There were as many breakthroughs as there were setbacks at the 2010 CrossFit Games. The most noticeable breakthrough? CrossFit HQ designed workouts that were innovative, fun, and exciting to watch. The irony, and the most noticeable setback, was seen in the scarcity of the audience that was watching it. But the event being hosted at the Home Depot Center was about the future. And the crowds will surely come.
Driving up to the Home Depot Center was surreal. I'll admit, my intent was to study the weekend with a critical perspective. I missed Aromas and I deeply wanted to follow-up Are You Not Entertained (Part One) with the justification for the assertions that I made in the first article. Some of those assertions go without saying. No one can argue that the 2010 CrossFit Games was an expensive trip. But beyond that, it was amazing to look at the venue, watch the workouts, listen to the commentary, and follow the tenacity of the cameras that caught every waking moment of the athletes' successes and failures.
Ten minutes hadn't passed before Dave Castro walked by and let me know, in his own way, that he had read Part One. He wasn't gleaming with happiness but I could sense that he respected my opinion. Stark and honest commentary is great for any sport; I'd like to think that I was acting as an ombudsman of sorts. My collective assertion about the sport's future wasn't a matter of if but rather, it was a matter of when. With the growth of the sport, it is simply a matter of time.
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The odd thing about this weekend was that I didn't sweat the small stuff. The beer prices didn't bother me. Food selection was a non-issue, I brought my own. Even parking was an ignored discomfort. Competing as a member of an affiliate team was great but it was the moments away from the action that I most cherished. At any given moment, I found myself in a cauldron of intuition, perception, and foresight. I would stare at the ensuing action, and then close my eyes, imagining a full stadium. It did no good to address what wasn't when the only helpful perspective was to imagine what could be.
The three issues that I put forth in part one were: the integrity of CrossFit brand's image outside of our niche, the lack of extraneous media, and whether or not a live feed could emote a sensory experience for those who had yet to experience CrossFit.
A few potential breakthroughs occurred after the 2010 CrossFit Games:
- The CrossFit Games: An Action Sports Investment Opportunity in the Making
- Level 3 Delivers Live Stream of 2010 CrossFit Games to Global Audience
The CrossFit Games landed an influential article on the Forbes website. Press releases were written referring to CrossFit as a sport rather than merely a fitness regimen. Most importantly, my mother raved on and on about the competition. In Part One of this article, I stated the following:
Live broadcasting an event that few (outside of a micro-niche) understand will accomplish less than people would think. Internet live broadcasts can do a lot for the prestige of a media operation but in this instance, it won't help drive attention in the same magnitude that CrossFit would by gathering those spectators into a stadium. CrossFit is a sensory experience. You have to feel the energy to love it.
For the past few years that my wife and I have been involved with CrossFit, my mother has been unapologetically apathetic towards our love for the sport. On the way to the airport, ready to board a flight to Texas, I called to discuss the Games with her one last time. Over a span of a weekend she text messaged me over 100 times, enthralled in the live coverage. By the weekend's finish, she was an avid fan. She knew the names, the movements, the personalities, and how severe the obstacles were that they faced. It was like she was there with us.
I tentatively posed the question, "Would you be a fan if your family wasn't involved?" "Hmmmm...yes." And just like that, I was sold. The live broadcast turned the unknowing into fans and it converted the lukewarm into the maniacal. I thought back to those moments during the weekend's festivities where I sat with my eyes clamped, imagining the day when sandbag stair climbs are impossible in a stadium filled to capacity. Projected imagery ran through my mind; each visual signified that the sport had arrived. If my formerly apathetic mother is any indication, we won't be waiting too much longer for that day. The audience there and afar watched the Games with vehemence.
By all indication, they were entertained.
See | What is SICFIT.com?
By Web Smith | SICFIT
a) Perhaps people felt that watching the live coverage would seem more enticing than sitting in a hot stadium?
b) It was super expensive?
c) The Games movement is smaller than we think it is?
d) People went to Aromas to party rather than view a sporting event?
e) People were burnt out by constant talk of the Games on the site? (NOTE: SICFIT's viewership skyrocketed as we pulled back on Games coverage/linkage)
f) Tony, Dave, Greg, etc...decided to go larger than necessary. My mother always told me that she bought me larger shoes as a child because I would stretch my toes and grow into them faster. Well played mom. I am a size 13/14. Sometimes, you just have to take a chance and have faith in what your "baby" will become. We clearly have the same view of SICFIT. We can't fault the guys for holding the games at a stadium 2-3 years before its time.
Like I wrote, the people will fill the seats if we focus on growing the community around us. We take that role seriously.
Web, I'm interested to know your opinion on why the stadium was so empty?
I streamed the games all weekend - on my computer and on my phone. I loved it all - the absurd workouts, not knowing what was coming, not knowing how anyone was going to handle the challenges, the commentary, the quality of the camera-work, the quality of the stream, etc.
I don't think the games need legitimizing by some increasingly irrelevant network or inane talking head. The networks used to own the channels, but they don't anymore. Crossfit, the sport, is one of the first to grow up in this age where compelling content is free to find its audience and gatekeepers are wondering what happened to the walls they relied upon.