Our Failed Attempt To Buy Garth Brooks Calgary Stampede Concert Tickets!

  Anyone that knows my wife Becky will attest to the fact that she is probably the biggest Garth Brooks fan in Calgary.  She has been a fan for close to twenty years and she loves his music and his humble persona.  When we heard that Garth Brooks would be performing a special concert in Calgary, in honor of the Calgary Stampede's 100th anniversary, she was ecstatic to say the least.  I often joke that she loves the country crooner more than me and she even walked down the aisle to an instrumental version of his song "She's Every Woman" when we got married in 2007.

 When the ticket sales were announced, I knew that they would sell out very quickly but like most Calgarians, I figured we had a good shot at securing some tickets online.  As the 10am online sales time neared, Becky was turning into a nervous wreck as she dreaded the thought that we would not be as lucky as I anticipated.  When the sales opened, I clicked the "process order" button at five seconds after ten and was elated that I was going to be able to score some tickets to the hottest show to come to Calgary in years.  As the seconds passed, my joy to turned to shock....then dread.... as the message came back saying that no tickets were available! 

  I could hear the panic in Becky's voice downstairs as she was trying to get through also without luck.  After about ten minutes of futile attempts on my part to get tickets, Becky started calling all of her friends, praying that someone we know was able to get through.  Unfortunately, no one else was able to get tickets either.  Over the next hour or so, it became clear on social media sites that many people in Calgary were furious that tickets were available online from secondary ticket markets like StubHub and Kijiji at outrageous prices.

  Garth Brooks in notorious for his dislike of ticket scalpers and always tries to ensure that as many fans as possible can see his shows.  Many Calgarians will remember the "wrist band" system that was used when he played a set of shows here in 1996 and that scenario worked out well as it blocked out the scalpers.  While I understand that his Calgary show really comes down to supply and demand issues, I am sure Garth was furious when he heard that his show sold out in less than a minute but thousands of tickets were already for sale by the online brokers.  I don't know what else could have been done to prevent this fiasco, but it sure left thousands of fans shocked at the outcome.

  Becky and I were fortunate enough to do a fun interview for CBC Calgary on Saturday about this adventure, which can been seen on the link below. ( Its the lead story at the beginning.)




 Since this show will take place on the weekend of our fifth wedding anniversary, I am really hoping that some more tickets become available.  Maybe the Stampede gods will find a way to add a second show.  Failing that, perhaps Garth can mail some tickets over my way and make me the best husband in the world.  :)