ajcsportstalk

By Erin

January 14, 2008 8:55 AM | Link to this

FanFest would have been great had there been a schedule of who was signing autographs/taking pictures. With only 2 autograph lines & 1 photo line, you had NO idea who would be up there, and the lines were 4+ hours long. There were a couple autographs I really wanted, some I would have been happy to have, and some I really didn’t care whether I got or not (nothing against the players/coaches, but I wouldn’t stand in line for 4 hours for some). In the future, they should bring back the 6-8 lines format & include a schedule of who was signing so you had an idea of whose autograph you were receiving. I didn’t see the other activities, because I was standing in the 4-5 hour long autograph line (before I gave up), but from what I observed FanFest would have been great had they re-organized the autograph lines. Unless the format is changed, I will not be wasting my time and money.

By FatBastid

January 14, 2008 8:59 AM | Link to this

FanFest was a complete and total waste of money. I blew $40 on admission plus $10 to park for the right to stand on a 3 hour line so my kid can get a hurried autograph of some guy he’s never heard of. Next year, change the name to FanFarse!

By marty

January 14, 2008 9:08 AM | Link to this

Waste of a Sunday. Next year I’ll watch the NFL playoffs, and I hate football. At Turner Field I would go home with 8-10 autographs. Yesterday I wasted 6 hours to get one signature (Smoltz). Very unhappy season ticket holder.

By Jeff

January 14, 2008 9:11 AM | Link to this

Glad I did not use my tickets.

By Fan Farce

January 14, 2008 9:15 AM | Link to this

The problem with this years FanFest is that it raised very high expectations for a lesser experience than it has offered in the past. The only advantage of moving it to GWCC seemed to be to allow the vendors to take over the event. I found the TREASURE HUNT autograph system to be the worst “upgrade” of them all. At least in previous years you could choose which player’s line you wanted to spend your time in. Not this year. You could be standing in line for a superstar for hours, but then have to settle for a coach or a minor leaguer’s autograph when you finally made it to the signing table.

In the two days I was at the event, I stood in line for at least 5 hours on day one and all I have to show for it is a Charlie Leibrandt autograph (I was five spots from getting Chipper when he was pulled!) . I didn’t even get an autograph on day two after spending nearly 3 hours in line because I was not going to waste a perfectly good baseball on Brian Snitker. Everyone I talked to in the lines seemed to share my sentiments. Most vowed to complain to the organizers. At previous FanFests held at the Ted I was able to walk away with several autographs rather than just one.

I heard stories of security having to escort livid fans out of line after the Chipper stopped signing, people being literally forced through lines by security to get autographs from people like Chris Resop, and punches being thrown by fans in lines. How is this an improvement for the fans? I personally feel slapped in the face, or like Charlie Brown having the football pulled away at the last second by Lucy. By the looks on people’s faces I could tell I was not alone. The FanFest organizers promised big and delivered disapointingly little.

By Adam G

January 14, 2008 9:16 AM | Link to this

I quit going to FanFest after I realized that I would be standing in line for at least 2-3 hours just to get an autograph that I could buy off eBay for $10. Instead of going to FanFest you could take that Saturday and make some money to go down to Spring Training for a weekend and get 10 times the number of autographs and actually get to chat with the players for longer than 1.53 seconds. Won’t do FanFest again.

By adam

January 14, 2008 9:31 AM | Link to this

The lines were terrible, they tried to improve sunday by telling you who was at each table but not when. How about telling you which table and giving you a number when you walk through the line that secures you an autograph of the player that should be there when you get there. That way the player knows how many autographs to sign and the fan is guarenteed the player they were told they would get I thought the braves representatives who were handling the autographs were rude and terse. There excuse was this is not for autographs and we never guaranteed an autograph of a particular player. Well they advertised to meet the team. I dont want to wait around and not meet anyone who will play in atlanta this season. 4 hours for Brian Hunter is not worth the wait he will not make the team. They should have had a veteran with a starter, putting McCann and Frenchy together to start the day and following them with Will Ohman and Chris Resop is not fair to the fans. How about Frenchy Ohman together and Resop McCann Keep working on it braves, this years fan fest sucked

By No Name

January 14, 2008 9:34 AM | Link to this

Even with my season ticket free passes it was a total waist of my Saturday. I went expecting it to be different but I was wrong. It has been 5 years since I attended a fanfest and now I remember why. I wont go back, free tickets or not.

By Jim

January 14, 2008 9:34 AM | Link to this

Good idea. Poor planning. It did not work at all. I did not meet one person that had a real positive experience. It was a waste of time and money. If the “powers” will learn how to plan the operation to make it more fan friendly then it would be great. But whoever was in charge of this should be put on toilet cleaning duty

By Carroll

January 14, 2008 9:39 AM | Link to this

OMG! LOL!! Reading stuff like this just reaffirms my decision to leave Atl for good. What a miserable, overcrowded headache it has become. You can’t do ANYTHING in that town without fighting most of the city and spending half your life waiting…waiting in traffic, waiting in lines, waiting for a table … pretty soon you’ll be waiting for your turn to use some water. And you guys were honestly surprised that this is how the fanfest turned out?! LOL!!

By Ezz-Eldin Hassan

January 14, 2008 9:39 AM | Link to this

I just wanted to catch fly balls at The Ted, take it back there next year and make it free again!!

By Seriously

January 14, 2008 9:40 AM | Link to this

I used to be a baseball fan. However, after the strikes I have not and will not go to a major league baseball game. Now the Braves have brought back the face of the baseball strikes (Tom Glavine) to be the “face of the organization”. WHEN ARE YOU PEOPLE GOING TO WAKE UP AND QUIT SUPPORTING THE MILLIONAIRE STERIOD CLUB? If you are truly a fan of baseball, take yourself and your kids to a high school or college or minor league baseball game. I promise you will see players who play for the love of the game and not someone playing to their potential because its a “contract year”. To hell with MLB!!

By SoGaBubba

January 14, 2008 9:46 AM | Link to this

Hey…isnt all of Atlanta just one big, long line anwyay?

By Brad

January 14, 2008 9:47 AM | Link to this

Whoever suggested the name Fanfarce is right on. 3rd year to take my son; will not go again unless they go back to announcing who is signing when and where.

Also eliminate the ELITE pass where those people just cycle through to the front of the line at will. It would be a better use of my time to just buy the autographs on Ebay when the “elite” dealers sell them.

When I complained to one of the Braves staff, I was told that the idea was for fans to enjoy the experience and that it was more than just getting autographs. Note to whoever thought this “improved” concept up: Paying $30 for two tickets, $10 to park and then standing in line for 3 1/2 hours to get one autograph is not an enjoyable experience.

By Fan Bust

January 14, 2008 9:47 AM | Link to this

What a complete disaster. My two kids were so excited about meeting some of the players that they couldn’t sleep Friday night. We got there Sat. morning and found that the lines were incredibly long, plus we had no idea who was siging where. All we knew was that instead of walking around enjoying everything, we had to stand in line for a few hours or else they stood a chance of not getting a single thing signed. Next year, someone over there needs to brighten up and bring in somebody who’s promoted an actual autograph show or two.

By CAR3BOOGIE

January 14, 2008 9:53 AM | Link to this

FanFest Review from one Dad’s view

Too many People.

In the kids Area. Fancoeur is just like you see him on TV and great with the Kids cause he is one.

Also In the kids Area Chipperwas great but he is a Gator fan… and turned red as a beet when a small boy asked him if the Mets Sucked.

Matt Diaz is a cool dude He was pitching on the Homerun Derby Field he pitched to small kids Dads and teenagers and they all Laughed As I did in line for about an hour and never saw a HR hit til they changed Pitchers Clint Sammons came on in relief and a lil left handed 10 year old came up and blasted one over the right field wall, the crowd around it went wild. The kid was not real excited but his chubby grey headed daddy was proud. Then the lil lefty went to play centerfield as another kid hit and Josh Anderson talked with him. That kid truly enjoyed that lil talk.

That lil lefty was my Chipper.

By MHALEY

January 14, 2008 9:56 AM | Link to this

Fanfest could have been okay except for the Autograph set up. My son had a chance to ask Chipper Jones a question…then when Chipper was whisked away, I had to deal with the fallout from Chipper not signing autographs until he was nestled in his booth. It was a nice idea…being indoors…but you were extemely lucky if you even got an earshot of a player. During all the chaos…I lost my camera bag. From a frustrated Mom…I certainly will not attend next year. I will be sending an e-mail/letter to the Braves organization. They certainly OVERSOLD THE EVENT!!!

By Kevin

January 14, 2008 9:57 AM | Link to this

My daughter & her best friend went Sunday. They were only able to get one autograph, John Smoltz. The line to get the autograph was a 4 hour wait.

By Never Again

January 14, 2008 10:01 AM | Link to this

Waste of time. Better to buy game tix, go early and watch batting practice. Not fair to the kids to jockey with memoribilia hawks and 30-something dorks (who complain the whole time when Chipper doesn’t come over and have a personal conversations with them). Speaking of Chipper, he’s no Murph when it comes to fan interaction, but when he walked by the crowd started cheering and chanting his name. When he didn’t sit down to sign autographs, they booed him. Grow up losers!

By Jenna

January 14, 2008 10:03 AM | Link to this

FanFest was a total waste of time and money. I stood in a line for 4.5 hours and came away with Clint Sammons’ autograph. That kind of sucked. Clint’s great and I’m sure he’ll be a great MLBer someday, but he isn’t yet and it wasn’t worth my time. Sunday I did a little better and got Pete Smith and Marquis Grissom’s autographs. Perhaps that wouldn’t excite most fans, but it made me happy. I really wanted Francoeur’s autograph and really wish that it had been the old way so I could have at least had a chance of getting his.

Unless things change, FanFest is definitely not something I’d do again. I love meeting the old players, but not the way it was set up this year.

By michelle stassi

January 14, 2008 10:09 AM | Link to this

Just what I needed -having 2 10 year girls crying after standing in line for 1 1/2 hours for JFrancour autograph only to see 2 minor leaguers walk out for our turn. Then having some Braves worker yell at us to get the heck out of line if we don’t want the autographs. Offically protesting all Braves games this year.

By Chris

January 14, 2008 10:14 AM | Link to this

What a joke. I took my little brother on Saturday, and we got in the autograph line at 11:30. At about 3:30 (4 hours in line) we found out that the only remaining players signing autographs were minor leaguers. Needless to say, my brother was very disappointed and I was pretty ticked.

They definitely need more stages for autographs in order to cut down on the lines, or they should release a schedule of what players will be signing at specific times. We could’ve waited in the whiffleball line and gotten autographs from TP, Diaz, Carlyle, but we had already been in the autograph line so lone we said screw it.

Now I’ll have to go to Braves games like 2 hours early so I can get some autographs for my little brother. Waste of money and, more importantly, my time on a Saturday.

By jean phillips

January 14, 2008 10:14 AM | Link to this

Good Idea but poorly executed.

By Jim

January 14, 2008 10:14 AM | Link to this

Poorly run and a complete waste of time. The players and coaches also should be coached on Fanfest. As it states, FANfest - not players spending more time with only their select fans.

