Canadian Bills Fan Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 My wife and I are expecting our first child and to say I am excited is a huge understatement. Of course being a Bills fan, one of the questions I thought to myself was what is a good age to bring your son/daughter to a Bills game? Thanks everyone and GO BILLS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 Depends where you're sitting. If you're in the midst of mostly season ticket holders, then a young kid would be fine. If you're in the midst of drunks, I'd say the right age is 18. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChevyVanMiller Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 If you have a boy - 16. A girl - never! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
May Day 10 Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 I didnt go until I was about 16. My dad was never a Bills or NFL fan though. I wouldnt bring a kid until they are like 12. Not sure how those family sections are. I would never bring a kid to an opposing stadium. Preseason games, it seems are much more family-oriented. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 (edited) Well the age drops the better the section you sit in. The clubs are good for younger kids because there are no rowdies. Sit in the Rockpile and you feel like you are in a scene from Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome. I made the mistake of bringing my 9 year old daughter to the last home playoff game (Jags, when Kelly ended his career). We sat in the low end zones and it scared the crap out of her. PTR Edited May 16, 2012 by PromoTheRobot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CodeMonkey Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 First off, congrats! Always good to have more Bills fans in the world I took my oldest to a regular season game when he was about 9 and it was not a great experience. I have taken all of my kids to the kids day preseason game every year since they were about 7 or 8 and it has been fine every year. The mega-drunks tend to avoid that game (very much appreciated) and it has always been a fun time. Plus you can get tickets dirt cheap because it is a preseason game Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canadian Bills Fan Posted May 16, 2012 Author Share Posted May 16, 2012 First off, congrats! Always good to have more Bills fans in the world I took my oldest to a regular season game when he was about 9 and it was not a great experience. I have taken all of my kids to the kids day preseason game every year since they were about 7 or 8 and it has been fine every year. The mega-drunks tend to avoid that game (very much appreciated) and it has always been a fun time. Plus you can get tickets dirt cheap because it is a preseason game Thank you very much! I am so excited! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maddog69 Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 (edited) I've taken my kids to games every year since they were 4 or so. They are 9 and 12 now and love going. We've never had an issue with any 'mega drunks'. We do witness some bad behavior and I used it as a teaching moment to show them how stupid these people look when they decide to make idiots of themselves. I show them how to have fun tailgating without getting smashed and being a moron. I guess it depends on how sheltered you keep your kids. If you don't want to expose them to some amount of drunks, swearing and macho idiots, an NFL stadium is not the place for them. Oh - the other important factor is your behavior. If you are one of the drunken idiots or macho punks looking for a fight, you probably should leave the little ones at home. and btw - CONGRATS. Edited May 16, 2012 by Maddog69 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 I've taken my kids to games every year since they were 4 or so. They are 9 and 12 now and love going. We've never had an issue with any 'mega drunks'. We do witness some bad behavior and I used it as a teaching moment to show them how stupid these people look when they decide to make idiots of themselves. I show them how to have fun tailgating without getting smashed and being a moron. I guess it depends on how sheltered you keep your kids. If you don't want to expose them to some amount of drunks, swearing and macho idiots, an NFL stadium is not the place for them. What, you drop them off to hang out with someone else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 Went to my first game when I was 8, the first game played at Rich Stadium...August 1973 pre-season loss to the Redskins. I always wanted to go to a game at the Rockpile when my dad, uncle and brother would go...but it was "too rough" for a kid, they said. I was transfixed from that day on...I know the Ralph can be a little rough, but I would, seriously, take your kid to a pre-season game...not only are tickets much cheaper (even free if you know where to look) but if you take him when he is young, he isn't going to really know the difference. It is that whole experience of being in that crowd, the lights, seeing everything live. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 And away we go… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macaroni Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 I would never bring a kid to an opposing stadium. I don't agree with never taking your son or daughter to an away game ... as long as you pick the right away game. I took my son to a Jags/Bills game a few years back and we were in our full Bills regalia ... there was good natured ribbing back and forth ... but certianly no "bad" behavior towards us. In light of full disclosure ... I think there were more Bills fans in the stadium than Jags fans so maybe they felt they were at an away game in their own stadium ... lol out loud. