imagine that today?

I had youth season tickets from 1968-1974. Dad bought them, of course ($1.50/ea - 9 games - $13.50 per season ticket). When the Saints moved into the SuperDome and I (18 at the time) decided I'd had enough of the losing, Dad decided not to renew his, too. He claimed at the time that he didn't like the seats that were available to him comparable to the $5 South End Zone tickets we had at Tulane Stadium but I really think he was tired of the losing, too, and he surely didn't want to suffer it without me or Mom. She didn't care for the games as much as I did so he was going to have to find someone to go with every week. He called me a fair weather fan. Not Mom, though. At the time, I suppose it was true.

I decided to get my own in 1982. Started in the Terrace and worked my way down for 18 years.