By TBrave

January 14, 2008 10:14 AM | Link to this

Saturday was a total mess there, and I almost didn’t go back yesterday but I had friends who came to town specifically for the event. We stood in line for over 5 hours — in ONE line - because it was Tommy when we first got there…then we proceeded to go thru Matt and Chuck, Eddie and TP, no one for almost 30 minutes, then Phil Niekro and Homer the mascot, then Zach Schreiber, and Jair Jurrjens before we gave up and left at 3:00. We only gave up then because a security guy said no one else that anyone in line knew of was the only one left to come out - it turned out to be Charlie Liebrant from what I heard from other fans who were afraid to leave ‘in case it was someone good’. Fans were complaining to anyone and everyone they saw who even remotely resembled anyone in authority.
Yesterday we got there earlier - about an hour before opening…and my friends got in one line and I went to Tommy’s again - still didn’t get his autograph, but did get Tex’s only by the Grace of God. And although we did get there on time Saturday, the line was wrapped all the way to the Boat Show entrance…however; we did get into the ‘autograph line’ starting about 10:15.
But, because on Saturday there were thousands of p** off people, one of the security people that I talked to during my time in line on Sunday said that they held a mandatory meeting after closing on Saturday to hear what each of them had heard from ‘guests’. He said they were told they had 12 hours to make things better…. so they actually handed out a sheet with all the players at each station in the order they were supposed to show up… I stood in line for Tommy again, but 3 hours later ended up with Tex (not complaining)…and I got a photo with Javy so Sunday was much, MUCH better than Saturday. I agree with the others who’ve said that there needs to be MORE autograph lines - times and who will be at each and GET a number so you know you are assured an autograph -if not, you can head to your next choice. Combine the weather friendly GWCC with the concept of past TED Fan Fests…
Bottom line - It was nothing but a trade show over the weekend …. as my friend said, Better a cold but fruitful FanFest than a warm waste of time…

By Susan

January 14, 2008 10:15 AM | Link to this

I went on Sunday. I agree the autograph arrangement was horrible. Too much money to wait in line with the kids forever then never know who would actually be signing. If I ever go back I will skip the autograph line completely. I didn’t see any players mingling with the crowds at any of the baseball activities. Maybe I missed it. Apparently this was the case on Saturday.

A positive, the kids reading area was fun. My ten year old was thrilled to ask Tim Hudson a question. It was great to see the players up close like that. However, at Hudson’s next Q&A on the big stage, for some reason they would only let kids line up to ask questions. Hello???? This wasn’t the kiddie area! I got sick of hearing the same questions like what would you do if you didn’t play baseball, what’s your favorite flavor of ice cream…come on, these are cute in the kiddie area but a waste of time for the grown ups. I wanted to ask Hudson what his goals are for the coming season. My son was in like to ask another question and had I been able to get his attention quickly enought I would have suggested he ask that.

Another suggestion: more prizes and giveaways! Drawings for tickets, t-shirts, memorabilia, autographs, etc., that would have added a lot.

I was also disappointed I didn’t see any Braves announcers at the event.

By Judye

January 14, 2008 10:18 AM | Link to this

I thought it was one of the worst events I’ve participated in… I walked around for about an hour and left - - as I wasn’t willing to devote 5 hours to get an autograph from a player Not Known!

It was a huge rip off if you ask me.

By Karen

January 14, 2008 10:19 AM | Link to this

1 word:

DISASTER

By Josh

January 14, 2008 10:22 AM | Link to this

I was there on Saturday, I got Glavine and Chipper- and also got in the Chipper/Diaz/Ohman picture line, but the fanfest was insane. The whole indoor setup with vendors and stuff was a lot better, but the treasure hunt idea was moronic. I got an 11x14 of Chipper at BP sports and cut 900 people by just sneaking right through the first line… You have to be a go getter at fanfest or you will walk away with just a CHUCK JAMES!!

I dont understand either why people get on adults for wanting autographs, I am a teen but the adults appreciate it more, The kids dont even know what posistion chipper jones plays and are going to hit his autograph in the backyard! Go to the story time session with Brian Jordan!!

The picture line was awesome, that was cooler than the autograph lines, I got 5-6 of every brave last year and I needed some cool pictures with them!

If you want autographs..

By No Fan

January 14, 2008 10:26 AM | Link to this

Should have stayed home. I think we spent a total of 4 hrs in line for basically nothing

By B

January 14, 2008 10:26 AM | Link to this

Two comments: 1. Bait and switch - wait 2 hours in line for the player you want and then they switch? That didn’t make me happy. 2. My already high opinion of Frenchy went up even more. He gave a huge smile to every single person and seemed to make each one feel important.

By 22oz

January 14, 2008 10:27 AM | Link to this

Agreed with all the posts above (except Seriously’s). We went both days, and came out better than most (Diaz on Saturday, Teixeira on Sunday). But we heard all the horror stories, people waiting 5-6 hours for Charlie Liebrant or Brian Snitker. We witnessed people stopping in line, and even some going backwards. The “Treasure Hunt” was a complete disaster. Turner Field had a better format: you chose who you wanted, not have it chosen for you. Couple the small names with the big names and make it five or six stations. Won’t go back under this format. And as for the “elite passes”: i was fussing about them and the guy in front of me said :”I bought both my kids one”. Good for those rich kids, but most of them are gonna turn around and sell them fro profit.

By Bobby R.

January 14, 2008 10:27 AM | Link to this

Horrible. Horrible. Horrible. The Braves should be ashamed of themselves for putting their fans through this. While they’re at it, why not just go ahead and double the cost of hot dogs and cokes at the games? Thanks for wasting two days of my life, guys!

By Bear

January 14, 2008 10:35 AM | Link to this

good idea but perhaps an event company should get involved to properly manage this. This looked like it was planned and run by people that did not have any experience . Complete Chaos.

By Jordan

January 14, 2008 10:36 AM | Link to this

Whoever complains about the lines, thats ridiculous. If you know Franceour is going to be signing, it’s not going to be a 10 minute line. I understand the frustration about the players leaving halfway through, but maybe you shouldve just got there earlier. So quit complaining, it’s FANFEST who cares get over it not that big of a deal. Whoever says their protesting braves games because of this? Who cares the braves get enough fans anyway. 50 fans protesting doesn’t do anything. So Prostest all you want but no one is going to care or do anything about it.

By kreedham

January 14, 2008 10:37 AM | Link to this

You guys should have gone to the Monster Jam at the Dome. If you had a ticket you could get a free ticket to the Party in the Pits Saturday afternoon. If you got there early you could have easily gotten autographs from all 12 drivers and they gave you time to take a picture of your kid(s) with the driver and the truck. Lines got a little long in the late afternoon but they moved fairly quickly and you could still probably get 4 or 5 autographs by then. All the drivers were very friendly too and they signed that night after the event was over.

Really sorry it didn’t go well. I’m sure they’re in meetings today to get it right for next year. Don’t give up on the Braves!

By danny boy

January 14, 2008 10:38 AM | Link to this

UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What a waste of a Saturday.

By Elliot Garcia

January 14, 2008 10:41 AM | Link to this

Who in their right mind would wait in a line for four hours for a lousy autograph?? yikes!

By Robert Fox

January 14, 2008 10:46 AM | Link to this

FanFest was a huge disappointment for my whole family, especially my 8 Year old son. We drove from Knoxville and arrived at Fanfest about 10:30 am (delays from an accident on the Interstate). We had bought advance tickets over the Internet to ensure having a ticket. Immediately upon entering we got in the autograph line. My wife and I took turns walking the kids around, but, more or less spent the whole day in that line. When we first got in line, there had been 3 players signing autographs, with the understanding that the people signing would rotate about every hour. Fine. When we finally arrived to the serpentine rows close to the tables, there is only one player- Chipper Jones. Still fine, but a little surprised only one person signing. Charlie LeBrandt fills for the next hour (still in line). While Charlie is a nice man and a former player, NO ONE in this line is happy about waiting 5 hours for his (and his alone) autograph. We are eagerly waiting for the time to pass, as 4 pm is approaching, when the signee is supposed to change out. You should have heard the crowd cheer as Charlie left- no disrespect to him, but people are not waiting in line 5 hours to see JUST him. Then, you should have heard the collective gasp when Coach Snickter appeared. Talk about MAD. I do not think there was even one mildly satisfied person in the line. With only about 10 minutes to go, we left, with our 8 year old son in tears and mad at the entire Braves organization for completely wasting not only our money to get in, but our entire day.

If too many people is the problem, cap the sales. We bought our tickets in advance to be sure to have tickets. We would have rather stayed home and not gone than to endure this fiasco. I fully understand there are no guarantees as to which player’s autograph you might get. But when you pay admission and get in the only lines available and wait ALL DAY, you expect at least an autograph from a current active player. We had explained to our son that he might not get to meet his favorite player (McCann), but come on!!!!!!! There is no excuse for this and I am still dumbfounded that the Braves organization has such poor management. And, it is not just me. Everyone I spoke with was similarly irate.

By Paula

January 14, 2008 10:46 AM | Link to this

I guess you people were at a different fanfest than I was - or else you just like to complain.

It was an enjoyable experience for my kids and we got some great autographs..Well, done, Braves.

By John Q. BRAVES Fan

January 14, 2008 10:49 AM | Link to this

First of all, please allow me to say the ATLANTA BRAVES are a first-class, top-notch organization and that I am a very loyal and passionate BRAVES fan.

With that being said, the BRAVES should be ashamed of themselves for that debacle known as “FanFest 2008”.

They decided to make an annual event cherished by many loyal fans “better than ever” by doing the following:

• Charging admission instead of allowing free admission so more people could afford to attend with their families, regardless of weather

• Moving the event from venerable TURNER FIELD to the “ghetto-plex” known at the GEORGIA WORLD CONGRESS CENTER

• Taking the event from a place with plenty of free parking to a venue where fans had to pay $20.00+ (Yes, $20+.) on Saturday to park over a quarter mile away and run the gauntlet of rude, aggressive panhandlers with their kids to get the venue

• Putting all the eggs in a single basket by having only one (1) table for autographs, as opposed to several tables with shorter lines for each. (What STUPIDITY!)

• Take up half the floor with vendors peddling their junk and make it look like a flea market instead of anything resembling baseball

• Have even one short-tempered jerk with poor ‘people skillz’ be rude to families with children

• Make sure that people who were NOT in the autograph line were not able to walk around freely due to all the walkable floor space being consumed by the 4-hour autograph snaking its way through the festival

Thankfully, our tickets were free and we were able to park for free as well, but we still felt like we were ripped off for those wasted hours of our lives we will never regain.

After this weekend’s fiasco, the BRAVES employee with the marketing degree who signed off on this ill-conceived idea, thinking it was a solid plan, should be UNemployed today.

Make THAT buffoon stand in line for 4.5 hours for a minor leaguer’s autograph surrounded by a tightly-packed mass of the rude & selfish while being treated like a child by BRAVES employees/volunteers with no manners and see if he/she still calls the event a “success” today.

Absolutely Disgraceful.

By el jefe

January 14, 2008 10:50 AM | Link to this

i saw this one coming from a mile away…the move to the GWCC seemed like a money grab from the get go. I can understand the desire to appeal to young athletes, but the changes did little to help the young athletes and more to help the equipment manufacturers marketing to the young athletes.

I was also disappointed in moving it from the TED in general. Sure it can be cold out there in the stadium for fanfest, but there was just something magical about being at the TED that seemed lost at another venue. Nobody likes to stand around in lines all day, but at least at the TED we were standing around on “hallowed grounds”…

Sorry to hear that it sucked so bad, but I was happy that I decided to stay home this year.

GO BRAVES.

By SandyB

January 14, 2008 10:50 AM | Link to this

My daughter and I went on Sat. We were very disappointed with the autograph lines…so we didn’t wait, not knowing who we would get. We enjoyed the Q&A with McCann, Glavine, and Chipper (except for the kids that asked the same question that had already been answered)….we were able to sit close and get pictures. Chipper was very personable….

When we waited in the photograph line, Niekro was there, but by the time we got to the front, Mike Devereaux had come in….no one in the line knew who he was, so people got out of line. We went ahead so we could play “guess the player” with folks, and by the time we went BACK through the line, he was still there. Not even the people running it had any idea who was coming or when. Leibrandt finally came out, but I agree with others….have a current player with a rookie/older player. And provide time frames for both the autographs and photographs.

If the dealers were going to be there (my daughter got her Glavine autograph on a ball for $40….it beat standing in line), they should have had more room. It was very crowded in that area. I liked the “museums” that were there. If you weren’t a kid waiting in line to do the interactive games, there wasn’t a lot of other stuff to do.

I doubt we’ll go back unless the format changes some……

By Big Dog

January 14, 2008 10:52 AM | Link to this

just a bad experience all the way around. Go back to Turner Field. We can take the cold weather but not the long lines. Brutal.

