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Sporting KC fans revolutionize popular tailgate game
Contributed photo A Wobbler prototype site next to a soccer ball, which is used to knock over the Wobblr and earn points in the popular tailgating game outside Children's Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas.
Contributed photo
▶ SHAUN GOODWIN
@ShaunGoodwinUDK
Weaving between the maze of cars, grills and groups of people that occupy the parking lots surrounding Children's Mercy Park before a Sporting Kansas City game, a reoccurring action can be witnessed every couple hundred feet.
Fans of all ages set a pair of water bottles several feet apart, then proceed to take turns kicking a soccer ball at the other person's bottle in order to score points.
In April 2015, Kansas City season-ticket holders Roberto Camacho and Max Haselquist arrived at the Children's Mercy Park parking lots too early, after mistaking a Sporting Kansas City game to be starting at 5 p.m.; it in fact started at 7 p.m.
Deciding to make the most of their time spent waiting outside the stadium, the pair set up their tailgate and began to play the simple game that often frequented the parking lots that wrap around the Kansas Speedway.
As more fans began to show up, Camacho and Hasselquist grew frustrated in
having to always chase down their water bottles, with them often rolling beneath cars or chairs. Taking a break, they let a group of children take over their game, and the two began to formulate their own twist on the game.
"We just sat down and had a couple more beers and started talking about 'let's fix this,' it could be so simple," Camacho said. "We almost knew right away what we needed to do, specifically physics, like a buoy. That was what was in our mind."
It was this discussion that spurred on an idea that would eventually become Wobblrs — soccer's first official tailgate game.
Despite their excitement, it took the pair a month to act upon their idea. Using Camacho's background in graphic design, he and Hasselquist began sketching the first design for the product and began applying for patents and trademarking as well.
"Max and I spent a good time just trying to decide what we were going to name it," Camacho said. "We wanted to land on something that was not very sport specific, so Wobblrs could at one point be used for hockey target
practice, or something like that."
After enrolling in a ninemonth entrepreneurial course through the Regnier Institute of Entrepreneurship at UMKC, Camacho and Hasselquist created their first prototype of Wobblers.
Created out of a carved up pool noodle, duct tape and half a metal sphere, the pair successfully created what was essentially an on-land buoy.
When knocked over by the soccer ball, instead of rolling away, the Wobblr would automatically right itself with ease.
"We were bringing this out here for a while, and playing with it and hoping that not a lot of people would pay attention so much. As soon as a lot of people were, we were like 'ok let's put it away,' but it was for us to test it," Camacho said with a laugh.
Since then, Wobblrs has reached its Kickstarter goal of $30,000, and Camacho and Hasselquist have begun to make more advanced and smoothed-out prototypes. They're aiming to get the product out to the public by March 2018.
Not only does the pair see
Wobblers as a fun tailgating game, but also as a useful tool to help teach children how to play soccer. With his background in coaching soccer, Hasselquist has already been in touch with coaches at Brookside Soccer Club and Kansas City Legends.
"It's fun, and by default, the extra time spent with a soccer ball they're going to be developing their basic fundamental skills," Hasselquist
said. "If they can fall in love with the game like we have, and can do it through a product we've created, it's awesome."
Camacho echoed Hasselquist's hopes.
"My two-year-old daughter, she doesn't even know she's practicing passing and dribbling, she just likes to do it," Camacho said. "And for me, it's 15 minutes of keeping her distracted. And out here,
it's fun and a pastime kind of game."
For the rest of the 2017 soccer season, fans will have to be content with continuing one of their favorite soccer pastimes with a water bottle.
But once next season rods around in March 2018, the struggle of chasing water bottles underneath parked cars may be no more, thanks to Camacho and Hasselquist's Wobblrs.
FROM PATTERSON
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ownership that led Kansas City to its first trophy in eight years, with a U.S. Open Cup victory in 2012, and then the MLS Cup in 2013.
Along the path to success, the club underwent a facelift, thanks to major investments
from Patterson and Co. This included the opening of the Swope Park training facility in 2006, which brought along the Swope Park Rangers, the rebranding of the club's name to Sporting Kansas City in 2010, and the building of the $180 million Children's Mercy Park (then called Livestrong Sporting
Park).
Roger Espinoza is one of several players who has been with the club for an extended duration under Patterson's ownership, having played for Kansas City between 2008- 2012. He rejoined from Wigan Athletic in 2015.
"You can see this," Espinoza said, gesturing around
the Kansas City locker room. "This sets the expectations above anything, first-class, above the line. This is the reason we win games like this, because of the expectations that are set up to very high standards. And if you look at it, that's all for Neal."
The night ended as home-grown player Daniel Saloi
put Kansas City up 3-0 on FC Dallas in the 119th minute to chants of "Neal Patterson, this one's for you," erupting from The Cauldron. This was then followed by a chorus of "When the Wiz go marching in," from both The Cauldron and the players, as they held a flag up with Patterson's name on it.
Patterson has been credited with fostering a passionate soccer following in Kansas City, earning the city the title of the Soccer Capital of the United States.
"The fact that we stuck in there tonight, being a man down," Vermes said. "I don't know of a different way we could pay tribute to him."
tertioms have been spent cheering for the Jayhawks through thick and, unfortunately, a lot of thin moments. But, it's impossible to argue that the stadium doesn't need improvements.
Kansas Athletics announced that a $300 million renovation will be coming to Memorial Stadium, which will include an indoor practice facility and infrastructure upgrades.
UNIVERSITY ANUAGY KANSAN
proactice facility and
This is a great move for all interested parties. For the fans, it's going to enhance the game-day experience for the die cards who trek down the hill to see the Jayhawks play. For the players, specifically future recruits, it becomes a more inviting and
It's the seventh-oldest stadium still used by an FBS team. It shows signs of wear across its exterior. It's severely outdated by contemporary standards.
It's undoubtedly time for an upgrade.
thing else at the University.
Discussing college athletics finances is a great way to find out that someone has absolutely no idea what they're talking about. Kansas football isn't going to use $300 million that otherwise would have gone to improving the School of Education or updating equipment in the School of Journalism or whichever department you feel is underfunded.
Things like the Williams Fund and private donors are main sources of income for supporting Kansas Athletics projects. It's understandable that seeing a huge sum of money being spent on football facilities could cause a stir, considering the financial straits the University might be facing in some areas. The reality, though, is that this money will be completely disconnected from the rest of the University.
Football is a massive tool for recruiting (both athletically and for general students), alumni relations and income, and if you don't see that then you simply aren't paying attention.
Alabama is a perfect case study for this. A gold standard for college football, the Crimson Tide's on-field success has generated an unconscionable amount of money
and publicity for that school. It's unrealistic for Kansas, or really any program, to think it can reach Alabama's level of success, but it's clear that improving football will improve the University in other areas.
Again, you need to spend money in order to make it. Putting money into the program now, or at least in the near future, will show dedication to the program and is going to help bring in more high-level recruits over time. The football team needs to get better, and this move will
help in that pursuit.
Most of the arguments against the spending come up baseless and sound unintelligent. The money isn't being stolen from other University programs. Memorial Stadium is nearly 100 years old — it needs to be repaired and updated.
And if your argument is based around asking why you would spend $300 million to help a football team that won two games in the last two seasons combined, take a moment and think critically.
Why wouldn't you spend money to try to improve the program? What else would you do, just ignore the disaster and let the team fall into irreparable ruin? That notion is ridiculous and poorly thought out at best.
The cost of this project is a small price to pay for improving the team, and subsequently the University, over time. Don't get caught up in the price tag or the view from your ivory tower. Trying to better the football team is better for all of us who support the University.
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