Sitting Down versus Standing Up

[Blood Sweat and Bears]

Does anyone else get annoyed when you are going all out trying to cheer your team on, and someone sitting behind you starts telling you to sit down?

example... middle of the 4th quarter, celtics vs pistons, game 5... close game. I stand up, giving all that I have, and some guy SITTING behind me taps me on the shoulder and tells me to sit down. This has happened to me at every single one of these playoff games.

I refuse to sit down everytime. My voice is GONE. My hands are dry and bleeding from clapping too much. I come into work after game nights looking like I just got beat up the night before. It drives me crazy when someone wearing a paul pierce or kg jersey is just relaxing behind me in a playoff game, and tells me to sit down when I am giving my all rooting my team on. If they want to see They can stand up.

Has anyone else had this issue? I dont get it. I've even offered to switch seats with people. The guys got a kg jersey on. I think kg would want him to stand up. Even Wyc is down there telling people to stand up.

Show some pride for this team, for this city. That place could be louder. I want that place so loud that the commentators cant even be heard by the people watching tv at home. Maybe that isnt a real expectation, but i'm going to keeping standing up and yelling and giving it all i've got to do my part in helping this team win every home game.

so to anyone who tells someone who is cheering their heart to sit down....... YOU STAND UP! ITS THE PLAYOFFS! stay at home and sit on your couch if you want to sit down.

[Chris]

I am kind of on the fence about this.  I personally believe there are times when standing up is appropriate.  But then there are those people who stand up for basically the entire game, when they are the only person standing in the section (except those directly behind them, who are forced to stand up to see).

During the 4th quarter of the game, yes, stand up.  When the C's make a great play, stand up, when it is coming out of a timeout of a 5 point game with 4 minutes to go in the 1st quarter...you can make noise just as well sitting down.

edit: the one thing that does make me question my own logic here though is there are certain people who I am OK with standing up all the time.  For example, there is a group of guys that sit near me (they have the big Celtics Pride sign).  They stand up for a good deal of the game.  They also start almost every cheer in our section, and are constantly getting everyone pumped up.  I have seen people complain to them numerous times to sit down, but I feel like they are just doing what they do.  Part of the reason I think what they do is OK though, is that even though they stand up, they are ussually leaning over the bar towards the court, and therefore are not really blocking the people behind them all that much. 

[droopdog7]

Agree wholeheartedly.  I am not at these playoffs but anytime that has happened to me in the past, it drives me nuts. Unless you are obscuring the view of a kid of course.

[SShoreFan 2.0]

very good first post.  TP

I literally had someone ask me to sit down so he could watch the 1/2 time show during game one of the Atlanta series.  (no - the cheerleaders were not involved)

[Bahku]

I personally relate to what you're saying here, and would always prefer to stand up and hoot like an idiot, (isn't that what it's all about?), but there are some people who go to games who, because of medical conditions, (and other reasons), can't stand up for extended periods of time.

There are also those who just plain prefer to sit down, but that doesn't make them any less of a fan, and although it can be annoying as all heck, it's also our responsibility as game-goers to be considerate of one another.

There are those who would say that such people shouldn't even be at games, but I heartily disagree ... a fan is a fan is a fan, and we all come in many shapes, colors, likes, and dislikes, and if someone pays for a ticket, they should get all the considerations of any other attendee.

It stinks at times, I'll agree, but that's the very least that we would want if it were us who had problems standing.

[Roy Hobbs]

I am kind of on the fence about this.  I personally believe there are times when standing up is appropriate.  But then there are those people who stand up for basically the entire game, when they are the only person standing in the section (except those directly behind them, who are forced to stand up to see).

During the 4th quarter of the game, yes, stand up.  When the C's make a great play, stand up, when it is coming out of a timeout of a 5 point game with 4 minutes to go in the 1st quarter...you can make noise just as well sitting down.

I pretty much agree with Chris.  There is definitely a time to get out of your seat and act crazy, but there are other times where they're called "seats" for a reason.  You've got to understand that you standing and cheering makes it more difficult for others to see, and they have the right to enjoy the game in their own way, too.

[Pawtucket Pat]

I completely agree. At a home game earlier this year, it was a really intense moment in the game against the Pistons, and I was standing up and cheering and some jackass three rows back yelled to sit down. Less than 3 minutes later Big Baby Davis came on the jumbotron and told everyone to stand up, and now he's standing up and waving his arms around trying to get everyone to stand up like he's Superfan #1. I hate that. People like that are just drones, not real fans. They only know when to yell and cheer when the jumbotron tells them to. They're the same people who were dancing on the jumbotron last night during a timeout, when the Celtics had lost all but 1 point of a 17 point lead. How can you dance and laugh during that situation? I feel like most people at the games have no sense of the game. It's like Rasheed Wallace said: It's just entertainment.

[CDawg834]

It's a tough call, IMO.  I went to Cavs Game 7 and was standing for a good chunk of the 4th quarter.  The crowd behind me was up to, and we couldn't comprehend that people in front of us were sitting late in the game.  I think in some situations fans can go a little overboard, but it's a gray area, at best...

I gotta say I would be ticked if I got told to sit down in certain situations, but there are situations where I would be aggravated if someone was blocking my view the whole time and yelling for no reason.