By marie

January 14, 2008 10:53 AM | Link to this

The Braves need to call the folks at Disney and learn about crowd management, lines and getting a reserved time. The price is outrageous for the families with 2 or more kids. At Turner Field, free entry to let the kids roam the park, free parking, pay for autographs if you want some and know who is signing and when! This is no way to ‘thank’ your fans!

By David

January 14, 2008 10:56 AM | Link to this

We enjoyed the event a great deal. We had a 5 year old with us and even though it was indeed crwoded, we expected that and had a great time. We got to see players and coaches and hear from them. It was a lot of fun and we will go back.

By BillG

January 14, 2008 11:03 AM | Link to this

I did not attend FanFest. I go to regular season games around the country and see the Braves at Turner Field as the least fan friendly. At other ball parks during batting practice, anyone can make their way to the field. At Turner Field, you have to have a ticket for seats in between the dugouts to even get in that area. One night, I was sitting behind the on deck circle by the visitor’s dugout in row 13. There was no one in front of me during batting practice and when I went to get closer to the field, the usher told me I could go no further than my seat. I contacted Turner Field and they said it was for security reasons. Funny fans are not seen as a security threat in other ballparks. To hear this FanFest was more of the same does not surprise me.

By Lucky Jack

January 14, 2008 11:04 AM | Link to this

Very poorly organized. I felt sorry for the fans that drove hours to attend. The young guys behind me in line had come here all the way from Virginia-they were so mad!!!!!!!!

By FanFurious

January 14, 2008 11:05 AM | Link to this

2008 Fanfest TERRIBLE!!!!

My husband and son have raved about Fanfest the last two years. This year the whole family goes and it was the worst experience! All we did was stand in line for an autograph and had to deal with a very disappointed and distraught 8 year old.

Like many of you Fanfesters we won’t go back for this format!

For Josh: My 8 year old knows EXACTLY who the players and positions are

By Daybed Wagmoe

January 14, 2008 11:10 AM | Link to this

i wasn’t able to attend fanfest this year because of prior obligations, and before the weekend i was really disappointed that i couldn’t go. now, i’m really glad that i couldn’t go because it sounds like it was terrible.

first, whoever came up with the “treasure hunt” idea obviously didn’t think things through. that system sounds like a horrible idea — not just a great idea with poor execution, but a horrible idea by itself.

the organization hyped this to be better than any other fanfest in the past. i had a lot of complaints about last year’s fanfest (scheduling the bigger-named autographs during the same time slot was my biggest complaint), but this year’s sounds like it was worse than last year’s.

By Captain Obvious

January 14, 2008 11:17 AM | Link to this

If you guys want some graphs, go to Spring Training in Florida. You can get the whole team, and take pictures with all of them. It may cost a little more, but it’s worth it. You’ll get at least 20-50 autographs a day.

By CB

January 14, 2008 11:22 AM | Link to this

My family and I attended this weekends FanFest on Saturday. It was fun being there because this was the first one that we had ever been too. However, I felt that the space was too confined and the lines were too long. I know saying the lines were too long is like saying the lines at Disney Land are too long but it just made it seem immpossible to even think about standing in line with children. I think that maybe giving certain times for groups of fans to get autographs would have cut down on the lines. For example every couple hundred people would be assigned to a group and they would have a slotted time for an hour to get autographs. Anyway, just an idea. The players that I did see seemed to be really enjoying the time they were spending with the fans. The question and answer seccion with Chipper was great. I think this was a good event that just needed to be organized a little better.

By 22oz

January 14, 2008 11:28 AM | Link to this

i hope everyone will take the time to write the Braves a letter voicing these complaints.

By josh

January 14, 2008 11:34 AM | Link to this

Robert fox- get there at 7 am like the real fans! There are gonna be a lot of people so get there early, I think they should make it a one day event for 50 dollars if you want autographs and free if you don’t, that’s the only way you will weed people out!

The first 500+ people in the 2 lines on Saturday were basically gauranteed a frenchy and mccann auto, or a glavine auto! Get there early whiners!! The strong survive!!

Fanfurious, he probably should be out being an eight year old and not be trying to follow the braves! I hope all you complainers don’t come back, more autos for me!!!!

By humbug

January 14, 2008 11:39 AM | Link to this

THE BRAVES SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF THIS FIASCO. FANFEST WAS DESIGNED AND CARRIED OUT WITHOUT ANY CONSIDERATION FOR THE FANS WHO ATTENDED. IT WAS THE SAME AS STEALING THE FANS MONEY. NEVER AGAIN WILL I PUT MY KIDS THROUGH SOMETHING LIKE THIS.

By Arthur Blank

January 14, 2008 11:43 AM | Link to this

Go Falcons

By Chris

January 14, 2008 11:44 AM | Link to this

Oh, sure, Captain Obvious. I’m positive every Braves fan has the time/means to just travel down to Florida for Spring Training. You know, some people have jobs, kids, stuff like that, and perhaps aren’t able to head down south for a few days. FanFest was supposed to be for the fans, and it wasn’t. It was a complete joke.

By snes

January 14, 2008 11:45 AM | Link to this

My girlfriend and me went Sunday only and had a great time. We avoided the autograph lines because it didn’t seem like a good idea. We ended up seeing Tim Hudson twice in the kids reading area, once with his wife and a second time with Peter Moylan. We also saw Hudson in the throw with the pro and on stage with Jerome J. for an interview. We also saw Smoltz and Frank Wren on stage. We almost literally ran into Smoltz at one point. We saw Glavine in the kids reading area as well.

By C'mon peeps

January 14, 2008 11:48 AM | Link to this

What the heck do all you whiners expect? No lines where your kids could have 5 minute conversations with the likes of Chipper Jones about his/her baseball potential? GET REAL And to all you people complaining about the employees being rude, I am sure you all were little slices of heaven to them to begin with…

By Chris

January 14, 2008 11:50 AM | Link to this

Josh, what in the world do you mean by, “he probably should be out being an eight year old and not be trying to follow the braves!” You don’t think 8-year-olds look up to baseball players? When I was 8, I could name the entire Braves team (Andres Thomas, Ozzie Virgil, Dale Murphy, Bob Horner, etc.) and their positions. I even collected every Braves baseball card I could find.

Also: How dare you assume that you can tell someone what their 8-year-old should or should not be doing? How awfully presumptuous of you. Take care of your own house. Don’t try to tell someone else how to run theirs. What an a-hole.

By 1 less Braves fan

January 14, 2008 11:51 AM | Link to this

A total waste of time and money. I also found out that Tom Glavin is a rude and ungrateful person. While Frenchy and McCann were signing autographs as fast as they could, Glavin was complaing while he signed just a couple. Wat to go Tom. Welcome back.

By BravesFan

January 14, 2008 11:53 AM | Link to this

Unfortunately I have to agree with the majority of the posts above. Fanfest was a complete disaster, after arriving, post driving around 20 minutes to park, we could barely get into the door. The two autograph lines were unbelievably long. And yes, I understand that long lines should be expected. I even would have waited in them if I would have known whos autograph I could get. (We attended Saturday). So I walked up to the front of both autograph lines to find out who was signing, Mike Gonzoles, Buddly Carlyle, Brian Jordan, and some others I didnt recognize. The rude lady at the front of the line informed me that they are singing now but she couldnt tell me how long they would be there or who was coming up next. We forewent the four hours of line standing to walk around. I did think the interactive parts of fanfest were cool. But I think the best part was the Q&A sessions. We had a chance to hear from Brian McCann, Tom Glavin, and Chipper. I was impressed with the amount of questions they allowed fans to ask, probably 30 kids each section. It was nice to be able to sit and hear them speak as well. We only stayed to hear two of those sessions walk around a bit and then head out. I was overall not impressed with the organization or the helpfulness of the employees working the event. It was a complete madhouse with no order. I hope the Braves go back to the old format for next year.

By BLC

January 14, 2008 11:58 AM | Link to this

Worse fanfest ever in my opinion. Whoever is in charge of organizing this did a horrible job. I bought a two day pass and didn’t bother going the second day. My biggest complaint is only having two autograph lines and no schedule of who is signing where at what time. How do they expect thousands of people to stand in two lines? That’s the dumbest idea I’v ever heard of. I waited four and a half hours in line and could only get Charlie Leibrandt’s autograph and was truely angry afterwords. Everybody in line around me was just as angry, you could cut the tension with a knife. I wasn’t able to enjoy any of the other exibits because I couldn’t get out of the autograph line.

The room was actually waaaay to small for this event and it felt way over-crowded. I talked to one of the people working the lines and he said he had been getting complaints all day, so I know I’m not the only one who thinks this. I would much rather brave the cold weather a Turner Field and have the chance to get more autographs of people I actually like.

I can understand trying to make it more interactive with the players by having all of these different appearances set up. But let’s be honest, 95% of the people who go to fanfest want autographs, they could care less about hitting a wiffle ball or having a book read to them. How do you think a 6 or 7 year old feels about his dad having to stand in line 5 hours for an autograph?

I bought several jersey’s, bats and balls because I thought I was going to get several autographs. It was all wasted money and will probably sit in a closet until next year, if I even decide to go.

By Dude

January 14, 2008 11:58 AM | Link to this

I looked over at the other line from the line I was standing in at point and I saw that they had the mascot signing autographs. That’s just disrespectful to the fans to have have them wait in line for 4-5 hrs and then bring the mascot out. They should’ve had at least 5 “stages” for autographs and 2-3 players at each stage. This was my first and probably my last FanFest.

By BLC

January 14, 2008 12:00 PM | Link to this

Worse fanfest ever in my opinion. Whoever is in charge of organizing this did a horrible job. I bought a two day pass and didn’t bother going the second day. My biggest complaint is only having two autograph lines and no schedule of who is signing where at what time. How do they expect thousands of people to stand in two lines? That’s the dumbest idea I’v ever heard of. I waited four and a half hours in line and could only get Charlie Leibrandt’s autograph and was truely angry afterwords. Everybody in line around me was just as angry, you could cut the tension with a knife. I wasn’t able to enjoy any of the other exibits because I couldn’t get out of the autograph line.

The room was actually waaaay to small for this event and it felt way over-crowded. I talked to one of the people working the lines and he said he had been getting complaints all day, so I know I’m not the only one who thinks this. I would much rather brave the cold weather a Turner Field and have the chance to get more autographs of people I actually like.

I can understand trying to make it more interactive with the players by having all of these different appearances set up. But let’s be honest, 95% of the people who go to fanfest want autographs, they could care less about hitting a wiffle ball or having a book read to them. How do you think a 6 or 7 year old feels about his dad having to stand in line 5 hours for an autograph?

I bought several jersey’s, bats and balls because I thought I was going to get several autographs. It was all wasted money and will probably sit in a closet until next year, if I even decide to go.

By braves suck

January 14, 2008 12:00 PM | Link to this

This event was horrible. Has anything gone right with the team since AOL first took them over? It hasn’t improved since they were sold, that’s for sure. The event was dominated by long lines, and they should have had a better system. Something like at Disney where you can do a fast-pass: a set time to come back to get in a shorter line so you don’t just stand there. And the staff acted like they were more unhappy to be there than the fans were. We heard dozens of people talking at and after the event, and not one said anything positive. Kids were crying, parents were upset, and the fans were at the point of pulling for the Yankess, it was so bad…

By John in Tampa, FLA

January 14, 2008 12:01 PM | Link to this

Are you telling me they actually charged you to park?

Professional sports teams are so out of touch with working people. They must think we have so much disposable income that we are just looking for ways to spend it.

By LizDawg

January 14, 2008 12:02 PM | Link to this

HATED IT! The lines were redunk to try to get the autographs. As a Braves season ticket holder let me say I will NEVER be back. UGA handles the crowds much better at G-Day and God knows the kids would all prefer to have Stafford or Knowshon’s autograph over most of the Braves coaches and lesser known players. Plus the Braves don’t know the Soulja Boy and how to Superman dat ho

By Mr. Obvious

January 14, 2008 12:05 PM | Link to this

It doesn’t sound like the Braves really care very much about their average-income, yet loyal, fans anymore.

