150,000 more Olympic tickets go on sale June 6

mr.x · #1 Posted **May 21, 2009, 3:12 PM**

Quote:

VANOC opening 150,000 more Olympic tickets to Canadian public

By Damian Inwood, Canwest News Service
May 21, 2009 6:46 AM

More than 150,000 Olympic tickets — including thousands for the “sold out” opening ceremonies and hundreds for gold medal hockey — go on sale to Canadians on Saturday, June 6.

And frustrated fans who were shut out in the first-round lottery are warned not to sleep in past 10 a.m., as the second-phase ducats are expected to be quickly snapped up.

“We will have over 150,000 tickets available, including tickets for every single session,” said 2010 marketing boss, Dave Cobb.

“That will include several thousand tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies, and tens of thousands of tickets for each of hockey and curling.”

He said that the tickets mainly come from a 10-per-cent contingency hold-back, while seating plans and media camera positions were finalized.

The sales will bring in between $40 million and $50 million. Cobb said that, unlike the first phase, the second phase will not be run as a lottery.

“But there will be some randomness to it, in that the system we have can only handle so many people at a time,” he said.

Buyers who log onto the Vancouver 2010 web site’s ticketing page will go into a "virtual waiting room,” which will allow people in on a random basis.

“Once people are in there they can scan what inventory is available and acquire it on a live basis,” he said.

Cobb said there will be tickets available for every Olympic hockey game.

“We hope there will be hundreds of tickets for the gold-medal final and many more for the preliminary round games,” he said.

He said there should be a “substantial amount” for Canada’s preliminary-round games against Norway on Feb. 16, Switzerland on Feb. 18 and the U.S.A. on Feb. 21.

There will be a limit of four tickets per customer for gold medal hockey and up to eight for some other events.

Cobb said that organizers hope the restrictions will help keep tickets out of the hands of scalpers. n Lac La Hache, Pender Harbour, Qualicum, Qualicum Bay and Xaxli’p have been added to the B.C. portion of the Olympic torch relay. Another 14 communities across Canada have also been added.

- Lynn Ledgerwood of Squamish, is one of 13 volunteers chosen to represent their home province or territory as Canada’s ambassadors to the world at the Olympics.

She was among the first 200 volunteers offered Games-time roles with Vancouver 2010 out of almost 64,000 applications received so far.
© copyright (c) CNS Olympics

http://www.vancouversun.com/Vanoc+opening+Olympic+tickets+Canadian+public/1613689/story.html

Yume-sama · #2 Posted **May 21, 2009, 5:25 PM**

For sale on June 6th... where?

mr.x · #3 Posted **May 21, 2009, 5:30 PM**

^ online, same as last time.

Yume-sama · #4 Posted **May 21, 2009, 5:33 PM**

Hmmm! They're really expensive, aren't they

Hopefully I can get something!

wrenegade · #5 Posted **May 21, 2009, 6:23 PM**

C'mon short track speed skating tickets!!!

Smooth · #6 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:10 PM**

Anyone else stuck in the virtual waiting room right now?

mr.x · #7 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:13 PM**

^ stuck in the room for 13-minutes so far....and i have three browsers waiting.

0773|=\ · #8 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:16 PM**

I wonder how many people they let in at a time... Also in the waiting room atm.

Smooth · #9 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:19 PM**

I'm almost at 20 minutes now.

There's also a 1-800 number for tickets... I think I'll try that while I wait.

1-800-842-5387 (1-800-TICKETS)

Yume-sama · #10 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:20 PM**

I gave up. Not worth my time waiting.

Perhaps they could invest in technology and hardware rather than a stupid waiting room.

SOCHI 2014 HERE I COME!

windscar · #11 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:26 PM**

I'm still stuck in the waiting room since 10am

Come on VANOC let me in.

sacrifice333 · #12 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:27 PM**

Got in right away.

Gold Medal & Opening Ceremonies here I come!

ambaUp · #13 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:32 PM**

Still waiting, is there any point to stay now? I'm assuming all the Canadian hockey games are already sold out.

mr.x · #14 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:32 PM**

^ i hate you.

Smooth · #15 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:41 PM**

Quote:

What is the Virtual Waiting Room for?
In an effort to be completely fair to all Canadians we have developed the Virtual Waiting Room, used to randomly allow access to the ticketing system during busy times such as this when all visitors cannot be served simultaneously. You are currently in the pool to be randomly chosen to register your account and build your ticket request.

That doesn't sound like a first come, first served system at all!

I'm giving up.

mr.x · #16 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:45 PM**

^ Wouldn't a first come, first served system be much more fairer than this asinine waiting room system? Someone who has been waiting to buy tickets all year, or rather for the past 7 years, gets there at 10 am while some other guy who just remembered that tickets are for sale today gets there a 10.15 am and by sheer luck gets in during his first 30 secs.

Yume-sama · #17 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:47 PM**

Typical half-baked Canadian ideas

Smooth · #18 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:50 PM**

Well they said that the tickets were being sold on a "first come, first served" basis... but I guess that's after you actually get past the "random draw" waiting room.

I guess I can't complain too much though since I did get lucky and get some tickets in Phase 1.

windscar · #19 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:53 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by mr.x

^ Wouldn't a first come, first served system be much more fairer than this asinine waiting room system? Someone who has been waiting to buy tickets all year, or rather for the past 7 years, gets there at 10 am while some other guy who just remembered that tickets are for sale today gets there a 10.15 am and by sheer luck gets in during his first 30 secs.

hear hear

All I want are some cheapest opening ceremony and maybe some figur skating tickets.

mr.x · #20 Posted **Jun 6, 2009, 5:55 PM**

Well, during phase I in October i ordered 8 tickets...got only one event: two tix to the Feb. 18 hockey game at noon, GM Place.

Then in November (or was it December?), i was able to get a medals ceremony on the 14th (2 tix), medals ceremony on the 23rd (3 tix), and the men's 50-km cross country on the morning of the closing day.