I am jumping out of my seat all the time (even in my room)for big hoops and obviously late in the game, but if someone is up standing, clapping, and shouting, for LITERALLY the entire game, I could see that getting pretty annoying too.

You paid for the ticket, you got the right to stand and cheer, but remember they paid for a ticket too, so they have the right to get a little ticked if they think you are going overboard.

I think many C's fans can tell when it's time to stand and time to settle down for a little bit, we understand the flow of the game to an extent.

Basically my (personal) thoughts are:
4th quarter, tight game - stand up!
C's make a run or hit a big shot (or even a big defensive play)- stand up!
Yelling for no reason, or yelling for the sake of yelling just to get a reaction from the people near you - sit down!

But if the C's reach the Finals, all bets are off!  Everyone should be up the whole 4th quarter every game.

[Redz]

To me it's a mob rule situation.  If the vast majority of the crowd is standing up, or the people in front of you are, it's time to stand up.  If you're the only one in your section standing up, I might get a little annoyed with you if I was sitting behind you.

That said, you gotta go with what you feel.  If you've got ants in your pants and you need to dance who's to stop you from cutting loose! (just don't blame the dude behind you if you're bugging him). 

[Bahku]

Sorry, not to be the wet blanket here, but the bottom line should be: Celebrate and cheer in the way you see fit, but within the confines of being considerate of those around you.

[Pawtucket Pat]

To me it's a mob rule situation.  If the vast majority of the crowd is standing up, or the people in front of you are, it's time to stand up.  If you're the only one in your section standing up, I might get a little annoyed with you if I was sitting behind you.

That said, you gotta go with what you feel.  If you've got ants in your pants and you need to dance who's to stop you from cutting loose! (just don't blame the dude behind you if you're bugging him). 

The mob rule is why the Garden isn't as rocking as it should be. There are too many idiots at games who just don't know what's going on. The people around me last night stood and danced at timeouts, but when the game was tight, they sat firmly in their seats chatting or texting. Should I have followed their lead and only stood at the most inane time? Everyone at the Garden is a slave to the Jumbotron.

[bdm860]

I'm on the fence about this one too, there are definitely times when standing is appropriate, but just from your post you come off like one of those guys who is ALWAYS standing.   If every game you go to someone is always asking you to sit down, maybe you stand too much.  If you look around and you are the only one standing, do you really think that you're the only real fan there?

I'm not saying never stand, I stand too, but when Ray Allen gets a break away layup when the team is already up 10 in the middle of the second quarter, there's no need to stand then.  It's just causes a huge domino effect, if you stand the people behind you have to stand, and the people behind them have to stand too, and so on and so on.  So by standing you can really be blocking the view of 15 other people, then it's just a matter of consideration.

By the time the middle of the fourth comes around, if a guy is asking you to sit down, it's probably means you've been standing way too much and is fed up with it by then and can't take it anymore.  I do give you alot of respect for offering to switch seats though, very classy and a very easy solution.

very good first post.  TP

I literally had someone ask me to sit down so he could watch the 1/2 time show during game one of the Atlanta series.  (no - the cheerleaders were not involved)

And I don't know Shorefan, I know I always like to watch the halftime shows and I like to watch the players warm up before a game and during half time.  No real need to stand then, and I know many people enjoy watching these things too.  No need to stand then and block someone's view.  I think alot of people stand then to stretch their legs and what not, but if you want to stretch and stand the whole time before the game has even started and during all of half time, just go hang out in the corridor.  I shouldn't have to stand just because I want to see a dog catch frisbees or someone juggle on a unicycle or whatever the halftime entertainment is.

[Redz]

To me it's a mob rule situation.  If the vast majority of the crowd is standing up, or the people in front of you are, it's time to stand up.  If you're the only one in your section standing up, I might get a little annoyed with you if I was sitting behind you.

That said, you gotta go with what you feel.  If you've got ants in your pants and you need to dance who's to stop you from cutting loose! (just don't blame the dude behind you if you're bugging him). 

The mob rule is why the Garden isn't as rocking as it should be. There are too many idiots at games who just don't know what's going on. The people around me last night stood and danced at timeouts, but when the game was tight, they sat firmly in their seats chatting or texting. Should I have followed their lead and only stood at the most inane time? Everyone at the Garden is a slave to the Jumbotron.

Guess I meant in terms of standing up and cheering during action(hadn't considered the dancing and other Jumbotron driven antics)

[angryguy77]

I have to go with you on this one. If your a guy you have to stand up....oh wait I thought you were talking about something else

[Chris]

And I don't know Shorefan, I know I always like to watch the halftime shows and I like to watch the players warm up before a game and during half time.  No real need to stand then, and I know many people enjoy watching these things too.  No need to stand then and block someone's view.  I think alot of people stand then to stretch their legs and what not, but if you want to stretch and stand the whole time before the game has even started and during all of half time, just go hang out in the corridor.  I shouldn't have to stand just because I want to see a dog catch frisbees or someone juggle on a unicycle or whatever the halftime entertainment is.

I am biased here, because I hurt my back a couple weeks ago, and have spent the last couple halftimes standing up for the majority of the time, just to try to stretch out a bit, and didn't feel that it was necessary to go down to the corrider (which is filled with people at halftime, and not really the best place to be just standing anyways...not to mention walking out there is just more pain). 

In general I think halftime pretty much anything goes.  Stand, sit, stretch out over 3 empty seats.