The fact that construction is currently being done at Turner Field to create more up$$$cale sitting for the ultra-wealthy would make holding the event there this year a bit difficult.

While at FanFest this weekend, I mildly enjoyed overhearing and witnessing two other Season Ticket Holders with front-row seats be bluntly told by a Braves representative, without remorse, that their prestigious front-row seats they’ve had for years are now FOUTH-row seats due to the new “Ultra-Premium $$$eating” now being built right in front of their seats.

Apparently, this is how the Braves “reward” their (formerly) wealthiest fans.

Go, Brave$$$, Go !!!

On a side note:

To the wannabe using the name “Captain Obvious,” please come up with a more original username. I do not wish to be confused with a simpleton such as yourself.

Better yet: Go Kill Yourself, Loser.

By Amy

January 14, 2008 12:05 PM | Link to this

We came all the way from Columbus, Ohio, and were very disappointed with Fan Fest. I have attended Fan Fest for the past 3 years and was very pleased. It seemed like this year everything was commercialized. Even the lines to get the waivers and stamps for autographs were long. We bought 2 days passes but left after 2 hours. Management needs to come up with a solution, and hire new FRIENDLY staff for next year.

By amy

January 14, 2008 12:05 PM | Link to this

This was our first year at fan fest. We came from Michigan. Yes the lines were extremely long & we were one of the ones that waited in the line for Brian & Jeff - and ended up with autographs from Ohman & Resop. Sunday was much better - we got our pictures with Tom Glavine & John Smoltz. To me pictures mean more than an autograph. We do plan on going to Spring Training next year. They definately need to do some improvements at fanfest - but cut them a little bit of slack…

By Amy

January 14, 2008 12:11 PM | Link to this

It would be nice if they could plan some events around town for the middle class devotees of the real game instead of the disasters described above - we cannot afford to go to this, much less Florida, to interact with my children’s heroes.

Aren’t fans valued enough to give THEM something instead of just taking taking taking?

By Kathleen

January 14, 2008 12:11 PM | Link to this

I will agree It was a huge waste of time and money. We didn’t bother to wait in the lines for autographs. They were way to long. My kids like the inter active stuff but even those lines were long. The only part we truly enjoyed was the Q & A sessions. thats the only players my kids got to see. And a special Thank You to Jeff Francoure and his wife for taking the extra time to sign some more stuff for the kids. My son will have that signed braves shirt and memory forever.

By Penno

January 14, 2008 12:13 PM | Link to this

I think its funny how some assume people go and sell these autos on ebay. Go ahead and check the prices of even star autographs on ebay without legit COA, all the autos you can get in a day won’t make up for the price of an elite pass and baseballs/bats/pictures used.

As for the person talking negatively toward older autograph collectors, does it make you feel better to insult others? I’m 20 and still enjoy meeting the players and interacting with them, whats wrong with that? Thanks to my elite pass, I had a blast this weekend.

By TBrave

January 14, 2008 12:16 PM | Link to this

To those of you who say “Quit whining about not getting autographs”…
FYI - the discussion of the blog was about how your experience was at FanFest 2008!! If you actually read the blogs, the major complaint is about the WAIT time and poorly organized situation -NOT that you didn’t get a SPECIFIC autograph.
Yes, there are other ways to get autographs, but I’ve always heard from families that they look to FanFest as a family way to get autographs in an organized manner -not having to be squashed by throngs of people pushing forward with no regards to anyone (especially children) in front of them in order to get something in a player’s face to sign.
For me FanFest is an annual kickoff to great baseball and another great season - not attending a baseball merchandising trade show. So get over YOUR whining about our experience - these are the facts of FanFest 2008 and our reactions and experiences per the question asked.

By Mark D.

January 14, 2008 12:19 PM | Link to this

My son and I went to Fanfest with a friend and his son. My friend had been given 4 tickets by his wife for Christmas. He invited us to go and we were happy that we were given the opportunity to participate in our first Fanfest. I do not want to complain because my tickets were free but I did feel sorry for all those people who did pay for tickets. The lines were absolutely ridiculous, especially the autograpgh lines, and the venue was too small for the amount of people in attendance. My friend stood in line for 4-5 hours for one autograph, fortunately, Smoltzie was signing when he got up there. The interactive sites were okay, I liked the batting cage, but overall I do not think it was very fan friendly. The stars are treated just like that by the security personal and the braves people. What happened to good verbal interaction with the fans. I would like for the Braves to require all the players to be there, after all it is the fans that actually pay their salaries.
Overall, it was nice to be with my son but as far as the fanfest experience it definately has much room for improvement.

By Kevin

January 14, 2008 12:21 PM | Link to this

I agree, my fanfest time was horrible. My wife and I took our two year daughter because she loves getting autographs(disney trips started that). We were greatful that they had the 12 and under line. We went through it several times but only to get retired and coaches autographs. Only Chuck James on Saturday did autographs in that line. I thought surely a bigger name player would sign in that line. No way was my 2 year old going to stand in line for 4 and half hours in the other two lines. Congrats to those that got the autograph they wanted but we went away disappointed.

By gobraves

January 14, 2008 12:22 PM | Link to this

“FanFest 2008 is going to be an entirely new experience, unlike any event the Braves have hosted in the past,” said Derek Schiller, Braves Executive Vice President of Sales/Marketing. “We’re excited to host FanFest at the Georgia World Congress Center, an expansive indoor venue where there will be more room for interaction with Braves players than ever before, and fun activities for the entire family.”

WRONG!!!! They must have lost their mind, this was the worst FanFest ever! My family and I go and stand in line from the beginning to the end and get ONE autograph. They better fix something or I won’t be there next year and alot of other people. They need to relize that most of the people come for the autographs, not the games and stuff. I had been coming to this event for the last couple of years, but not any more.

By baloney

January 14, 2008 12:24 PM | Link to this

Any parent that would subject their child to a 3-4 hour wait should have their butt kicked. Face it, you are (yourself) a total jock sniffing loser.

By Boat boy

January 14, 2008 12:24 PM | Link to this

The lines to get the waiver signed was even rediculous. My 6 year old didn’t get to do anything because dad wasn’t willing to stand in line for 30 minutes. They need to put the waivers online so you can come prepared. We only stayed for about an hour and went over to the boat show. Wow what an event and we had a WONDERFUL time with TONS for the kids to do.

By BOBCEE

January 14, 2008 12:26 PM | Link to this

What a waste of time and money. Between parking and admission and then having to pay for almost everything you could go home with empty pockets. I thought these fanFests were supposed to be fun for th kids, an opportunity to meet their’heroes’ and have a meory. The only memory my family has is standing in line and then getting aggravated when a no-name was at the table. Way to go Braves - another exapmlt of the almighty dollar taking over the past time sport. Bend over fans and we will make you happy

By James

January 14, 2008 12:29 PM | Link to this

I took my 12 and 10 year old sons thinking they would enjoy it. I was trying to fall in love with MLB again. I’m still holding out from the strike. This didn’t help. My sons were very disappointed by the long lines. They chose not to get in any line because the wait was too long. What’s worse is we saw two players because of the crowds. I asked my youngest to take pictures with my phone he said no thanks! There’s a reason I prefer watching kids play the game; they really enjoy it!

I thought I’d give the Braves another chance. In the words of my wise 10 year old - no thanks!

By will

January 14, 2008 12:29 PM | Link to this

And you wonder why Atlanta doesn’t support it’s teams? BOTTOM LINE - The teams don’t care about the fans. They care more about the checkbook, then the customer that fills the seats/stadium. This used to be for the fans, it sure didn’t seem like it to me. We left early after it was real apparent that we weren’t going to get any autographs. How about we put them in line with two young kids and see how hard it is. I bet you a signed baseball, not one of the players, coaches or owners would stand in my shoes for moment. I plan on boycotting the Bravos this year. Go Rockies!!!!

By Chris

January 14, 2008 12:34 PM | Link to this

To make it up to those that wasted their time and money, the Braves should offer anyone who purchased a FanFest ticket 2 tickets of equal value to a Braves game. If you paid $15 for your ticket, you turn in your stub and receive 2 $15 tickets for a Braves game, and the same with the $20 tickets. At least that would restore some of the fans’ lost faith in Braves management.

By Braves Fan

January 14, 2008 12:34 PM | Link to this

Loved Brian Jordan Book Reading He was so nice to read his story to the kids and have a Q and A after the story.

Did not wait in line to get an autograph because lines were too long.

By An unconditional Braves fan

January 14, 2008 12:40 PM | Link to this

Does this mean if I don’t get ill next year I can go to the FanFest with no problem?

I went several years ago when it was at Turner ield and I managed to get Glavine’s autograph (even though he was a little late as well as Skip Pete and Joe.

I also was able to go on the field and run (my version) the bases and an usher was kind enough to get a picture of me running to first.

I knew I would not have but a few because of long lines of people not only bringing kids but bats, balls, grandma’s ashes, fender for a ‘65 Mustang and the like.

To those who were there this weekend I say it was unfortunate you were upset. But you had the chance to be with your family. It didn’t work out but so what?

Give your kids a hug and say you enjoyed being with them despite the problems.

By marie

January 14, 2008 12:41 PM | Link to this

I hope that all that have written here will print out their comments and send it via snail to the Braves!! Maybe that will get their attention.

By Let'sPlay2

January 14, 2008 12:59 PM | Link to this

Idea has merit, however, the value received did not match the amount paid. All children, including teens, should be free if accompanied by an adult. I guess the Braves needed a fund raiser to shoulder some of those new contracts!

By BLC

January 14, 2008 1:00 PM | Link to this

I think we all expected to stand in lines, that’s not the problem. When it’s a four and a half hour line for one autograph, that’s a BIG problem. In the past they had the desency to hand out cards with numbers on them so fans would know if they were going to get that players autograph. That gave them the opportunity to go to another line if they wanted. I don’t have a problem if several starters are signing at the same time in different places, but at least give us the opportunity to pick which player we want to stand in line for. I like last years format 100% better, even if it IS 35 degrees outside.

By Kris in NC

January 14, 2008 1:01 PM | Link to this

Maybe us fans need to write the Braves Sales/Marketing Dept and let them know exactly how we the fans feel. Get rid of the vendors, we aren’t there to buy their stuff. This was the 1st fan fest I attended, I did manage to get Frenchy and Mac’s autograph on Saturday. While they were signing, they were smiling and talking to each and every fan as they were standing there and waiting for whatever was being signed. On Sunday, I managed to get Kelly Johnson and Roger McDowell. I got Teixeira and Sid Bream’s picture but I didn’t stand in the line that was almost out to the main “street” then we heard they were only taking pictures for 30 minutes with each set of players. I got out of line and walked up to the side of the stage and snapped a few pictures. This was geared towards the kids. They need to know, us adults love the Braves too. I will be sitting down and writing the the Braves Sales/Marketing Dept. to let them know how I feel and I suggest you all do the same. Complaining here isn’t going to fix the problem, complaining to Derek Schiller, VP of Sales/Marketing of the Braves will get it done, hopefully.

By Kevin

January 14, 2008 1:09 PM | Link to this

The Braves email on their website under contact us does not even work. I suppose so many people have emailed that it has shut it down.

By atlbravesmania

January 14, 2008 1:09 PM | Link to this

all uds are a crybabies’ ball, I was to the fan fest and I went out with autographs and photos without problem none if they cannot hope in a tail for the above mentioned event that they make s** there, do not go, the brave ones will keep on having fanatics. do not complain any more and be present at the stadium.

