For The Fans Who Lived It

[George Steele's Barber]

I have my own opinions on the show itself just like everyone else who watched it on their TV or computers but I want to create a thread exclusively for the people that were actually there (Brain, Z, Pancake?) about the experience of being there. It is impossible to read everything and at this point this is the only thing left that piques my curiosity. I've never been to a WM, it is third behind the Super Bowl and World Cup as events I'd like to attend. So I am anxious to hear your thoughts.

Did Miami do a good job as host? Did you attend any other events? Did you hit the town? How was getting around? Did you see or talk to any wrestlers or celebrities? How was getting in and out of Sun Life? Were there a lot of long lines? How were your seats? What were the crowd reactions like? Any interesting chants or cool signs? Did you get a feel for the demographics of the attendees (Floridians vs. Out of towners, kids vs. Adults)? What were the people like in your section? Anything happen after the show? How long did folks stick around?

That should be enough questions to get some interesting info.

If this is a SPAM magnet let me apologize ahead of time to the mods. Soooorrrrry.

[The Risen Paralyzer]

Originally Posted by George Steele's Barber

Did Miami do a good job as host?

Pretty much yes, the experience was great and the crowd was on fire when it came to the big matches.

Did you attend any other events?

No, I was only there for a day and half for the sole purpose of Wrestlemania. However thanks to some Youtube wrestling mark I was aware that there were plenty of independent events going on at this time of year in Miami.

Did you hit the town?

Yep, about 3 hours before the event began I went to the bayside area. It was gorgeous and a heavenly place to shop and eat. We drove around the city for a bit and to my surprise saw many Wrestlemania promotional posters. Of course 50% of them featured Cena and or Rock but there were others on some of the posters as well.

How was getting around?

In reference to the city it was easy to get around. To the arena on the other hand it was more difficult. Through "underhanded driving tactics" we managed to get there before a majority of the others. There were cars lined up for a mile or more all headed to the Sunlife so you can imagine traffic was enormous.

Did you see or talk to any wrestlers or celebrities?

No.

How was getting in and out of Sun Life?

Getting in was fairly easy, since our seats were high up in the stadium we had to walk up this spiral sidewalk of some sort (watching our fellow fans chant FRUITY PEBBLES!). Getting out was the tough part, unpleasant at times. There was this huge crowd trying to get into the elevators after the Rock left, and the compaction of bodies had me scared that there would be some sort of incident. Lucky for us we went passed the elevators and straight to the emergency stairs which was far more convenient and safe. It took us about 40 minutes to get to our car in the craziness outside but we managed.

Were there a lot of long lines?

You bet your ass there were. Of both cars and people when entering and exiting the stadium. Takes a lot of patience to get there and back.

How were your seats?

Hell of a lot better than I was expecting. We got a great view of the ring and stage, so much that we didn't even have to use our binoculars that much at all. One thing to note was that during the final Rock celebration some of the fireworks sparks landed near me, hurt a bit but nothing lethal. We were on the highest section so I was expecting a far away view, fortunately I got a lot better than that. We really got the feel of the atmosphere with our seats.

What were the crowd reactions like?

Fantastic. This guy that sat next to me for the duration of the show practically made even better. He was going ballistic with chanting and prompted everyone in my section to do the same. As you can imagine the reaction to Rock/Cena and the Hell in a Cell match were off the charts, considering how good those matches were. They were nearly silent for the Team Johnny vs Team Teddy match after being exhausted by the Hell in a Cell match, and to unfortunately remained that way for the first ten minutes of the WWE title match. I even heard a couple of people say that they didn't care about Punk vs Jericho.

Any interesting chants or cool signs?

Well there were conflicting Cena chants all night long of course. When he was going for the 5-knuckle shuffle the other side of the audience began chanting (reminiscent of One Night Stand 2006) "Same old SHIT!" "Same old SHIT!". Behind there was a "WE WANT LESNAR" chant that lasted from the Taker/HHH match to the end of the show. As far as signs goes there was this guy at the end of the show during the exiting problems that held up a "Cena ruined wrestling" sign. This was the same guy that took off his shirt when Rock beat Cena. I didn't see any other noteworthy signs.

Did you get a feel for the demographics of the attendees (Floridians vs. Out of towners, kids vs. Adults)?

Most of them were Cena haters/fanatics. Before the event began I saw many kids going into the stadium but I couldn't quite feel there presence because of the loudness of the fanatics. There was this kid that started dancing in front of our section when Brodus Clay came on (hilarious).

What were the people like in your section?

It was a mix of Team Bring it guys and quite parents that didn't know much about wrestling. There were a few kids there that liked Cena but they were drowned out by the Cena sucks chants. I can say that the enthusiasm was obviously there, they were fun people for the most parts.

Anything happen after the show?

A couple of guys were drinking next to their cars waiting for traffic to clear up. I saw plenty of impatient people attempt to cut people in the traffic line which was a bit amusing. These 2 guys had the Rock's theme music blasting out of their car with a celebration in there.

How long did folks stick around?

Some of them stayed very long but most rushed to get out of there within an hour. That ended up in some pretty long lines of cars. We were one of the lasts to leave so it would be easier but that just involved sitting in the car doing nothing.

[DJ Kyo]

Did Miami do a good job as host?

Yes, did a great job of advertising of giving a good environment, etc.. All staff at all venues were great as well.

Did you attend any other events?

Yes, went to AXXESS and the HOF Ceremony. All were great. Got Chris Jericho's autograph and saw some pretty cool matches on the AXXESS stage from FCW and WWE wrestlers alike.

Did you hit the town?

