Fans on the waiting list for Avalanche season tickets will
be guaranteed the opportunity to buy seats for the '97-98 season
only if they buy a full 41-game season package for the Nuggets,
according to Alan Snel of the DENVER POST. Avalanche/Nuggets
Owner Ascent Entertainment Group made the offer in a letter sent
this week to about 1,000 people on the Avalanche waiting list. A
full-season Nuggets plan cost up to $1,127.50. While some
"enraged" Avalanche fans called Ascent to complain about the tie-
in, Ascent Sports President Ellen Robinson said the promotion is
designed to "jump-start the opportunity for some folks this year
because they wouldn't get season tickets anyway." Avalanche fan
Dan Gutchess, who paid $200 to have his name placed on the club's
season ticket waiting list: "It burns me up. I'll be left in the
dust if someone else buys Nuggets tickets because I won't. I
don't give a rat's (tail) about basketball" (DENVER POST, 10/24).
LINE FROM HEADQUARTERS: Robinson, on fan complaints: "You're
not really losing out on anything. If you don't do this, you'd
probably be in the same situation. ... It's just the opportunity
that only us, owning two teams, can afford somebody." Ascent
Entertainment Group President Charlie Lyons acknowledged the
program "runs the risk of subjecting the Nuggets to ridicule,"
but noted there is a "precedent" for the idea -- including
cross-promotions previously done by the Ted Turner owned
Braves/Hawks and Jerry Buss owned Lakers/Kings. Dave Krieger of
the ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS notes that since reaching a season ticket
peak of about 12,000 in '94, Nuggets season tickets sales are now
"between 7,000 and 8,000" (ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, 10/24).