By Bob

January 14, 2008 1:10 PM | Link to this

I left plenty of Fanfest comments on the Kotsay blog, but I’ll do the same here. The problem was mixing the interactive games with the autograph seekers. It was a PAIN fighting my way through those long lines with my two kids, and my 10-yr-old son was not happy waiting 45 minutes just to hit a handful of Wiffle balls. He didn’t even get a chance to hit or throw at the other exhibits, even after we spent 5 hrs total at the event. As big as the GWCC is, couldn’t they have the autograph sessions in another exhibit hall? Also, and this may seem trite, but for those with kids you might agree- there weren’t enough “freebies.” My 7 yr old didn’t want to wait in long lines, so it would have been nice for her to be able to get more freebies. All she got was a bumper sticker and a key chain. All in all, I would rate it a D+. I know it was always cold having it at Turner Field, but it was always more fun being outside and having access to areas of the stadium normally shut off from fans. Turner Field is a gem, and it misses a chance to be showcased by having Fan Fest at the GWCC.

Oh, and the Braves Foundation Spring Cleaning was more like Spring Clean Up. $200 for a jersey? What happened to the cheap ones they used to have in a big bin at The Ted? This was not a Fan Fest. It was Money Fest. No big surprise that the staff made you exit the hall through the Clubhouse Store. Very disappointing. I won’t be back if it’s at GWCC. MOVE IT BACK TO THE TED!!!!

By Peggy Sigwald

January 14, 2008 1:12 PM | Link to this

We attended on Saturday and got there around 10:30. The lines were already beginning to form. My 16 year old son is a diehard Braves fan. He loves his Braves and Jeff Francoeur. He stood in line twice for the batting cages…once for 45 minutes and the next for a little over a hour. The worst of the day was standing in line for 4 1/2 hours…(I am not exaggerating)to get an autograph; buying a $22.00 baseball to have signed….only to get up within site distance and have a retired player leave and the 3rd base coach take his place. My son was devastated to say the least. While we knew we would be standing in lines….we never thought we would have to stand in line for 4 1/2 hours for an autograph. We took turns 2 of us leaving at a time to get drinks, food, bathroom breaks etc, but we were determined to wait with him. I heard complaint after complaint about the long lines and so many people stepped out of line simply because they got tired of waiting. There were people in wheel chairs, families with young children and I just felt like it wasn’t very fan friendly. We left at 4:30 and I can honestly say, that it was an exhausting experience. The only positive about the whole experience is that we did get a picture of Jeff Francoeur(that we took with our camera), so at least our son can say he has a photo of him.

Please forward this to someone that can make a change for next year. I purchased 4 tickets for our son’s birthday to attend this and feel like we were totally ripped off. Thanks for letting me vent…at least I know that I’m not the only one.

By Felix

January 14, 2008 1:12 PM | Link to this

Never been to one and when I saw them advertising this at the Ted back in September I knew then it would be a negative experience.

Parents who took kids and suggested to them that they would get Francouer, McCann, or Chipper’s autograph are idiots. Did you really think there would not be huge crowds? That’s why they call it the GWCC. You all should have seen the writing on the wall when they moved it from the Ted. Can you say money making opportunity? $15 a pop for that? The Braves made a killing. Probably enough to pay Glavine’s salary for a couple of months!

Sounds like there was no creativity in making it a positive experience. Just invite thousands of people to spend $15 to stand in a line in a big room for 4 hours. WOW, I wish I could do that.

By Don

January 14, 2008 1:17 PM | Link to this

Well, all I can say is that I am glad I did not travel from Greenville, SC down to Atlanta for the Fan Fest, as I almost did. Apparently a great idea was poorly planned and run.

By Matt

January 14, 2008 1:20 PM | Link to this

FanFest was a huge disappointment this year. The whole “Treasure Hunt Style” really made me think that the organizers just totally failed at getting a schedule of player availability together and tried put a positive spin on it. Completely unacceptable. I’d like to go to the next one if it’s back at Turner Field; if they do it at the Georgia World Congress Center I won’t even consider attending and I know there will be many others who won’t either.

By Josh

January 14, 2008 1:31 PM | Link to this

Dude How do you figure there should be 5 stages with 3 at each stage?? thats 15 players… Are they just going to sign all day long? what a tool.

kevin I dont think your two year old cares about autographs, but thats just me. I think she would rather be watching tv.

will your a loser straight up. The braves care about there fans, Its just really hard to get 25,000 people to meet and have a fireside chat with each of the braves in a two day span. The rockies wouldnt be any different, you are a complete idiot.

By Kevin

January 14, 2008 1:42 PM | Link to this

Josh:

Believe it or not my two year old loves getting autographs. I bought her a pink bat just for this. My daughter does not just sit around and watch Barney, idiot. She will not remember her experience but she will have pictures as well as the autographs she did get.

By Chris

January 14, 2008 1:49 PM | Link to this

Hey Josh, why don’t you quit telling people what their children should be doing? What in the wide, wide world of sports makes you think you have any right whatsoever do give someone you don’t even know parenting advice? You’re an absolute idiot.

By Mets Fan

January 14, 2008 1:52 PM | Link to this

Shocking that the Braves blew their own “fan appreciation” day! Can’t you guys do anything right? Go Mets!!!

By Josh

January 14, 2008 1:55 PM | Link to this

Kevin, Does she keep score at the game too?

I bet she couldnt tell the difference between some random joe signing autographs and chipper jones.

Something tells me this is something YOU wanted to do, I have a feeling she didnt run up to you and beg to stand in line for hours for baseball autographs instead of going to a playground. We all know its TRUE!!

By This just in

January 14, 2008 1:58 PM | Link to this

It has just been announced that Smoltz, Glavine, and Chuck Bruce will have to be put on the 60 day disabled list due to extreme writers cramp in their throwing arms/hands.

By Rov

January 14, 2008 2:00 PM | Link to this

Boy, alls i can say is….LETS GO METS!!!….

By Dick

January 14, 2008 2:02 PM | Link to this

For those of us out of towners, pathetic advertising as to location, directions, etc. A waste of time to order Will call tickets line was too long and too slow to wait. Release form line was too long and slow, should have had minimum of 10 employees for release forms. This was money fund raiser at expense of parents and grandparents. Friendlist people around were those selling bb cards and those type vendors. There should be no reason to hold this type function in such a small building. Grandson enjoyed, but he agreed 2 to 4 hours in line wasn’t worth. it. Will not go unless major changes are made for next year.

By Will B.

January 14, 2008 2:05 PM | Link to this

Josh, put away daddy’s laptop and go back to studying for your GED.

By Kevin

January 14, 2008 2:06 PM | Link to this

Someone always has to be an idiot. Obviously you must not have any children. Did I say anything about her being able to read the autograph or keep score? No. I just stated that she likes getting autographs but I was disappointed that none of the bigger players signed in the 12 and under line.

I am a fan and like to meet the players just like you. I did not even get an autograph on Saturday because I was not going to subject my child to a 4 hour wait in line. It excites me more seeing my child happy because she has gotten an autograph.

By rob

January 14, 2008 2:07 PM | Link to this

yeah, Kevin, get a life …you know like the one Josh is missing out on by sitting here belittling people all day!!!

By Cubs Fan

January 14, 2008 2:11 PM | Link to this

I am a Cubs fan, wife a Braves fan. ATTENTION BRAVES MKTG DEPT- go see how some of the other teams do it. Even the Devil Rays do it better…

By Mr Fan Furious

January 14, 2008 2:15 PM | Link to this

Josh, like most teenagers, you think you know everything. As a parent of two young boys (4 & 8), they are suprisingly smart and able to learn many things about sports. Have you heard of little league moron?? And yes, kids enjoy meeting people they see on TV and want their autograph. I will bet money (oh, I fogot as a teen you don’t have your own money so maybe your parents will advance you) that my 8 yr old knows more baseball history than you. He has read biographys on Aaron, Mays, Ruth, Clemente, etc. Ask your dad who those players are and what postitions they played b/c I doubt you have a clue. So, maybe you should stick to advice about things you know like bad music, style, and slang “dude”. It’s a shame your parents deprived you of memorabel child hood events like Disney, ball games, and even a bad Fanfest.

By Curious George

January 14, 2008 2:15 PM | Link to this

Are you paying attention to any of this FEEDBACK you are getting on the [ahem] “Overwhelming Success” you had over the weekend, BRAVES, especially YOU Derek Schiller and Terry McGuirk ????

Please feel free to forward your feelings on FanFest 2008 to:

derek.schiller@braves.com

terry.mcguirk@braves.com

By Matt

January 14, 2008 2:23 PM | Link to this

Biggest waste of my time ever! I spent 5 hours waiting in line for an autograph, and I didn’t even know who it would be! I eventually got so hungry I was close to passing out (I have low blood-sugar), and got out of line in search of a $7.00 hamburger. What really ticked me off was the large number of memorabilia dealers who were able to just skip to the front of the line! I will not be coming back until they come up with a decent way of running the autograph stations, and do away with the Elite Pass.

By UGA75

January 14, 2008 2:29 PM | Link to this

I haven’t been to a game since the strike but I did start watching on television again a couple of years ago. My grandson wanted to go to fanfest and my son couldn’t take him, so I did. He didn’t get any autographs, because a 8 year old doesn’t have the patience to wait in the long lines. After wasting our time and my money, my grandson said “I’m not going to be a Braves fan anymore”. I heard other angry parents/grandparents say similar things, and I couldn’t count the little kids who left there crying.

How bad was the experience? I’d rather watch the Falcon’s play than go to another Fanfare, and a Falcon’s game is slightly less painful than having a tooth pulled without the novacaine.

By Matt Holmes

January 14, 2008 2:34 PM | Link to this

As a veteran of the Braves FanFest, I was highly engraged with the new set up. In the past, FanFest was clearly about getting autographs. You chose & waited in one of 4,5, or 6 different lines and if you were one of the first 500 in line you would probably get an item signed. The big name players signed at different locations, usually at the same time, so the crowd would have to decide which line to wait in. This method seemed to evenly break up the dense crowd and you knew who you were waiting 75 or 90 minutes to see. Announcements were even made… “the Brian McCann line is now closed.”

I walked in as soon as the doors opened Saturday and was in the autograph line at 10:10. Three and a half hours later and still in line… it looked like I was about to get Brian Hunter’s autograph. And I was thinking to myself, as were many other vocal fans, “who cares about Brian Hunter?” Sure he played for the Braves and I appreciated that, but there’s no way he’s worth waiting in line for 4 hours to see.

The autograph “Treasure Hunt” was just that. And I imagine only a small fraction of the attendees found that treasure.

For some unknown reason, my luck changed after FOUR HOURS & FIFTEEN MINUTES IN LINE, and I ended up getting a ball signed by Chipper Jones. Thank you Chipper! Your the best.. you signed for more folks than other players and you made what seemed like an un-imaginable nightmare into a dream come true.

I paid for tickets for both Saturday and Sunday. I stayed home Sunday. I love the Braves almost as much as I love my own mother and I stayed home. There was no way I was going to risk spending my whole day in line at FanFest again for the chance at getting a Geronimo Berroa autograph.

I hope the Braves FanFest organizers read some of these postings here. The idiot that came up with the two line “Treasure Hunt” needs a different occupation. I feel for the people that drove from Memphis or Savannah that had heard such good things about Fanfest only to go away bitterly dissapointed.

I would have rather waited in the windy, freezing cold for two hours (like at previous FanFests) just to know who I was waiting to see. So what if I didn’t get something signed atleast I knew what line I was getting in to. Atleast I didn’t have to wait FOUR HOURS and FIFTEEN minutes for Brian Hunter like some fans.

By dawg69

January 14, 2008 2:39 PM | Link to this

I was not there, but you all must be wrong. See the quote from Chipper on AB.com….. “This is a lot better,” said third baseman Chipper Jones. “There’s a lot more interaction. People aren’t just waiting around standing in line. You’ve got a lot of different ways to meet a lot of different people.”

