Blackhawks Rally Tickets Sell Out Fast
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Free tickets to the Blackhawks' Stanley Cup victory rally at Soldier Field were gobbled up in short order Wednesday afternoon, leaving lots of disappointed fans out in the cold.
Many fans waited up to 30 minutes after visiting Ticketmaster at noon for a chance at tickets, but going in it was clear most would not get one, only 75,000 tickets were available.
Within minutes of the tickets being available on Ticketmaster, people were offering them for sale on Craigslist, ebay, and other sites, with some sellers asking for $250 or more per ticket.
CBS 2's Derrick Blakley reports lifelong Hawks fan Howard Moore is actually pleased the city decided to move the cup rally from the soggy sod of Grant Park to the far more controlled confines of Soldier Field.
He headed to the Lincoln/Belmont library branch where the Wi-Fi was faster than his home internet to try to snag a ticket.
But just after noon, the frustration began as he experienced delays on the website. Then, at 12:05, he was on the site.
It took about 14 minutes of waiting to find that there were no tickets available.
Howard Moore says it was still worth the 20 minutes and wasn't angry, but plenty of Hawks fans are. They're complaining on social media about the limits on the size of the rally crowd, and the re-selling of tickets.
With so many fans left without tickets, many questioned why the city didn't just host the rally in Grant Park, like it did in 2013. However, city officials said that simply was not possible, given the recent weather.
David Kennedy, deputy director of the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, said there was no way the rally could have been held on Hutchinson Field in Grant Park, because all the recent rain has left the grass waterlogged.
"We were out there the last couple of days, and it's just underwater," he said.
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Kennedy said Soldier Field should wind up being a better place to have the rally anyway.
"Soldier Field provides a great infrastructure. They've got restrooms, they've got concessions, we've got security checkpoints, we've got power. You've got all of the amenities for it," he said.
Gates at Soldier Field will open at 8 a.m., and concession stands inside the stadium will be open for the rally. Seating will be set up on the playing area, but the turf will be covered with a protective surface to avoid damaging the grass.
Tailgating will be prohibited, and city officials were trying to discourage fans from going over to Soldier Field without a ticket for the rally. Instead, if you don't have a ticket, city officials suggested watching the parade, which begins at Washington and Racine and heads east down Washington to Des Plaines and then heading south down Des Plaines to Monroe and then east down Monroe to Michigan.
"For sure we're not going to make happy people unhappy. Let's just leave it at that. We have some contingencies in place, and some plans, but if you're not, unfortunately, able to get a ticket for it, we want you to enjoy the parade," Kennedy told 670 The Score on Wednesday.
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Mayor Rahm Emanuel promised a parade and rally for the Chicago Blackhawks worthy of dynasty and he says that is what the city will deliver.
"Given what happened weather wise, which was an unusual event, this is a longer parade than we had a couple years ago and it provides more people opportunity along the parade route and this is a safe place to do it and we will also provide people who don't make it into the event to also experience the event as well."