Nah. I walked around Miami Beach a bit and spent a day out on the beach, but the 'party' crowd is too lame to me.

How was getting around?

Good god. A confusing city and I'm good with directions. Not to mention traffic was TERRIBLE. I thought we had bad traffic here in Dallas/Fort Worth, boy was I wrong...

Did you see or talk to any wrestlers or celebrities?

Not really. Other than the AXXESS Q&A sessions with Beth Phoenix and Big Show, no real interaction.... Although I told Shawn Michaels "great job" as he was on my flight this morning back to DFW!

How was getting in and out of Sun Life?

Getting in: Easy.. $40 for parking though, UGH! I heard that for Dolphins games it's $10.. so they raped us wrestling fans... Getting Out: HOLY CRAP. I couldn't move from my parking spot for over an hour.... was terribly setup to get out of there...

Were there a lot of long lines?

At AXXESS yes... I avoided the autograph lines like a plague except for the Y2J session, which I was 10th in line for so that was ok... and the VIP status got me to the front of all the other "attractions"

How were your seats?

The ones I ended up sitting in great... I had blue tarp over my section when I got there, but got moved to a better section one row closer on the 40-yard line.. so if it was a football game I had 2nd row seats! PHENOMENAL view... Only thing better would be on the floor.


What were the crowd reactions like?

OK... Good in most spots, crappy in some. No reaction for the Y2J/Punk match... Though it was kind of boring LIVE.. I hear on TV it was better...

Any interesting chants or cool signs?

A lot of "Daniel Bryan" chants in random spots during the night after his match... kind of weird..

Did you get a feel for the demographics of the attendees (Floridians vs. Out of towners, kids vs. Adults)?

50% Floridians I would say, the rest from EVERYWHERE.. I saw/talked to people from the UK, France, Spain, Sweden, Africa, the Middle East, and of course all over the US... very mixed crowd..

What were the people like in your section?

Ok.. a couple of Brits behind me and the rest were pretty active in cheering/chantring.

Anything happen after the show?

Not really... Rocky signed authographs on the floor for a few mins and then it was over...

How long did folks stick around?

Most TRIED to get out quickly.. but there again, getting out of Sun Life SUCKED. lol.

Overall it was a FANTASTIC experience and I would do it again in a heart beat.... I got what I wanted to see there and that was Taker go 20-0!

[ironsheik84]

Originally Posted by George Steele's Barber

I have my own opinions on the show itself just like everyone else who watched it on their TV or computers but I want to create a thread exclusively for the people that were actually there (Brain, Z, Pancake?) about the experience of being there. It is impossible to read everything and at this point this is the only thing left that piques my curiosity. I've never been to a WM, it is third behind the Super Bowl and World Cup as events I'd like to attend. So I am anxious to hear your thoughts.

Did Miami do a good job as host? Did you attend any other events? Did you hit the town? How was getting around? Did you see or talk to any wrestlers or celebrities? How was getting in and out of Sun Life? Were there a lot of long lines? How were your seats? What were the crowd reactions like? Any interesting chants or cool signs? Did you get a feel for the demographics of the attendees (Floridians vs. Out of towners, kids vs. Adults)? What were the people like in your section? Anything happen after the show? How long did folks stick around?

That should be enough questions to get some interesting info.

If this is a SPAM magnet let me apologize ahead of time to the mods. Soooorrrrry.

I didn't see this and made a different thread but this is what I'll copy what I said and answer your questions below :

"I flew in from Dallas, TX to attend (this was my fourth Wrestlemania) and the palm tree tower blocked literally half the ring for me. I gave up watching the ring since I was missing a good chunk of the action and ended up watching the entire event on the stadium screen which I could've done in Dallas, in the comfort of my own home or at the Fox and Hound for obviously a significantly lower dollar amount.

Honestly, this ruined my trip as my only reason for going to Miami was to watch Wrestlemania. For anyone else who was there, did you have the same experience?

(Before anyone mentions this I understand they had to put the HITC cage somehow.)"
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Did Miami do a good job as host?

YES! YES! YES!

Did you attend any other events?
No.

Did you hit the town?

YES! YES! YES! lol

I went with my siblings and some friends and had a blast going around the town. We did a lot of research on restaurants and had some amazing meals.

How was getting around?

A pain in the ass most of the time. Traffic sucked (it took me 30-45 minutes to make a 12mile drive for examlpe) and the drivers are total jackasses cutting me off constantly. Now, that's going by Dallas standards as I'm sure it's the norm for people from New York (for example).

Did you see or talk to any wrestlers or celebrities?

No.

How was getting in and out of Sun Life?

Surprisingly quick.

Were there a lot of long lines?

We parked and got into the arena surprisingly quickly.

How were your seats?

See my answer above. I'm so f'ing pissedat the WWE.

What were the crowd reactions like?

Great for some, kinda dead for others. What you'd expect.

Any interesting chants or cool signs?

"MOVE THE PALM TREES!" :: clap clap clapclapclap ::
"PALM TREES SUCK! PALM TREES SUCK!"
(Again, please see my previous answer)

Did you get a feel for the demographics of the attendees (Floridians vs. Out of towners, kids vs. Adults)?

Not really. Some German people were next to me so I can vouch for that, but I didn't really talk to anyone else.

What were the people like in your section?

There was this one guy who dressed up like CM Punk that got drunk (irony huh?) and was being a total d-bag, but other than that everyone was cool and was really into it.

Anything happen after the show?

I watched the Rock go around and interact with the crowd for a while, but I didn't stay too too long after it was over so I didn't get stuck in traffic.

How long did folks stick around?

Same answer as above. I didn't see how long people stayed cause I wanted to avoid traffic.