By atlbravesmania

January 14, 2008 2:44 PM | Link to this

they all complain, so that they go, know that they have to do tails for these events, they go and later they complain, uds are those who have the brave ones ruined with his problems, learn to be fanatics as those of chicago, ny and colorado that always fill the stadium and do not complain about anything

By nelson

January 14, 2008 2:48 PM | Link to this

go to the stadium and fill this stadium and do not complain any more that it makes sad to see this empty turner field sometimes

By steve

January 14, 2008 2:50 PM | Link to this

I drove 6 hours to attend fan fest for the fourth time. I collect autographs for a charity auction in SE Georgia. All proceeds from the auction go towards kids fighing a disease. Once I realized what was going on, I could not beleive the braves organization (not players or coaches) could put on such an event and not have the courtesy of informing the public prior to the event how they were organizing it. The day was a complete waste of time and money. As previous comments stated, it was the luck of the draw. When I finally got to the autograph table, I got two players autographs I had never heard of. No reflection on the players, but I need to collect players autographs that others have heard of so I can auction them off. The Braves organization owes all who attended an apoligy. As my wife, who knows nothing about sports said, the reason they did not inform the public in advance is b/c no one would have shown up. That is why we did not go back Sunday. I can handle dissapointment if I know the truth up front. Someone in the Braves front office needs to be fired!

By Daniel

January 14, 2008 2:51 PM | Link to this

My friend and I purchased tickets in advance - $28. We went Saturday and disliked the whole event. We were breaking all the rules just to get 2 autographs (we got Glavine, luckily since we were one of the first in line). I ended up getting McCann by sneaking past a curtain. Otherwise, it was horrible. We wouldn’t even think about going back if we had the chance to. I haven’t heard one happy fan yet, and it’s been 2 days since the event started. HUGE lines…and it was obviously conducted in that fashion just for the organization to make more money through more advertisements and elite passes. It’s sad that OUR team, the team that the fans create, is going to let everyone down like this. I hope the Braves realize this and move it back to Turner Field next year.

By mike

January 14, 2008 2:54 PM | Link to this

Josh is right, either wait and get autographs or doing something else, no one wants to hear you b*** a moan, everyone has to wait, try being a true fan and support the braves no matter what!

By kdbanks

January 14, 2008 3:03 PM | Link to this

What a waste of $15 (not including parking). At least at Turner Field the crowds were smaller and you got to see the Clubhouse. Never going again.

By Chris

January 14, 2008 3:09 PM | Link to this

Hey Brian, “support the braves no matter what” only applies if you’re not being p** on by the Braves. If we give them so much (time, money, energy), why would they “reward” us by spitting in our collective faces? Grow up.

By Rico

January 14, 2008 3:15 PM | Link to this

GET A LIFE PEOPLE! Why in the world would you think it would bee any different? Organized autograph session are always a joke. No matter who is conducting the session. Stop complaining and examine your priorities.

I am really surprised that someone have not blamed the FANFEST problems on the “drought” or “global warming”!!

By Ryan

January 14, 2008 3:21 PM | Link to this

My girlfriend and I waited for 4 hours in line to get an autograph despite the fact that we did not know whose autograph we would get. When we saw Clint Sammons, we thought well at least he’s a young guy with plenty of years ahead. Then they switched Sammons with Charlie Leibrandt. What?! 4 hours for a gameblower?! If they hadn’t been serving beer, we would have been a lot more upset. Although the exhibits were okay, we will not be going back next year.

By Matt

January 14, 2008 3:26 PM | Link to this

FANFEST WAS A BUST. With the exception of some new, welcome additions (such as the photo op line, trade booths, live entertainment) Fanfest this year was INFERIOR to years past. Autograph opportunities are the driving force behind this event. In past years, there were up to six or seven locations where you favorite players were signing. Courteous staff handed out schedules of when and where certain players would be signing, so you could plan out your day. Once you got to a station, another employee would give you a card that would GARUNTEE that you got the autograph you were looking for. Everything was well organized and with the exception of the weather, enjoyable. THIS YEAR there were TWO autograph lines. you got a list of players who would be signing in each line (no times listed). You stand in line (for up to FIVE HOURS A LINE) and hope that when you get to the front, a player you like is signing. I’ll give you a synopsis of my Sunday. I got to the GWCC at 9:00 am (an hour before the doors were supposed to open). The line to get into Fanfest was stretched to the other side of the congress center and wrapped back around. When I got into Fanfest, I immediately got in Line 2 (the better of the two lines. Had a bunch of big names and a few scrubs like Chris Chambliss, Who?) and started my day of standing in line. I passing the time by watching some Braves throw whiffle balls to the young’uns, and in some cases, whacking whiffles themselves. That was pretty cool. About 3 hours in, I could actually see the stage! Alas, they set up a “snake line” that makes you appear closer than you actually are. An announcer comes out “good news Line 2! Mark Teixeira is coming out to sign!” Yes! Maybe this day won’t be a total waste of time after all! I creep along the snake for what seems like hours (turns out it was hours). Only three more rows to go in the snake, keep signing Tex! Wait a minute, Tex gets up, waves to the fans, and is escorted to the bathroom by a large security guard. The announcer comes back on stage. “Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome Chris Chambliss on Line 2!” Chris Chambliss? Who the heck is that!?!?! Completely defeated, I got out of line with no autograph. if they don’t make some serious changes I will not be attending Fanfest next year.

By Chris

January 14, 2008 3:31 PM | Link to this

So Rico, what gives you the right to lecture anyone on their “priorities?” I found it absolutely astounding that there are people who think they can tell someone else how to spend their time/money/energy.

You’re posting on an ajc blog, Rico. Perhaps you should “examine your priorities” and go to work, or volunteer at a soup kitchen, or sit in your car while it’s running with a hose attached to the tailpipe and running in the car’s window. Anything but waste your time on an ajc blog. Where are your “priorities,” man?

By MacKenzie

January 14, 2008 3:49 PM | Link to this

I got my boyfriend FanFest tickets for Christmas. After being given incorrect directions to find a new parking lot because one of them was full, we parked in a sketchy lot run by a chainsmoking curmudgeon.

When we arrived at the GWCC we were absolutely shocked at how many people were there. Where are all these people at the actual games? It seems to me that all the fairweather fans came out of the woodworks to entertain their kids for the day.

We didn’t stand in line for autographs and the most exciting part of the day was when we won $13 from scratch offs at the lottery booth (what was it doing there to begin with?). We took photos by the World Series trophy and walked around.

All in all, FanFest was a complete disappointment and waste of time. We drove from Athens (which is admittedly not as far as some of the rest of you, for whom I feel especially sorry) to basically wander around a crowded venue with too many sketchy promotional booths.

The people I feel most sorry for are the die-hard fans who waited hours for nothing.

I certainly hope someone with the Braves organization is reading all of this feedback so he/she can improve next year’s event.

By BravesFan

January 14, 2008 3:52 PM | Link to this

I understand why the Braves had the FanFest at the Congress Center, I even understand the ATTEMPT at changing the autograph area, however, what I don’t understand is the significant drop in Braves Customer Service.

On Saturday, the “man” who was wearing the Navy Blue Braves shirt working Autograph Area #1 from the time the event started until I left the line around noon was awful. This man defined the word jerk and I was actually taken back by how rude he was. I expected more out of anyone from the Braves.

Customer Service this year was awful, the people working the autograph area all need to be replaced if they hold this event next year.

By atlanta_braves_gal

January 14, 2008 4:33 PM | Link to this

This was the 3rd year in a row that I’ve been unsuccessful in getting my engraved Chipper Jones bat autographed. sigh Maybe next year… :(

By FANFEST SUCKS!!!!

January 14, 2008 4:45 PM | Link to this

I complained so much that they took me into a room and said that they would give me something. They came out with a Braves hat that would fit a 2 year old baby. I will never go again no matter what. I dont even want to be a Braves fan after all that LYING and STEALING of my money. FANFEST SUCKS!!!!!

By Captain Obvious

January 14, 2008 5:06 PM | Link to this

Chris, Spring Training is not unaffordable. Tickets to the games are cheap. Nice cheap hotels everywhere. Go for a weekend. Catch 2 games, get about 100 autographs.Each year I’ve gone I’ve gotten Chipper on jerseys, bats, balls, whatever. Even Sheffield signed when he was with the Braves. My parents took me during my spring break when I was a kid, and I continue to take a week’s vacation every spring for Spring Training. It’s stress free, easy autographing access and everything. If you don’t get 20-50 autographs a day your not trying.

As far as the FanFest goes, I’m glad I didn’t attend from reading all these post. How many things that happen in their 1st year work? The Braves will get it straightened out. As for “not liking the team” because your kid didn’t get Francoeur,Mccann, or Chipper to sign their jersey. That’s a bit ridiculous. Players make all kind of appearances in the ATL area every year. I learn that just by reading this newspaper online. Also if the team is leaving for getaway day. Go down to Turner Field, and wait outside by the players parking lot after the game. They pull a big bus up and the players literally walk infront of you. It’s easy.

By Justin Hollifield

January 14, 2008 5:37 PM | Link to this

I attended Fanfest both Saturday and Sunday. I was really lucky on getting autographs on Saturday. I received autographs from Chipper Jones, Josh Anderson, and Jair Jurrjens. However, Sunday was a complete 360. I arrived at 7:30am to prepare for the chaos. When the doors opened to the festivities, people frantically sprinted to the autograph stages. Unfortunately, I was one of the sprinters. I really wanted to obtain an autograph from Tom Glavine, but, despite my early arrival and sprinting, I fell ten people short from receiving Tom’s autograph. Instead, I received Schrieber and Brian Jordan.

By Penny

January 14, 2008 5:38 PM | Link to this

I would rather freeze at Turner Field than to be subjected to Fan Fest at the Congress Center. Braves officials were rude and security was useless in the autograph line. Lines were 4 hours or more so you could not even enjoy anything else at Fan Fest. You were unable to choose whose autograph you wanted. You were subjected to people who may not even make the team. This is not fair to paying fans. There was no interaction with the team is why I have gone for the last three years. Improvements need to be made. You could have a starter and a veteran together instead of having two starters or two unknowns together. Mix them up.

By Ansley

January 14, 2008 5:48 PM | Link to this

Do any of yall really remember last years fanfest? Unbearably cold temperatures. Most lines were hours long. All the favorite players were scheduled at the same time so you had to choose between all the good ones.

No thanks. This years was very flawed but get there early. I got 5 autographs from REAL players and three pictures.

By Craig

January 14, 2008 6:03 PM | Link to this

I want to say something positive about my experience. Everybody we talked to, from players to Braves employees, were friendly and helpful I got several autographs, Smoltz, Javy, Hudson, Sammons and pictures with several more. I appreciated the Braves players patience. I can’t wait for another great Braves year.

By Thomas

January 14, 2008 6:11 PM | Link to this

Hey, Braves Fans!

Did the franchise at least use K*Y on you guys who went to FAN-FEST?

As a considerate gentleman, I always use K*Y when I f******* someone in the bum… unlike that D. Schiller fellow with the Braves.

By William

January 14, 2008 6:25 PM | Link to this

Well, I thought Fanfest was a totally awesome!!! But I had an elite pass. I can understand everyones frustration who waited in line for hours. I got everyones autograph I wanted and pictures also. All the players were friendly and very nice to the kids. The elite pass was the way to go!!!

By Kris in NC

January 14, 2008 6:26 PM | Link to this

It sounds as if no one had a good weekend at Fan Fest. I drove 4 hrs to attend Fan Fest as a present for my birthday. Where was security when we were lining up before they let us in? People trying to cut in line. Needless to say, a few of us who were talking took care of it, we found those black suit security people and got them booted to the back of the long line. On Sunday, they were no where to be found and I, along with some other people dealt with some rude people that should have been thrown out before they were let in. I was almost shoved down the escalator by some overweight woman in a hurry and was running to get there first.

I do hope the Braves front office does read these horror stories and keep emailing the Braves website and posting on the message board about the terrible experiences we have had. No one should stand in line for 5 hours or longer for autographs. They were worried about violating rule set by the fire marshall but if there had been a fire, I can’t even imagine what it would have been like for all of us trying to get out of there. GET RID OF THOSE STUPID VENDORS. Who cares about them? I am there to see the players and interact with them. Players need to get out the suite and get on the floor with the fans who come and see them every time they play. I have to say this, Jeff and Brian greeted everyone as if they were the only one standing in front of them and that including the security people. I heard Jeff put a security guy in his place when a fan wanted his picture taken with Jeff and Brian and the security guy said Jeff and Brian didn’t have time. Jeff told the guy, he would make time for his fan and took the picture with the fan. That is what Fan Fest was about, spending time with the players not some stupid security guy saying you can’t take a picture with them or have an autograph. Good going Jeff.