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haven Moses Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 Take the kid to the Toronto game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordio Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 I took my son to his first regular season game last year against the Eagles & he loved it. He was 7. We did the normal tailgaiting & we went in around 12:45 or so. I am taking him to the Patriots game this year. If you mind your own business & get decent seats(no endzones) you should be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maddog69 Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 What, you drop them off to hang out with someone else? LOL. That was great. Everyone in my office just looked up to see why I burst out laughing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hammered a Lot Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 My wife and I are expecting our first child and to say I am excited is a huge understatement. Of course being a Bills fan, one of the questions I thought to myself was what is a good age to bring your son/daughter to a Bills game? Thanks everyone and GO BILLS! Try a preseason game. I notice that I park more families for preseason games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zow2 Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 My kid is 7 and i think this is the year i break him in. My seats are in the lower bowl sidelines and in a decent section so I don't anticipate any issues (except the occasional F-bomb). I was just waiting until he had the attention span to sit through a game and he definitely does... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgang Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 (edited) I took my son to his first Bills game last December against the Broncos. He was two weeks until his 12th birthday and it was fine. It was a fantastic experience actually. We tailgated at Hammer's Lot, playing catch on a perfect December day in the open space right next to the lot. He wanted Pinto Ron's autograph and we got that too (shortly before we saw him get covered in ketchup and mustard). He still has that autograph on his bookshelf (Ken signed it on a paper plate). We sat in awesome seats that I bought from Casino2U (30 yard line, lower bowl). No issues with the crowd, all behaved perfectly well. What I am trying to say is that we had a fantastic experience. And as a result of that, my son has shown a greater interest in the Bills (he was making some tentative moves to becoming a Giants fan, cringe). We saw some of the draft together and he wants to go back to a game this Fall. It is something that we can both share, and that's all that matters. I may be a bit more liberal in terms of parenting, but I never felt that my son was seeing something inappropriate for his age. We tailgated, had a cook out, played catch, and saw a great game. Yeah, people were drinking (including me by the way) but in no way did I feel that was something out of the ordinary or damaging to my son. At no time did I feel that, wow, he should be a bit older to go to those things. I am not sure I would take him to an opposing stadium though. I guess if they were playing the Redskins, I wouldn't have a problem. But absolutely no way would I take him to an Eagles game in Philly. By the way, my wife and I did take our son to a preseason Redskins game when he was about 8 months old. We were stupid... had no idea what we were getting into and I would not ever do that again for kids of such a young age. The crowd was fine but we were concerned about the noise blasting through the stadium (Fed Ex field can get pretty loud). We wound up leaving our seats after the 1st quarter and we watched a little of the game in a more sheltered area where the noise was a bit diminished but wound up leaving for good at the half. Just my two cents... Having children is the toughest and most rewarding thing sometimes and to be sure it is never dull. Congratulations in advance on your new arrival! Edited May 16, 2012 by cgang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jauronimo Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 Depends where you're sitting. If you're in the midst of mostly season ticket holders, then a young kid would be fine. If you're in the midst of drunks, I'd say the right age is 18. It also depends on your child's tolerance for alcohol. My 15 year old won't touch the stuff, so he's clearly not ready to attend games. But my 12 year old can put 'em away with most 16 year olds, so he's in. Point is, theres no specific age. It really depends on the child and his/her maturity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 It also depends on your child's tolerance for alcohol. My 15 year old won't touch the stuff, so he's clearly not ready to attend games. But my 12 year old can put 'em away with most 16 year olds, so he's in. Point is, theres no specific age. It really depends on the child and his/her maturity. Juaronimo, sometimes you crack me up.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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