[Blogs] New Training Camp Autograph Policy

[Moderator 2]

[quote name='jen2swt' date='13 July 2010 - 11:38 PM' timestamp='1279078723' post='432574']
So what is the point of the Ravens Rookies now? We have to pay for our kids now and these kids now get to go out on the field free with just a wristband? I don't get it. Unless these now kids will have to pay and be apart of the RR? Anyone know? I need to renew my son's RR and don't want to if these other kids will be going out for free.
[/quote]

Ravens Rookies was always more then autographs, its the gear and Spring Football festival ticket, my youngest aged out last year. He would get birthday card and some other stuff I don't recall off the top of my head. There was only 1 special day at training camp for the club kids that I can recall.

[BuckWilds]

Kids get to interact with their favorite players - excellent policy. I'll gladly give up a shot at an autograph to let the kids be closer to their team.

[J-man]

[quote name='Ravens>Steelers' date='13 July 2010 - 07:55 PM' timestamp='1279065319' post='432484']
I remember when I was a kid, Ray Lewis walked right up to me a signed my football out of everyone else along the fence. I nearly crapped myself and was speechless. Still have that football sitting in my room. Also got a picture with Billick wearing that silly straw hat haha
[/quote]

Same thing happened to we with Joe Flacco his rookie year. It was love at first sight.

[RavensFanInBengalCountry]

Thanks for saving me a weeks worth of vacation...now that I won't be making my annual drive from Cincinnati. I understand that it should be fun for kids..but why give a 13 year old the joy of getting close to the players when you're just going to strip them of the experience a few years later...might as well just do away with autographs all together..I enjoyed filling my basement with the memories and memorabilia...but I'll have to settle for Bengals crap now...they'll still sign..

[Purple Nurple]

New child labor laws will be enacted after this!

[ravenfan123]

I thought the Ravens had the Ravens Rookie club to allow the kids 6-15 to get autographs. I mean this doesn't make any sense. They need to accompanied children & adults. I mean the children's autograph will probably end up under their bed or given to their parents so they can sell it on ebay. I mean Dick Cass didn't really think this through. Congrats Ravens, you just reached the level of the Orioles PR staff! Here is my idea. Make one zone for adults and one zone for children. Oh wait! Their was. But the children want to be like adults and go in the adult zone! Ravens are going to pay in attendance and reveune!

[Rudy the Raven]

really ravenfan123... your going to stop going to games because of a f$%&ing autograph. get real. anyone throwing a fit about this imo is not a real fan of the game of football. the game is not about collecting pictures and autographs, it's about the sound of hard knocks and cheers of a touchdown from the home team, its about the experience of beating the snot out of pittsburgh. its not about a sharpie writing on a bobblehead, f@#$ that, anyone can imitate that scribble anyway.

[ravenfan123]

Rudy the Raven... i meant training camp attendance and revenue. i love both the game and autographs. i was a fan before a autograph collector. i wouldn't stop going to games because of this.i'll still to training camp and to watch them.

[protect flacco]

money money money. its all about the money people. its crazy that billionaires are worried about a few low lives getting 120 bucks off of ebay. they can buy out ebay if they wanted and keep memorabilia from being sold if thats the case. more than half of the kids will be happy for the moment and forget it the next. why does your kid have to be a Ravens Rookie in order to get an autograph? to a die hard fan, 120 bucks isnt worth giving up their stuff that was signed by one of their favorite Ravens. like a lot of people already said, we (the fans) are the ones putting the money up to make the owners, their teams, and their staffs as rich as they are by buying 100 dollar tickets, 50 dollar hot dogs, and 25 dollar drinks. (not really, but they are expensive) what is a little bit of the players time to sign autographs gonna hurt? not their pockets

[Rav'n Maniac]

Don't worry guys & gals. They'll end up changing it again. Right after they get some 6 & 7 year olds pushing, shoving and pulling hair. It may end up breaking out into a full schoolyard brawl with scratching & biting. Now that would be news! j/k lol.