By Jefferson

January 14, 2008 7:26 PM | Link to this

I took my wife and two children for the experience and all I can say is the Braves Fan Fest sucked!

From the cheesy Vendors, to the so called entertainment, it was bad. Even the 790 The Zone booth was a poor example how to treat loyal listeners - my wife was totally disregarded by some young punk - from now on, I will only listen to 680 The Fan.

That was easily the biggest waste of money I have ever spent and I will never go again.

I feel used and abused and no, they did not use any K-Y.

By brad

January 14, 2008 7:32 PM | Link to this

Tried going to the Braves’ website to email a complaint…got kicked back as undeliverable.

By JOSH

January 14, 2008 7:32 PM | Link to this

FanFest was fun and the only time I got to see the players was during the Q and A sessions. The lines were way too long and tiresome.

Maybe next year it will be better….but all in all…for 20 bucks…couldnt ask for more!

By Katie

January 14, 2008 8:38 PM | Link to this

I think the Fanfest money goes to the Braves Foundation, not the team itself.

One of the local TV reporters blogged about his experience standing in line.

http://community.myfoxatlanta.com/blogs/RandyTravis/2008/01/12/FanFest

By Josh, NC

January 14, 2008 8:50 PM | Link to this

I thought this years FanFest was great. After waiting in the cold for 5 hours last year from Chipper, it was much nicer being inside, away from the elements. Yes, the lines were long, but what did you people expect? There are 30,000+ at every Braves game, you had to expect most of them to show up at the FanFest. The “treasure hunt” is about the fairest way for the Braves to do it. Althogh the Braves did screw up not keeping the tables somewhat even. Why did McCann and Francouer sign together? They should have split those guys up, and put some not no popular guys with them.. Folks did get screwed later in the day on Saturday with the minor leaguers and coach. All in all I thought it was great, Thank Braves Staff!

By Kevin

January 14, 2008 8:59 PM | Link to this

The email on the website is working now at atlantabraves.com

By Chris

January 14, 2008 9:40 PM | Link to this

I found out many years ago, the best way to get an autograph is in Spring Training. Go to one of the first spring training games if you can as early as you can. The players have not had to sign autographs in a few months and they will stay a little longer to try and give one to everyone. Also, the team usually has a split squad when they play away but MLB requires them to send at least 4 starters. You stand a better chance of getting an autograph if you are a fan of the visiting team because most of the fans are for the home team and they are pounding their own players for a signature. And I have never paid more than $15 for a spring training ticket. Try going when you get the chance. Vero Beach (Dodgers, and Viera (Nationals) are the best places to get a good signature. Both very fan friendly. Disney (Braves) not so friendly. Iv been going since 1984 back when the Braves played at West Palm Beach and I would rather go to Spring Training any day than go to a game at the Ted. If been to Vero Beach (Dodgers), Viera (Marlins in the past, Expos/Nationals now), Port St. Lucy (Mets), Kissimmee (Astros), Celebration/Disney (Braves). You have to hit up Dodger Town in Vero Beach this year. This is the last year they will play in Vero and it is by far the best Spring Training site. And Spring Training is a great family vacation in the great Florida sun with plenty of family things to do.

By Thomas

January 14, 2008 9:47 PM | Link to this

Just to clarify: I do NOT mean to single out any one particular Braves employee, or imply that he/she acted alone, in aggressively sodomizing the team’s fan base over the weekend. From the responses here, it sounds like it was a COMPLETE TEAM EFFORT.

By Educated Braves Fan

January 14, 2008 9:48 PM | Link to this

I agree with everyone here that Fanfest was total chaos. I too would be angry if I waited 4 hours for a Snitker autograph. They need to change the format, and you can bet they will. 99% of people were unhappy. I was one of the happy ones, and here’s why…I met Terry Pendleton, a Braves legend. I met Mike Devereaux, the 95 NLCS MVP. I was lucky enough to get an autograph from Francoeur, the most genuine baseball player on the planet. But I think one reason that many people are angry is that they have no knowledge of the team’s history whatsoever, and so they only knew about a handful of players who were there. As a Braves fan for 30 years, it has always been painfully obvious that our fans are not the most knowledgeable fans in baseball. Trust me, I wish it was different, because I’m sick of hearing about it from my Yankees and Sox friends around the country. Here’s a few examples from the weekend: 1) One person actually didn’t know who Sid Bream was. Sid Freaking Bream!!! He only scored the second most important run in Braves’ history. 2) The majority of people had no clue who Mike Devereaux was. Umm, he was the NLCS MVP in 95, the year we won the Series. So, he was kind of important. 3) Most people had no interest in getting a photo with Phil Niekro. That’s just sad, and shows a lack of interest in the history of the game. He’s a great man, and a legend. 4) No one seemed to know or care who the minor league guys were. I guess this is more excusable, but you would think that the Braves fans would at least show them some respect. I would love to have seen what would happened if Jason Heyward had shown up. Everyone would have looked the other way, while I got an autograph from a future Braves superstar. Don’t you people realize that Chipper Jones and Jeff Francoeur were once in the minor leagues? How cool would it have been to get an autograph from them way back when? So I do understand everyone’s anger, and it is lame to just get one autograph in a day. But if you learn more about your TEAM, and not just Chipper, Smoltz, etc., maybe you will realize that there are a lot of really nice players who are actually very happy to give up their time for the fans (Josh Anderson, Mike Gonzalez, etc. etc.).

By kennyg

January 14, 2008 10:47 PM | Link to this

Where was the Fire Marshall on this overcrowded event? After reading most all comments from this Fan fest, it’s hard to think the building was under occupied at anytime of the weekend. As most things are today……it’s all about the Evil Dollar!

By Matt

January 14, 2008 11:01 PM | Link to this

ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?!?!? THE MASCOT WAS SIGNING!?!?!? Jeeze, I’m glad I left when I did. If I had ended up waiting 5 hours for the MASCOT’S autograph, I would have flipped. This was the biggest disaster to hit the Braves organization since Mike Hampton was signed. I am NEVER going back, because I don’t want to waste five hours of my life in a line for an autograph from the friggin MASCOT!!!

By FanFest Rape Survivor

January 14, 2008 11:30 PM | Link to this

This event was SO poorly executed and many of the fans were treated so badly, you would think the FALCONS organized it instead of the BRAVES.

By Whew

January 15, 2008 12:28 AM | Link to this

I didn’t go to the FanFest, but I wanted to. I had thought about getting tickets to the event for my dad for Christmas for us to go together. I go to school out of state, so I’d have to fly back in to do so, but it’s one of our things together to enjoy baseball, and especially the Braves. But, we decided not to do that because of the cost for me to travel home and because of the venue. GWCC may help get people out of the cold, but it’s a giant slab of concrete, and with my dad’s back, it would be a couple of LONG days. After reading so many posts saying how bad it was, I’m very relieved we didn’t decide to get tickets! I would have been hacked if I flew home for all that!

One thing I do have to say though, from reading some of the posts…to those who are vowing to boycott the Braves this year or refuse to support them or whatever as a result of FanFest, I fail to see the logic in that. You can be mad about the event and complain, but that’s not the players’ fault…why refuse to support the team because the marketing folks fumbled the event? I feel for everyone that suffered through all that, but put the blame where it goes…

By Rob

January 15, 2008 7:48 AM | Link to this

I totally agree with everyone else. What a waste of time and MONEY. Spent $50.00 for the family to get in to see 4 hour waits for autographs for who? You could not see or know who was at the table. Bought 3 baseballs to be signed and just put them unsigned in the bag that we got after signing up for something. Went to get something to eat and drink and spent $14.00 on a personal pizza $5.00 on 2 drinks and $5.00 on cotton candy and a snow cone. How about showing the fans that took the time to go support our team a break on at least the price of food or drink.There is plenty of time to break the bank of the fans at the Braves games, one day would have been nice to have not spent over $100.00 at a Braves outing and for what,a stroll around memory lane or wait in line all day. At least at the stadium we get to watch a baseball game. This was a complete joke and WILL NOT be back for another.

By BravesFan

January 15, 2008 8:50 AM | Link to this

The Falcons actually need to run the Braves Fanfest at least the Falcons Fanfest day down at Piedmont Park is fun and you’re guaranteed to meet several starting players. I understand the Braves carry a smaller roster but the way the Falcons organize their event with numbered tents and random players makes it more fair for everyone involved. If you have a numbered ticket and get in line as scheduled you will get an autograph and in two years I’ve never stood in line for more then 20 minutes.

The Falcons may not have the best on the field product, but at least they know how to run a fan friendly event. The Braves should take a note or two from the Falcons when it comes to FanFest events.

By Tara

January 15, 2008 9:28 AM | Link to this

I also was extremely disappointed with FanFest this year. This was only my second time able to attend FanFest (the first was in 2000), and the first time was FAR superior. My boyfriend and I stood on one of the autograph lines for 4 hours (and if you think I’m exaggerating, the exact time was 11:45am to 3:45pm), thereby missing most of the goings-on in other parts of the room, only to miss Chipper Jones by about 5 minutes and end up with Charlie Leibrandt’s autograph. No offense to Mr. Leibrandt, I’m happy to have his autograph, but honestly, I wouldn’t have waited in a 4-hour line for it if I knew that’s what I’d end up with. If I had ended up with a Smoltz, Chipper, or Glavine autograph, it would have been worth that long a wait, but I feel my time spent standing in line was a waste. I am lucky enough to live in the Atlanta area now, but for people who come from far out of town, I’d imagine this was even more of a letdown and a waste of a lot of time and money. As for the “Elite Pass” thing, that’s great for established adults who can afford it, but I’m 24 years old, I struggle to pay my rent each month. The only reason I was able to attend FanFest at all is because my mom was kind enough to get me the Holiday Package for my birthday, and now I honestly feel bad that she wasted her money on that. If the Braves want people to continue to show up to FanFest in future years, they really need to change the autograph format back to how it used to be, or at least make it so people know what they are waiting for. Otherwise, there will continue to be masses of disgruntled fans, and I would predict that FanFest attendance will plummet accordingly.

By Josh, NC

January 15, 2008 9:55 AM | Link to this

To all the disgruntled people…please don’t go next year…that way the lines I will wait in will be that much shorter. Thanks in advance!

By Kris in NC

January 15, 2008 10:07 AM | Link to this

Well, I sent an email to the Braves by way of atlantabraves.com and told them to make sure the Sales/Marketing Dept got it. It was their responsibility to put this together and they failed in a major way. For the person who said, “Where was the Fire Marshall?”, you are right, where was he? Sunday morning, the lady who was keeping us in line on the right side, would walk by and tell us, keep near the rail, don’t block the aisle per the fire marshall. I want to know where the fire marshall was when the aisles downstairs was being blocked by the line of people waiting up to 5 hours for autographs and up to an hour or more for pictures. No where in sight. Security, in my opinion, sucked. All they did was walked around. I let the Braves know that too. I have said it before and I will say it again, all of us email or write letters to the Braves, voice our displeasure at the way the Braves handled Fan Fest. I paid way to much money for tickets, gas and hotel for the weekend. The only exciting thing for me was the free tickets to the Hawks game on Friday night. That made my weekend if not anything else. Did meet some nice people from other states. You all made it fun for me.

By BravesFan

January 15, 2008 10:19 AM | Link to this

Josh, I will be there, I contacted the Braves, they assured me things would be looked at and reevaluated for next year. You, unlike the Braves don’t understand why people are upset and why they are voicing their concern(s). Without places like this the Braves would never know what we the fans, the customers enjoyed and disliked, they’re taking the constructive criticism and will work with it. There’s no need to bash those who are venting here, it will help the event to be better next year. It’s better to say something then to say nothing at all in this instance.

