Packers fans the best on the road

When it comes to road games, "Go Pack Go!" is an apt description.

The Green Bay Packers are often said to have the best traveling fans in the NFL, and occasionally statistics arise that support the theory. For example, online ticket reseller VividSeats.com says Packers fans lead the league in driving up ticket prices at opponents' stadiums. That's likely because so many of them are determined to attend games away from Lambeau Field and willing to pay the price.

Based on VividSeats' calculations through Aug. 26, the Packers have the greatest positive impact of any NFL team on the median ticket price of their 2015 opponents, increasing the cost by an average 66 percent. The Dallas Cowboys are second at 54 percent.

For every road game this year, the Packers drove up prices, from 28 percent in Detroit to 107 percent in Arizona. Both games are inDecember, so draw your own conclusions, but for Packers fans, any location that involves their beloved team is a possible destination.

"The day the schedule comes out is one of my favorite days of the year," said Andy Diehl of Madison, who attends two or three road games a year. "I try to pick cities I haven't been to that interest me the most. I factor in if I have friends there. Obviously, Tampa is more interesting to go to ... in December than it would be in September."

Related:Lambeau's rowdy fans often live elsewhere

We asked fans about attending road games. Many who responded do not live in Green Bay but are dedicated Packers followers and attend games whenever and wherever they can. Road games are attractive when they are close to home, provide an opportunity for a quick vacation or are more affordable, though the last factor is more speed bump than obstacle.

Several have long-term goals to see the Packers play in every stadium. Steve Tate of DeForest has visited 17 stadiums so far. Erik Norlund of Minneapolis aims for three to four games a year and especially targets AFC opponents, since they only come around every eight years. If he makes it to Oakland in December, he will have seen the Packers play every other team on the road.

Nick Burrows of East Rutherford, N.J., considers opponent, cost and time of year, and he'll include a college game on Saturday if one is available. Dave Shreeve of Bradford, Ontario, Canada, usually picks the two closest games, which means Detroit every year since 2007 because it's only a four-hour drive. And he makes the 13-hour drive to Lambeau Field at least once a year.

"We are trying to hit them all eventually," said Jim Gerczak of Green Bay. "We try not to repeat ... but sometimes you get a good location and had so much fun or liked the city so much you can't wait to see when the Packers get back there."

Yesenia Santoyo of Covina, Calif., goes to games within driving distance. This year, San Francisco and Phoenix. Oakland is close, too, but not especially welcoming to outsiders, she said.

Tate is a member of Pro Football's Ultimate Fan Association, a collection of fans who share a love of football, if not of each other's teams. They host visiting fans, which cuts costs, improves safety and sometimes produces tickets.

"Ninety percent of the time, I'm staying with fans of the other team," Tate said. "They show you around, they take care of you, you take care of them. I get the flavor of the other teams.  I got to go to the (Buffalo) Bills booster club."

Cory Hooyman, a De Pere native who lives in Minneapolis, said his large group uses Packers games as an excuse to explore cities most of them have not visited.

"We vote on the coming year's trip while we are on the current trip, based on whomever the Packers are set to be playing," he said. "We have to wait to see the actual dates of the trip until the schedule comes out in April, so it's kind of wild card, but fun."

A number of professional sports teams, some NFL teams among them, try to discourage ticket sales to visiting fans, something increasingly difficult to do with the secondary market — we used to call it scalping — becoming a major source of tickets. It's not hard to understand their motivation.

"The first road game we attended in San Francisco in 2002 was a blowout in the fourth quarter," said Michele Gabay, who lives in California. "Almost all 49ers fans left the stadium. All that remained were Packers fans. It was like being in Lambeau with fans chanting 'Go Pack Go!'"

Christopher Miller of Coral Springs, Fla., Jeff Muetz of Denver and Rick Aron of Rogers, Ark., each mentioned the game in Tampa Bay in December 2014, which the Packers won 20-3. Muetz said it looked like half the fans were wearing Cheeseheads and Miller called it Green Bay South.

"We took over the town that weekend," Aron said. "I would estimate 75 percent of the stadium were Packers fans."

Green Bay's NFC North opponents are especially vulnerable because they are easy to get to.

"There is nothing better than when the Packers gain momentum during a road game and the cheers of 'Go Pack Go!' drown out the home fans," said Jay Bushmaker, who lives in Apple Valley, Minn. "There's always tons of fans here at the Minnesota games. Some years, it feels like a home game."

Much of what seems to attract Packers fans to road games is other Packers fans.

"Honestly, just connecting with other Packers fans over a few beers is all it takes to make a trip memorable," Norlund said.

Miller and friends bought close to 100 tickets for last year's Miami Dolphins game and hosted a big tailgate party.

"We got two limo party buses filled with Cheeseheads and a few local fans — many did not know each other — and partied our way from Coral Springs to Miami," he said.

Norlund said games in warm-weather destinations during winter are a no-brainer because "I know it's going to be flooded with Packers fans."

While they might not be entirely welcome in opponents' stadiums in large numbers, Packers fans and their wallets are certainly welcome in those cities. Traveling Packers fans said they spend between $500 and $1,500 on average per person. They do not, however, spend carelessly.

Norlund plans to fly to Chicago and back Sunday to save the cost of an overnight stay.  LuAnn Boyea of Greenleaf and her brother in Chicago and sister in Michigan work hard to keep their costs to about $300 each. That means waiting to buy tickets — hoping the price comes down — driving and even packing lunch.

Travelers said they budget $200-$250 per ticket, though they can cost more for select games, and $300-$600 for airfare or $100 for gas.

If they've done this often, they know a few tricks.

"Lodging varies depending on the city, but we have found that most (places) will jack up their prices when they know the Packers are in town," Hooyman said. "We have started reserving our hotels immediately after the NFL schedule is announced in an effort to catch a good price prior to the hotels picking up on it."

Cities that were mentioned as good road game venues were Tampa, St. Louis and San Diego.

"St. Louis was the best venue," said Tyler Chambers of Colorado Springs, Colo. "I was actually upset when I heard rumors of the Rams moving to L.A. because I hoped to attend a game there again."

Sometimes, too, Packers fans are frustrated in their efforts to physically follow the team. U.S. Navy Electrician's Mate 1 Thomas Bishop, whose family is from Seymour, looks forward to relocating from Hawaii to South Carolina, after which he'll try for three or more games a year. He said being aboard a fast-attack submarine makes it difficult to get to games, but he hears game announcers "always talk about how there are many Packers fans at the game."

— Contact rryman@greenbaypressgazette.com and follow him on Twitter @RichRymanPG or on Facebook at Richard Ryman-Press-Gazette. Or call him at (920) 431-8342.