[BuckWilds]

The Ravens Organization did something nice for the kids. This is a FAMILY organization that cares about the fan experience at camp and elsewhere, and they're trying to design a family and child friendly environment. This organization has never been about trying to take from the fans and this decision is representative of the core values of the organization: family and fans matter to them. Good job, Ravens. You made the right choice. Don't let the complaining by a few affect your excellent decision.

I never liked watching grown men elbow each other, and children, out of the way to try to get an autograph. Begging another man to sign something is bad enough, but pushing a kid out of the way to do it... Embarrassing on several levels.

[TheRockyHorrorRavensShow]

Maybe I'm being an infamous "Jerk" for saying this, but I don't like the idea of autographs at training camp anymore. At all. I've seen the worst parts of human behavior from that setup and it's my least favorite part of the camp.

Certainly, the nostalgia of how things used to be in the olden days of sports were one thing. But with the ridiculous way things are being thrown around nowadays, it's a much better deal to drop 20$ on a ticket for a Great Moments Inc. player signing(located literally 5 mins from training camp on Rt 140 next to Shoppers Food Warehouse). You get to approach the player, they actually say something nice to you usually, you can snap a picture, not have to throw your child at them, and the quality looks great and sells even better if that's what you want to do with it one day.

The players want nothing to do with middle aged men screaming at them and shoving stuff in their faces to sign. From all the years Ive been going to camp, I've only ever seen players sign stuff for kids anyway, which only ever makes everyone else angry.

Oh, and it's Training camp. Don't you think we'd have better time spent not bugging these guys for their signatures? I know a picture of or a high-5 from Ray-Ray would be just as cool to me as a scribbled, chicken scrawl on my big gulp napkin... I'm just sayin'

Go Ravens!

[Rav'n Maniac]

BuckWilds & RockyHorror: Agree with you guys 100%. Couldn't have said it better myself. Once, when I attended camp, I saw Ray & Jamal jump a fence, climb into a SUV and take off to get away from the ridiculous hoard of adults assembled following the practice. It should be for the kids and the kids only!

By the way, nice to see someone else up before the sun.

[PurpleChaos]

One ponders..
What type of cheese do you prefer with your whine?

[display name]

Stupid rule! We were fine before this! As "Two-a-Daze said, "What a pathetic start to a great Superbowl season." Well, the Ravens will pay as the number of single adults that show up will plumett starting the first day of 2010 Training Camp. By the way, for kids on here trying to get autographs, always call the players and coaches Mister. That is how I got five people's autographs when I went. And by the way what if something happens to a kid but the parent can't do anything becasue he or she is in a seperate section?! Watch the Ravens sales on Ebay go down. I think the Ravens Rookie Kids club gives kids enough. Don't need this.

[PurpleChaos]

Somewhere along the way I think people seem to forget a pro athelete owes us the fan nothing off the field aside from maintaining a good image. If and when they are kind enough to sign something it is a privilege and not a mandatory right. Yeah yeah I hear you you pay for a ticket or own a PSL And? Take me for example...I'm a local govt employee. The tax payers fund my salary. That doesn't mean that when I'm out and about during the day I have to give the time to every pain in my backside trying to flag me down to vent about something I have zero to do with. If and when I stop and extend my set of ears I'm just being "nice". However most just get a glimpse of the rear bumper passing LOL I'll give you a cookie for effort if you bought the guys jersey if it makes you feel better.

[ravenssuperbowl2000]

can we get some privileges for the teens too! The kids got everything on this website! lol

[Runnin Raven]

Man the idiots on local radio were whining about this policy today. All I can say is grow up people. Shoot me if you want, neg rep me to death, but autographs are for kids, not adults. Think if you're Ed Reed, signing autographs, and some loud pushy adults are shoving kids aside or are at least in the same competition pool for autographs as 6 year old Timmy who you can't even see. Whine, whine, whine. That's all some people know how to do. The Ravens are doing the right thing.

