{"id":7766,"date":"2018-09-28T23:22:18","date_gmt":"2018-09-28T23:22:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/2018\/09\/column-564-darts-in-america-2000-vs-2018\/"},"modified":"2018-09-28T23:22:18","modified_gmt":"2018-09-28T23:22:18","slug":"column-564-darts-in-america-2000-vs-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/2018\/09\/column-564-darts-in-america-2000-vs-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"Column #564 Darts in America \u2013 2000 vs. 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

Saturday, September 28, 2018
\nColumn 564
\nDarts in America – 2000 vs. 2018<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to a survey conducted in the year 2000 by the American Darts Organization the average dart player in this country was 38 years old. This suggests that today on average you and I are about 56. In my case (and the Old Dart Coach\u2019s) this is excellent news.<\/p>\n

In 2000, the average household income was $56,564. Today, if we\u2019re still playing darts – and we sure as hell are<\/em> – our household income is roughly half this figure because our spouse has walked out.<\/p>\n

Most of us had jobs: trades (19%), technology\/telecommunications (16%), professional – including financial services, engineering and sales representatives (13%), government workers (12%) and real estate-related (10%). These percentages are presently about the same (however, there is incontrovertible evidence that some of us were caught naked in the presence of nurses when we were born – so apparently, we have the \u201cqualifications\u201d to be either President or a Supreme Court Justice).<\/p>\n

We owned cars and trucks (43% of us owned a truck). Our preference was for American-made (Fords, Chevrolets, Dodges and Pontiacs). Today, we own the same vehicles – we can\u2019t afford new ones because they (and gas) cost twice as much, and we no longer have our spouse\u2019s income.<\/p>\n

In the year 2000, we were Wal-Mart shoppers. For everything from sports clothing and equipment to music and videos the super-retailer was the darters\u2019 top choice to find a good deal. Today, we frequent Wal-Mart to snap photos with our smart phones of obese women in halter tops and men in diapers and post them online.<\/p>\n

We were becoming tech-savvy. Back then, 88% percent of us had Internet access and we spent about an hour a day online. We used online services for e-mail and work- and school-related activities. Today, we use the Internet to hunt for porn.<\/p>\n

According to the ADO survey, 82% of us consumed alcohol, mostly beer. Only a quarter of us drank liquor and just 6% (probably women and girlie boys) drank wine. Today, 116% percent of us drink beer.<\/p>\n

Our fast-food preferences were: Wendy\u2019s (27%), Burger King (22%), Taco Bell (15%) and McDonald\u2019s (7%) and we opted for Coke over Pepsi (53% to 43%). Nothing\u2019s changed except that Burger King dethroned its creepy cartoon mascot who bore a striking resemblance to Simon Whitlock.<\/p>\n

Starbucks (at 40%) was our preference for coffee, followed by Waffle House (12%) and Denny\u2019s and Cup A Joe (4% each). As Starbucks has greatly expanded operations with outlets today in airports, malls, hospitals, day-care centers and even prisons it is likely they have an even larger share of the darters\u2019 market, except among players who are black and need to take a leak.<\/p>\n

Dunkin\u2019 Donuts was named by 46% as our favorite donut or bagel shop, with Einstein Bagels second (8%), Bruegger\u2019s Bagels at (5%) and Krispy Kreme (3%). Obviously, those who responded to the ADO survey (82% of them being alcohol drinkers) were too drunk to answer this question correctly. Even lab rats and soft-tip dart players know Krispy Kreme is best (although Canadians would argue for Tim Hortons).<\/p>\n

In a difficult to accept as accurate finding, the ADO survey concluded that in the year 2000 the average American dart player household spent $968 on personal entertainment. Today, at least among the men, this figure is just $84 (again, since costs have skyrocketed and many of our wives have split). However, this does not account for the cost of beer, fast food, poker and condoms – in which case the \u201cpersonal entertainment\u201d figure has increased substantially. This is another reason why we can\u2019t afford new cars or attract new spouses.<\/p>\n

