Readers' rules: Seat-saving etiquette in Utah
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Reserved seats in an event center. Photo: Paul J. Richards/ AFP via Getty Images
It turns out Utahns are fed up with seat-saving.
Catch up quick: A few weeks ago we asked for your rules and norms when holding seats at concerts, sports, graduations and other events.
- In so doing, we stumbled into the one Utah issue that transcends ideology, culture, religion, demographics and personal interest. Y'all hate this!
What they're saying: "You don't get to colonize sections with one or two people and a bunch of coats/blankets/paraphernalia for a crowd who may or may not arrive in a timely fashion," wrote reader Marianne W.
Threat level: It's a dog-eat-dog world for Utah's derrières.
- "I have to arrive to my children's school performances an hour early to get a seat, and there [is] usually an assortment of jackets and Stanley cups scattered all over the benches. We must stop the madness!" reader Stephen J. said.
- On the spectator lawn at a college softball game, "blankets just sat there unused while people crammed in other spots," Maryann M. replied.
- Sam S. was among the first in line for a recent performance, only to find "the whole middle section was already taped off" by people who claimed it the night before.
- Multiple readers told us they'd stopped attending some events because finding seats was so frustrating.
Your rules: Most called for limits — "a max of two," Carl V. suggested, while Jan H. said "three or four seats, if that many."
- One extra seat was OK, said readers Rachel T. and Nash — but only for someone stuck in traffic, parking or going to the bathroom.
- Joyce B. and Chris F. said no seat-saving is acceptable.
- Jade M. argued for one saved seat per person already present — but only for people who are on their way.
What's next: July 4 and Pioneer Day are upon us — and parades were the most common cause for complaint.
- Joan E. found an entire parade route "lined with chairs and blankets" the night before. "I didn't grow up here, and I've never seen anything like it."
- "I will never attend the 4th of July parade ever again," a reader wrote.
- "Folks who show up hours early for a decent spot are actually late," another responded.
The worst of the lot: Multiple readers reported seat-savers forced people with disabilities to miss events or hurt themselves in their search for space. Even spots reserved for wheelchair access were taken.
Other contested territory: Sports tailgating, campsites and ski resort parking were problems, readers told us.
Get smart: Here were your tips for dealing with the scourge of butt-imperialism.
- Ignore the "polite margin of defensible space" around unoccupied blankets and make it "high density," said reader Michelle D.
- Several suggested sitting where you please — though one reader noted he almost got in a fight doing that.
Our favorite advice: Google "crop dusting" as you wait for the stragglers to arrive, and prepare to take flight.