[tjdraravens]

I dont like this policy at all my husband and I take our vacation around training camp very year just to get autographs and see how team looks we also take our little girl she loves it we pay every year for her to be a ravens rookie in ten years we have never seen anything out of control I think they just hurt training camp and the closiness fans feel with the team

[Ravens in The Dena]

C"mon Fans im probaly as big a Die Hard as any one here and have over 500 Ravens signed and Collectible items in my Man Cave. But this is for the kids to get autographs, not for grown ppl pushing and shoving to get a free autograph, and most of the ppl that get these autogrpahs are turning around trying to make a profit off of it any way.. I buy and purchase all my memoarbilia to display in the Rave Cave, Theres signings all over town and usually are reasonable in price.Alos a great time for adults to get autogrpahs are at radio shows thruout the area also. The Ravens are trying to make Training camp Family friendly and show, that the Ravens are a Family organazation, This time is for kids and the safety of the kids.. Grown ppl need to stop whining about it.

[Ravens in The Dena]

Runnin Raven

100% agree with you...

[Purple Nurple]

Rent-A-Kid. I'm just saying.....

[steve1818]

SOME OF YOU ARE SAYING ITS JUST FOR KIDS,AND THEN YOUR SAYING ADULTS JUST WANT TO SELL THEM ON EBAY?WHO IS BUYING THEM OFF EBAY,IS IT THE KIDS?OR IS IT ADULTS WHO DID NOT GET AN AUTOGRAPH FROM A PLAYER BECAUSE THE DAY THEY WENT TO CAMP THEY WERE NOT SIGNING?!

[erinraven52]

Fan friendly environment gone. Ravens Rookies worked for the kids well. They got the top players. I always thought the Ravens did this so well. Disappointed.

[ibleedpurpleandblack]

I for one have a few autographs and was about to drop a few hundred bucks on some authentic jersey's to have Lewis, Reed, Rice, Mason and Boldin sign for me but don't know how that's going to happen now - one good thing is I won't be spending all that money now. And for those that say autographs are just for kids must not have any, my collection will be my son's collection and so on and so on. Kids now play with the football that Ray Lewis signed, not me it's in a protective case sitting in my basement along with every other signature i have.

[EveryNFLStadium]

Purple chaos, I know your government check doesn't make you million's of dollars. The players do owe us, because without US they'd be any other Joe Citizen working to make ends meet.

[bigC75]

I like this new policy. It gives children the chance to meet pro players instead of being pushed out of the way by crazed adults.

[Marc2k6]

I have no problem with having an area for kids to meet players and get autographs, this is great! There should be a kid friendly zone but do not leave the season ticket holders, game day ticket buyers, fan merchandise buyers and other supporting fans out. There should also be an area for adults to get autographs as well. From the look of all of the post, the Raven's did not think this one out properly. Piss Poor Planning!

[adoyluke13]

The players owe us nothing yes any autograph is showing love for the fans. But now they can only show love to kids. Which they already could do. The Ravens have the best fans in the world. Some of the reason is because we can feel close to the players due to training camp seeing them up close. I love thanking them and wishing for a great season for them. Its just a small way we can show are love for the Ravens. But now that part of Baltimore history is gone.

[dhartm2]

I created an account on the site because I felt pretty strongly about this. In my experience the Ravens have been an incredibly fan friendly organization. I am 25 and have bought season tickets the last two years. I drive a car from 1998 and those tickets are the two single biggest purchases I have ever made in my entire life. I go to multiple road games a season. I literally live on West Hamburg St! I guess what I am trying to say is that I am a pretty big fan. And this policy upsets me. Give the adults who pay for everything their own opportunity to get autographs. I think it's appalling someone would push and shove to get something signed, especially if there are children around. I have no problem with giving the kids a chance to get autographs and say hi to the players. But please give me a chance too! I invest my time and money into the organization, and unlike most children I will actually appreciate the signature! I buy authentic jerseys, I want an opportunity to get them signed. Come on Ravens, this isn't like you. Make decisions like a Raven. This is something a Bengal would do.