Other than darts, drinking and sex, our favorite participation sports were golf (16%), fishing (13%), baseball (10%), billiards and bicycling (8% each) and bowling (7%). Our spectator sports, which 66% of us viewed on ESPN followed by Fox at 21%, were: football and baseball (17% each), basketball and auto racing\/NASCAR (9% each) and golf (8%). Not much has changed since we still can\u2019t watch much darts on television and we\u2019re too preoccupied hunting for porn to watch a pirated match on the Internet. Besides the Brits and Dutch still always win so who really cares?<\/p>\n

Other common hobbies included: sewing and crafts (23%), reading (20%), gardening (17%) and photography (11%). Puzzled by the high percentage of sewing and crafts aficionados, I studied the cross-tabs and discovered that only one person really checked this box. Her name was Anne Kramer.<\/p>\n

In the year 2000, American dart players attended an average of nine tournaments each year. Travel distance was the main factor in determining attendance (70% of respondents listed this as key). Other considerations were cost (48%), event pay-out (44%), work schedule (41%) and the reputation of the host organization (25%). Not a single person surveyed checked the box that read: \u201creputation of the ADO.\u201d<\/p>\n

Our preference in darts was for Accudart (90%), Bottelsen (16%), Unicorn (15%) and Harrow (9%). In the dartboard department Nodor (29%) edged out Accudart and Winmau (at 26% and 23% respectively). With the influence of popular products from Asian suppliers like Monster, L-Style and Cosmo these figures have no doubt changed considerably. Of course, nobody in their right mind purchases from Target.<\/p>\n

So as the world has changed in the past 18 years so have many of the preferences and practices of American darters.<\/p>\n

Except one\u2026<\/p>\n

Even though it was not part of the year 2000 ADO survey, one tendency of darts players has remained constant, at least according to Google Analytics. As in the year 2000, of the thousands of people – almost all men – who visit this website in the few days after a new column is posted an overwhelming 98.2% do not actually read my column. They click directly to the Double Out shots. As to the women – 100% of them send me hate mail.<\/p>\n

Of course, Google Analytics is occasionally prone to error. Therefore, I have emailed my close personal friend Steve Brown at the ADO (who the ADO still won\u2019t admit it\u2019s paying) and am counting on him to verify my findings in the next formal ADO survey, scheduled to follow the ADO\u2019s next financial report in the year 3000.<\/p>\n

And just in case you\u2019re wondering, the graph at the top of this column does not reflect a decline in the popularity of our sport in America. It reflects the decline in respect for the so-called \u201cgoverning body\u201d of our sport (and it\u2019s generous).<\/p>\n

From the Field,<\/p>\n

Dartoid<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

According to a survey conducted in the year 2000 by the American Darts Organization the average dart player in this country was 38 years 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to a survey conducted in the year 2000 by the American Darts Organization the average dart player in this country was 38 years old...","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"authors":[{"term_id":15,"user_id":2,"is_guest":0,"slug":"dartoid","display_name":"Dartoid","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/2024-02-13-12_01_31-Dartoids-World-_-The-most-widely-read-column-about-darts-in-the-world.png","url2x":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/2024-02-13-12_01_31-Dartoids-World-_-The-most-widely-read-column-about-darts-in-the-world.png"},"first_name":"Paul","last_name":"Seigel","user_url":"http:\/\/www.dartoidsworld.com","job_title":"","description":"\"Dartoid\" is the pseudonym of Paul Seigel, a prominent chronicler of darts for over 35 years. His columns are celebrated for their wit and insight, often detailing his quest for a game in exotic locales worldwide. His writing offers vibrant commentary on the competitive darts landscape, including players, organizations, tournaments and the sport's unique culture. Dartoid's articles are highly regarded among darts enthusiasts, solidifying his role as a pivotal figure in promoting and documenting darts as both a recreational pastime and professional sport."}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7766","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7766"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7766\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6494"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7766"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7766"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7766"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=7766"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}