Anyone else notice this about the Games lately?

[RamsayClanCommish]

It seems to me, from both organizing and event and attending a few, that general attendance is down. Both in the number of clans coming and the general public.

I know a few have told me tha tgas prices are making it hard for them to attend the games this summer. Anyone els ehearing this or noticing a trend? And any thoughts on how to get the games and festivals more well attended?

[hospitaller]

And any thoughts on how to get the games and festivals more well attended?

Reduce gas prices and you'll get more public.

We've had the same problem for our WW2 Reenactments.
They usually involve driving about a minimum of 150 miles, plus the expense associated with the event itself (piro, ammo, giveaways, etc.), so the number of reenactors is down to about 50%.

Thus, the same problems affect the attending public.

Just another unfortunate byproduct of the economic situation.

[Larry124]

...Just another unfortunate byproduct of the economic situation.

Not unfortunate. Rather culpable.
Hard to keep from going political.
NEITHER party is addressing the problems in the bipartisan way that is needed.

[Monkey@Arms]

The games in the SF Bay Area seem to be smaller this year, definitely less vendors. Hard to say the cause, though I've heard some at the clan tent complain about the lack of publicity.

Best regards,

Jake

[Frank McGrath]

I have cut way back on travel this year. I have not even gone to the beach to see my wife's brother and his family. 4 per gallon really puts a crimp in the budget.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I don't know how it is in the rest of the country, but around here, the sheer number of Games is also a factor. There used to be just a few in our state, spread out over the year. Now there are NINE of them in North Carolina alone (with a tenth scheduled to start in 2009). That's not even considering the Games and festivals in bordering states. I figure from where I am in western NC, there are probably more than twenty such events that I can get to within what I consider to be a reasonable drive from here.

Now, on the face of it, this may sound like a very good situation to be in. However, one result of having such a high number of Games around here is that the attendance at any one of these Games individually tends to suffer. Most people don't attend every one of them they can get to. They may attend a few specific ones per year, and they are going to pick and choose those carefully. Now, with the added cost of travel, people are being even more careful about which Games they go to, and how far they have to travel to get there.

So it's not that they are not going. They are just not going to as many as they could.

[Carolina Kiltman]

It seems to me, from both organizing and event and attending a few, that general attendance is down. Both in the number of clans coming and the general public.

I know a few have told me tha tgas prices are making it hard for them to attend the games this summer. Anyone els ehearing this or noticing a trend? And any thoughts on how to get the games and festivals more well attended?

Yes, you are not imagining it! One reason is that a few have been carrying the entire burden. One of my good friends and former student is clan commissioner for his clan in NC. One year his wife was seriously ill, so he announced that he could not make it to the more distant games. . . . there was no tent for his clan that year where he did not attend! The second oldest game in the state (NC) the Flora Macdonald games in Red Springs, NC has canceled this year (see link)http://www.capefearscots.com/. We here at Cape Fear Valley Scottish Clans hope to resurrect it, but that is still somewhat up in the air.

[Kiltedmusiclover]

Yes, you are not imagining it! One reason is that a few have been carrying the entire burden. One of my good friends and former student is clan commissioner for his clan in NC. One year his wife was seriously ill, so he announced that he could not make it to the more distant games. . . . there was no tent for his clan that year where he did not attend! The second oldest game in the state (NC) the Flora Macdonald games in Red Springs, NC has canceled this year (see link)http://www.capefearscots.com/. We here at Cape Fear Valley Scottish Clans hope to resurrect it, but that is still somewhat up in the air.

I am really sorry to hear that. I went to games a few years ago when
the Glengarry Bhoys were there. I thought it was well run and a fun games.
Not nearly as big as some other games but that was one of the things I liked about it.

[Galician]

It has been suggested in other threads that this situation might lead to people going just to Games close to home. The Flora MacDonald case might seem to contradict this, but one of the reasons they gave for putting an end to this tradition was the lack of volunteers upon which to rely.

Does anyone think that this might lead to a shaking out of the various Games into smaller, more regional ones which would be within easy reach? I wouldn't see this as a totally negative direction.

[gilmore]

It may be that there are more games closer to centers of population that can draw more people than can those further away.

I live only 10-15 minutes' drive from Stone Mountain, site of what are said to be the second largest games in the US. Twice in the last 12 months I have been to smaller games/festivals further away, and both times wound up asking myself why I went so much further for so much less.

Another factor may be that some of the games are outgrowing their facilities and becoming less pleasant. E.g., I didn't go to Grandfather Mountain this year but have heard from some who did that while the camaraderie was nice, the onsite logistics were very disorganized, and that they probably won't be back.