The Redskins consider the club's three-week stay at their new training camp home at Bon Secours Training Center in Richmond “a success, with the large and enthusiastic crowds that regularly circled the practice fields signaling that the Redskins achieved their goal of making themselves readily accessible to a different segment of their fan base,” according to Mark Maske of the WASHINGTON POST. However, it “wasn’t all positive, as some fans continue to complain about the crowded conditions on fan appreciation day.” But most fans “described their overall experience as pleasant and worthwhile.” Total attendance for the camp has “surpassed 155,000, including a crowd of more than 25,000 for fan appreciation day Aug. 3.” The Redskins said that average daily attendance “has been more than 10,000.” On most days, there has been “a long line of fans waiting when the gates were opened to the team’s facility.” The franchise “wanted to attract and cultivate fans from areas of Virginia and further south who are too far from the D.C. area to make a training-camp visit there convenient.” They appear to have “succeeded in that regard.” Redskins officials “seem to regard the camp as a major success, but appear to believe it’s too soon to know whether the increased exposure to this portion of the franchise’s fan base will result in significantly bolstered ticket and merchandise sales among followers" further from the DC area (WASHINGTON POST, 8/16).
