Ashbrook 'beefs up' seats

GASTONIA - Some Ashbrook High School football fans will be more comfortable than others this fall if they're willing to pay the price.

The school is selling permanent seat licenses, or PSLs, to those who want to sit in a plastic contoured seat with the best view of the field. For $100 per seat, fans get a reserved seat with lumbar support, parking and several perks.

"You don't have to carry all those folding chairs now," booster club member J.D. Bush said. "They're going to be comfortable."

Ashbrook becomes the second school in Gaston County to sell PSLs, following the lead of South Point, which launched a similar project with great success last season.

The Green Wave's PSL package will also include admission to all six regular-season home games, stadium entry through a separate gate, access to an express concession line and a license that locks in first-year seat pricing. Seat purchases will be renewable each season.

"The specialty of a season ticket sort of wore off," said Bush, who is spearheading the project. "You just didn't feel like you were getting anything extra from being a season ticket holder. So we're trying to beef it up a little."

The school will install 250 seats on the bleachers below the press box. The seats will occupy all but the bottom two rows of the upper level and will extend into the top three rows of the lower section.

Ashbrook plans to order the seats in early July and install them in late July. The installation process could be completed in as little as a day, retired Ashbrook athletic director Lloyd White said.

Fans can still purchase season tickets without PSLs for $42 each, which includes reserved parking. Their seats will be located in the lower section of the reserved area. The deadline for purchasing season tickets is Aug. 1.

Sales aren't going as well as Ashbrook would hope.
The school had sold 52 PSLs before sending letters to prospective buyers last week, White said. By Tuesday, that total wasn't much higher, although an exact total wasn't available. The order deadline is July 1.

"I thought we'd get a little more response by now since the letters went out last week, but I think everybody's just busy," Bush said.

Ashbrook would need to sell 60 seats in the first year to break even, White said.

Booster club president David Conner, a 1984 Ashbrook graduate, purchased three PSLs at regular price almost as soon as they came available. In addition to the obvious perks, he also likes the idea of sitting near the same people each game.

"I felt like that was a good bargain," Conner said.
In comparison, general admission tickets cost $5 per game, or $70 less expensive than the PSL package for the full season.

The introduction of PSLs precedes what Ashbrook folks believe will be an exciting upcoming season. The Green Wave's six-game home schedule includes conference matchups against two of its biggest rivals, South Point and Hunter Huss. Other opponents on the home schedule include West Charlotte, Clover, Shelby and Crest.

The team will also feature Gaston County's top college prospect, wide receiver Jheranie Boyd. The rising senior has received scholarship offers from more than 30 major Division I schools.

"If you're going to do it, now is a good time to do it," White said.

Most proceeds will benefit the booster club, which could profit $7,000 in the first season if it meets the low range of its sales expectations, Conner said. Profits could rise to as high as $10,000 to $12,000 a year if sales go really well, he said.

The idea was an easy sell at South Point last year, with the school selling all 300 of its seats within a week. The Red Raiders charged $50 for each PSL, but that price didn't include tickets or reserved parking. PSL owners were required to buy season tickets at $5 per game and must pay a $20 renewal fee each season.

Ashbrook is mimicking South Point's project and even plans to purchase its seats from the same company, Seating Solutions.

"When somebody does something the first time, everybody else wants to do it," White said.

South Point's reserved seating section occupies the top 15 rows under the press box. Ashbrook will space its seats a little further apart than South Point's after hearing complaints that the Red Raiders' seats were too close.

Ashbrook Stadium, which will also feature a new scoreboard this season, will become the third stadium in Gaston County with backs on at least some of its seats. Forestview's Joe Alala Stadium, which opened in 1999, has backs on all of its home-side seating.

You can reach Phillip Gardner at 704-869-1843.

Want to buy an Ashbrook PSL?
Price: $100 per seat
Included amenities: Assigned contoured seat with back, admission to all six regular-season home games, reserved parking, separate entrance gate, express concession line
Order deadline: July 1
Contact: J.D. Bush at greenwaveboosters@gmail.com or 980-329-5931.