Yesterday, the Indians hosted their fifth annual TribeFest event. The result? A success.
First off, the location was top notch. This year was the first year that the event was held at the Intercontinental Hotel, located at 9801 Carnegie Avenue. Catering to Northeast Ohio weather, fans had the opportunity to wait inside the building prior to the beginning of the day’s events. There was also plenty of parking and space, unlike last year at the Aloft Cleveland Downtown hotel.
Having the event at the Intercontinental (due to renovations, Progressive Field was unable to host for the second year in a row) was a welcome change from last year. I greatly enjoyed being able to spread out and have more space to hang out with the 2016 American League Champions.
Located within the space was an abundance of things. The most prioritized aspects were the autograph signing events. Despite a near hour long delay for one session I attended, the autograph sessions were held with little to no confusion and were fun to include in my day.
The autograph sessions were only one piece of the fan/player interaction. Again, this was greatly improved by the Indians simply through having more player/alumni attend then in previous years. I realized this when I walked into an elevator only to be greeted by outfielder Brandon Guyer.
Also interesting was providing the ability to allow fans to have their picture taken with the American League championship trophy. Due to my showing up early, I got through the line relatively quickly. However, to others, there was some decent amounts of time spent waiting in line. In spite of this, the idea was a great one for the Indians.
One knock on the event however was pricing. I can’t speak for everything, but the food prices were a joke. I guess the major league prices made the trip down the street from Progressive Field as I paid $8 total for a hot dog and 12oz. can of Coca Cola.
Reflecting on yesterday’s experience, I immensely enjoyed my time at TribeFest. If the event next year looks even two-thirds as good on paper as this one was, I feel as if most will still have a great time.
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