By tony

January 15, 2008 10:24 AM | Link to this

this was a total waste of time. i was there on saturday and waited 4 hours and got one autograph. the setup for the autographs were horrible. the treasure hunt is a terrible idea. last year was great. you knew you who were waiting in line for an autograph. i will be writing a letter to the organization about my experience. if its like this next year, count me out.

By Kelly

January 15, 2008 10:34 AM | Link to this

I didn’t care anything about autographs, but I went to FAN FEST in order to take in a “baseball atmosphere.”

Unfortunately, the event, in its entirety, is THE tackiest, most disorganized and most poorly planned event the BRAVES have ever held.

Michael Vick should be forced to got to BRAVES FAN FEST as part of his prison sentence. (Yes, it really was THAT bad.)

By Matt the Brave

January 15, 2008 10:49 AM | Link to this

This only goes to confirm that I spent my Saturday in a better place (Allatoona Pass Battlefield) going and hiking than standing in the old, stinky Georgia World Congress Center waiting in line like I were at Six Flags. It was great at the Ted. If you kept moving, you didn’t stay cold! And free parking is always a plus.

By C from Marietta

January 15, 2008 11:30 AM | Link to this

I have never been into Fanfest. For me it’s all about the game. You can have the circus outside the game.

By Volfanatic

January 15, 2008 11:41 AM | Link to this

I got more laughs reading this blog than the comedy channel could ever provide. Kelly, you made me LMAO with that comment about Michael Vick should go to Fan Fest as a part of his prison sentence. The K-Y comments were classic!!! Reading all these complaints was very entertaining. I have to agree the most with Chris. Go to Spring Training. I have never been but I have always wanted to. I can imagine that autographs WOULD be much easier obtained that way. I also agree with other posters that boycotting the Braves games this year due to the short comings at Fan Fest would be silly and immature. It sounds to me like the PLAYERS were good sports and for the most part handled themselves, the children, and the huge crowds well. I can’t imagine it was very easy on them to sit out there in that chaos. We need all the fans we can get at the TED this season. I don’t know about you all but I could USE another NLCS and World Series with the Braves back chopping away at the competition. Anyway, let this past weekend be a lesson to all of you. If you go, show up early!! If not, then for crying out loud don’t stand in a 4 hour line. I wouldn’t stand in a line that long if the the infield tandem of God, Jesus Christ, Joseph, and Moses were signing autographs!! Take care and GO BIG ORANGE!!!!!!

By Kris in NC

January 15, 2008 12:47 PM | Link to this

I am glad to see the Braves are listening to the fans and taking what we are saying seriously. Staying away from the games themselves is stupid. I will be going to games this season because my love for the Braves is strong. The Braves players aren’t at fault, they seem to enjoy themselves, they only did what was told to them by whoever was in charge. When you can shake the hand of your favorite player and tell them they are your favorite player and they say Thank You, that is what counts. I know my sister talked with Glavine and he was very nice and personable. He signed both days as did Jurrjens and he wasn’t on the schedule for Saturday. I saw some of the players as they were being escorted to where they were supposed to be. The funniest thing that I want to share is I was at the station where the players where throwing the wiffle ball and there was a tv reporter and her camera guy, they were debating whether to go on the field to get the story, I am listening to this conversation take place. Now remind you, she is a Sports reporter. She knows who Mark Lemke and Roger McDowell are but she says to her cameraman, “I wonder who that short bald guy is” I turned and said to her, “That is Chuck James, a true Braves fan would know their players.” After that, they walked onto this downsize scale of a field to do their story. I laughed to myself that this sports reporter didn’t know who Chuck James was. Yet she knew Roger McDowell, CJ’s pitching coach. Sad and pathetic if you ask me. I love the interaction of the players with the young kids. I saw Jeff Bennett with them and he enjoyed throwing to the young kids. Smiles from every player I saw, whether they were reading, throwing or answering questions. That is what it should have been about but it was about long lines, vendors peddling their products that we as the general public won’t buy. Let’s hope the Braves fix this mess and make it better,maybe moving back to the Ted would be the right move. I would not mind standing in the cold and would like the free parking. I paid $10 for parking both days because I got there early. Getting there early was key.

www.the-ted.net

By C Leibrandt

January 15, 2008 1:23 PM | Link to this

As a good faith gesture to all our true fans, Please come to my home, the lines aren’t long, and I offer a free video replay of my Game 6 1991 WS game ender to Kirby Puckett as I give out my autograph.

By Freddie Falcon

January 15, 2008 1:38 PM | Link to this

Falcon FanFest offers no lines, y’all come!

By BravesFan

January 15, 2008 2:25 PM | Link to this

Falcon FanFest offers no lines, y’all come!

Correction, the Falcons FanFest is more well organized and is FREE.

By Rebecca Machoka

January 15, 2008 2:52 PM | Link to this

This was our first year for fanfest and our last. It was a total waste of time. We took our daughter and stood in line for 4 hours to get an autograph from someone who could careless if we were there or not. I was totally disappointed. I almost took my 80 year old mother, because she is such a fan, now I am glad I did not take her.

By BravesFan

January 15, 2008 3:47 PM | Link to this

I can’t believe the whining and crying I am seeing in here. First of all, Fan Fest is ABOUT THE KIDS. All those interactive games they had set up in there, the sportscasting thing, the photo booth, the reading dugout, the player run clinics. I mean seriuosly.. when WE were kids did we have the opportunity to have a MLB pitcher play catch with us? People seem to feel ENTITLED or something. It is a charity event and all these people are saying they will boycott the games because they didn’t get a Chipper autograph. Atlanta really is a bandwagon town. The staff I encountered was OVERLY nice and polite. Very understanding and helpful people. Thank goodness we were not freezing our butts off or trying to race around turner field to get a numbered card, only to get knocked over by some overzealous autograph hound. Was this years FanFest perfect? Heck no! Will I stop attending games because a charity event needs a bit of tweaking? HECK NO! Get over yourselves, whiners!

By BravesFan

January 15, 2008 3:47 PM | Link to this

I can’t believe the whining and crying I am seeing in here. First of all, Fan Fest is ABOUT THE KIDS. All those interactive games they had set up in there, the sportscasting thing, the photo booth, the reading dugout, the player run clinics. I mean seriuosly.. when WE were kids did we have the opportunity to have a MLB pitcher play catch with us? People seem to feel ENTITLED or something. It is a charity event and all these people are saying they will boycott the games because they didn’t get a Chipper autograph. Atlanta really is a bandwagon town. The staff I encountered was OVERLY nice and polite. Very understanding and helpful people. Thank goodness we were not freezing our butts off or trying to race around turner field to get a numbered card, only to get knocked over by some overzealous autograph hound. Was this years FanFest perfect? Heck no! Will I stop attending games because a charity event needs a bit of tweaking? HECK NO! Get over yourselves, whiners!

By Tara

January 15, 2008 3:55 PM | Link to this

One of the worse experiences of my life. My husband, brother and I went and only stayed for about 45 minutes. The line was 1/2 a mile long. I can’t begin to tell you how we were all disappointed. It was a waste of my day, time and money. I will never ever go again.

By Kris in NC

January 15, 2008 5:49 PM | Link to this

BravesFan I don’t know what FanFest you attended but it wasn’t the same one most of us attended. FanFest is supposed to be for everyone. If it was just for the kids, then name it that, KidsFest. It is called FanFest for a reason, it is for everyone, kids to adults but it was geared to the kids. I got there early, got my autographs then fought through the lines of people blocking the aisles just to get through to get to other places. Alot of us paid alot of money to attend this event, money in gas, for parking, food and hotel. So don’t tell me not to whine. I don’t know who you talked to but security didn’t do their job, if they did, the lines would have been organized and shortened. I sent an email to the Braves because they need to hear from us fans on how disappointed we are so they can work on next yrs fan fest, yes it is FAN FEST not KIDS FEST.

By Val

January 15, 2008 6:46 PM | Link to this

I’ve been to fanfest once…a couple years ago. What a waste. I decided to save my money (I fly down from VA) and go to Baseball 101 (I’m a woman and can go). They limit the number, everyone gets to talk to the players that attend, get autographs and have their photo taken. And you get to learn about baseball from the best, have a great time and get 2 free game tickets for that night. Maybe the fanfest organizers should talk to the Baseball 101 organizers.

By Dillain

January 15, 2008 7:16 PM | Link to this

On a positive note: Francoeur and McCann went above and beyond courteous…Frenchy especially. I asked him to sign my item and he voluntarily personalized it with a sweet little message. Because of him, the fact that I waited the rest of the day (5 hrs) in line for no one didn’t seem so bad.

Just be prepared and you can get more autographs. (My friend and I got in line both days at 8.) And bring more people to serve as placeholders in line. I ended up with Smoltz, Glavine, K. Johnson, McCann, Francoeur, and Sid Bream and Marquis Grissom.

Instead of fighting an endless battle, beat the system.

By Richard

January 15, 2008 7:45 PM | Link to this

I agree with Adam G up there.. Don’t waste your money going to fanfest. i went when I was like 13… I had a good time got smolties glavines lightningberg and a few others as well. It was nice but now that i live in clearwater, FL spring training is insane. Save some money for a week down to the tampa area. You have the phillies complex down here the yankees which is impossible to get autographs at also the rays for now blue jays the braves only an hour away but its hard to get autographs at. My best advise is to get tickets to when the braves play the phillies. Last spring training i got chippers frenchies T.P(one of my favs) and Mike gonzolaz… I was so happy it was an awesome day.. Got to talk to chipper and frenchie and everything it was an awesome experience I’ll never forget!! Go Braves!!

By Derek

January 16, 2008 12:10 AM | Link to this

Bravesfan, the fanfest is not just for kids it should be for everyone! It was obviously made for kids and i didn’t like that. Fanfest should be made for everyone to experience the excitement of the fanfest. I waited in line for over 4 hours just to get one lousy autograph(Hunter) and that was pathetic compared to the 07 fanfest. Last year i got francouer,mccann,c jones, and boyer’s autograph and i was very happy! Also, it was multiple items so, i got nearly ten autographs last year. They should have had more autograph stations set-up, This elite pass was very unfair to others that were waiting in line for hours and hours to get autographs. I heard the detroit tigers and some others had their fanfest held at their stadiums and this year we were worried about the weather. Give me a break, i’d rather freeze and get some autographs instead of getting one autograph in a hot building. This year’s fanfest was absolute disapointment, it was HUGE waste of time!

P.S. Please come to the Hot Stove Gathering in Rome Georgia at State Mutual Stadium without waiting in line for hours. Bobby Cox and a few others will be there and it will be held on thursday january 31st. It will be easy to get autographs that you want. For more details go to romebraves.com

By Coach Carter

January 16, 2008 5:00 AM | Link to this

There are plenty of complaints here that are very valid, but for my family, it was a good weekend. My wife and I took our 12 year old daughter, who is a huge Chipper Jones fan! Note I say it was a good weekend, not a great one. There was much standing around, but that was something we expected going in.

We attended both days, and came away with many autographs. We were fortunate to get Chipper and newly acquired Jair Jurrjens and Josh Anderson on Saturday. On Sunday we got Peter Moylan, Blaine Boyer, Pete Smith, Greg Olson, Jeff Bennett, Clint Sammons, Brian Snitker and Georgia Tech coach Danny Hall.

My daughter enjoyed many of the interactive games, and she and my wife even tried their hats at announcing at the FSN/Sportsouth stage…and took home a complementary DVD of their “broadcast”!

All in all, I probably spent somewhere around $250 for tickets, parking, food, and some 16 X 20 photos for my Braves room. In return I have 19 signed baseballs, two signed jerseys, three photos, a signed mini bat, Lots of complimentary goodies that were being handed out all over the place, and some sore feet!

I figure there were many lessons learned and changes will be forthcoming for future Fan Fests…and we’ll be there to see it!

By Melvin

January 16, 2008 10:16 PM | Link to this

Did the Atlanta Braves have college interns organizing this year’s event?

What a DISASTER this Fan-Fest was!