Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

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Crouchend_Hammer
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Crouchend_Hammer »

hammerman11 wrote:regardless of our views the facts remain
1. we are too far from the pitch
2. the walk to the stadium is awful. soulless and not like a football match but an event
tbf Point 2 is an opinion
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e17
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by e17 »

Tbf to Listboy, it is a fact if your previous experience* was Green Street, Crouchy.

(*for most people)
IG8Hammer
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by IG8Hammer »

Sure this has probably been addressed, but is there any reason why they can't fill the concrete between the station and stadium with pop up bars etc.?

I presume it's because they want to get fans into the vicinity of the stadium asap, but it would be great and also reduce the queues at the stadium itself.
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Jon
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Jon »

With the Taylor Report and redesigning of most stadia the whole matchday experience changed forever.

UP to me felt sanitised compared with the terrace days. The LS is just another step further and for many too far.

Being at a game should be be miles better than watching on tv. And I don't mean the beers and chats with mates, I mean the 90 minutes.

Sadly it's less so these days. Being close to elite sportsmen should be a big factor of going to a game. Those who attend golf (I've never been) tell me it's incredible to stand behind a player about to hit a 200 yard second shot out of the rough, around a tree, within 10ft. Nothing should compare to actually BEING THERE.

I still enjoy going but only cos it's West Ham, not because I feel part of the game.

What's hard to grasp is that football and West Ham are more popular than ever. 50k+ will be there on Saturday. Hard to believe it's possible when you look at attendances of years gone by. Also people want to attend even though you can see the whole game on tv later on saturday night..
Crouchend_Hammer
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Crouchend_Hammer »

e17 wrote:Tbf to Listboy, it is a fact if your previous experience* was Green Street, Crouchy.

(*for most people)
"the walk to the stadium is awful" is an opinion. Regardless of whether you used to walk down Green Street or not
hammerman11
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by hammerman11 »

maybe but it is true though !
facts there are no stalls etc on the walk to the bowl area !
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Cuenca 'ammer
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Cuenca 'ammer »

as a quick aside, have a mate who is a golf fanatic..

got us freebies to the Shell Houston Open (that was)...unbelievable to be 5 yards or so away from a HUGE name golfer and watch him hit the ball.

and I am only an armchair fan for the majors.

my mate's telling me what club, how far he will probably hit it where he's aiming for....

now that's impossible to do at a football game obviously but being brought up at UP and all of the other grounds visited - you SHOULD be as close to the action as you want.

posted before somewhere, stopped going to concerts when I was in the nose bleed section of an indoor arena and for 75 dlrs (about 15 years ago) I stood watching Springsteen on the screen more than the stage..

because I couldn't bloody well see him well enough...sod going to the NRG stadium to watch a live band..

exactly how far away does one have to be, before it stops becoming enjoyable ?

(rhetorical I know)..

for me it was 3 rows from the back of about 18K seated venue for 75 dlrs (as I said a long time ago) and watching the screen rather than the live performance..

and I used to go to loads of concerts at one time.........
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Georgee Paris
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Georgee Paris »

I think it felt closer to the pitch than it actually was at the Boleyn - I’m certain the rake played a massive part in that
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clawhammer
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by clawhammer »

IG8Hammer wrote:Sure this has probably been addressed, but is there any reason why they can't fill the concrete between the station and stadium with pop up bars etc.?

I presume it's because they want to get fans into the vicinity of the stadium asap, but it would be great and also reduce the queues at the stadium itself.
Probably because it is a park most of the time.Fulham is a walk through the park but it is my favourite away game and would be ruined if there were stalls selling tat. If it wasn’t for the fact that there is no proper chippie at the end of it I prefer the walk to the Barking Road....station, Westfield and out through a John Lewis. That is not to say that I don’t think that things can’t be improved. There is something great walking up to the stadium especially for a night game.
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hammer1975
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by hammer1975 »

Crouchend_Hammer wrote: "the walk to the stadium is awful" is an opinion. Regardless of whether you used to walk down Green Street or not
Agreed that is an opinion.

The walk to the stadium is through an area that has little traditional football fan interaction opportunity until you get right on top of the stadium though - street sellers, pubs spilling onto the streets, street food sellers and places to gather and interact. Those are things that football fans are used to both at the Boleyn and at away stadiums throughout the country.

Whether by design or not the walk has the misfortune of having become a procession through a bland area that most want to get through as quickly as possible - as opposed to the area between the tube stations and the stadium at UP where many would spend significant hours before kick off.

I personally do think some of the negativity around the stadium would reduce if that walk had some life injected into it with something that fans felt was familiar (opinion i know). I think that’s why theme parks, American sports venues etc spend money on that sort of thing deliberately to fill the space and stop people getting bored whilst they wait for the real entertainment.
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Rocketron
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Rocketron »

Georgee Paris wrote:I think it felt closer to the pitch than it actually was at the Boleyn - I’m certain the rake played a massive part in that
No. The whole of the BG fits inside the upper tier of the OS.
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Georgee Paris
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Georgee Paris »

No, the distance from the corners of the pitch to the first row of seats isn’t further away than the entire Boleyn.
costa75
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by costa75 »

Crouchend_Hammer wrote:
"the walk to the stadium is awful" is an opinion. Regardless of whether you used to walk down Green Street or not
I just cannot understand the supposed love for Green Street. It is, and always was a total s**thole.

I much prefer the walk both to and from the new place.
mushy
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by mushy »

costa75 wrote:
I just cannot understand the supposed love for Green Street. It is, and always was a total s**thole.

I much prefer the walk both to and from the new place.
Seriously, what is it about Green Street that you don't like?
I think it's a fantastic place and still visit.
Kialos
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Kialos »

Some may think Green Street was always a **** hole, but for many generations of West Ham fans it was our home, literally. I have nothing but contempt for people who despise either their own roots or those of the majority of the historical fan base of this club.
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Pop Robson
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Pop Robson »

Won't be long and another 9,000 diehards will be doing the walk from Stratford, no chip shops, no stalls, no pie & mash, sweet shops, bookies, off licence, newsagents, cafe, fanzine sellers or pubs on route,

Next Level Chapions League this time next year
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Diogenes
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Diogenes »

Yes it was 'Mushy' in the 60's, 70' 80's. Since then, has had little to offer in the way of true local flavour.
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sicknote
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by sicknote »

Here we go again same posters every time rubbishing our old home and it’s surroundings , Kialos said it best above, sad that it’s always the same people always pulled up on it and always resort back to it
goa127
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by goa127 »

I don't see why is necessary to be anti-Boleyn to like the OS. The two places are totally different. A bit like liking strawberries and pork. They're both food I like, but very different. I think it might be an age thing, but it seems (and I'm the same age as Diogenes) that our nostalgia takes us back to the 60s,70s, 80s, so our attachment was not as strong as it used to be (to the Boleyn, not West Ham that's a lifetime curse!) It's obvious from peoples' preferences that we all like something different from football, ( I hate sitting low down, others hate sitting high up) but I do know quite a few people who generally like the OS. I don't recall any of them hating the Boleyn. They're all old like me by the way :)
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Tenbury
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Re: Olympic Stadium Discussion and Questions

Post by Tenbury »

However delightful some may find the OS experience, I'm bewildered and genuinely saddened to read anyone on these boards hating the Boleyn.
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