Tickets, Please

It is usually true that the old saying holds up - you DO "get what you pay for". Some events (we're talking sports now, folks) command dramatically high prices, but don't always deliver. Big boxing matches come to mind. Thousand dollar ducats can turn into trash with a first round knockout. Plenty of Super Bowls were yawners, but there has never been a refund given.
But the opposite is also true. Some things may be worth MORE than we paid for. I know this, having seen some of the most exciting womens softball just last weekend for the cost of $3! Admittedly everyone has their own view of these things, but I'm willing to list here some events I may never see first hand, but would LIKE to:

The Drake Relays - This takes place in Des Moines every year in April. Weather condition can be good or terrible, but where else can you see junior high girl runners followed by world
class hurdlers and sprinters? They love it there, and I kick myself for never having gone.

Sumo wrestling - Sure, go ahead and laugh. Those fat guys who wear diapers and roll
around in the dirt? Absolutely. What a great chance to learn about Japan, and to watch
very specialized athletes disguised in layers of fat. I'd even put up with the smoking and
betting if someone were to help me understand it all.

Bull fighting - About all I know about this is that the bulls always lose, and that Hemingway
wrote about it. Even HE admitted it's not for everyone. But wouldn't it be worth it just
once to see what it's all about? And just so you know, this one exception doesn't mean I
would have any interest in blood sports involving other animals. Fighting cocks? Dogs?
UGH!

Rodeo - Sure, we've all seen a little of this stuff. It's a huge mismatch of middle-sized
cowboy/athletes vs. BIG animals. If anything, it's become a little TOO mainstream,
including commentary on the animals. Still, you have to respect those guys, who never
seem to have too much to say. Maybe that's because they're in constant pain.

Acrobats - These guys are like gymnasts on a dare. They put themselves in jeopardy
doing tricks that defy gravity and require more strength per pound than what humans are
usually capable of. They've got to train long and hard, and the Chinese ones are probably
just trying to get a gig in Vegas rather than spend their lives making things that end up for
sale at Wal-Mart.

Maybe not what you were thinking off the regular TV events? That's part of the idea. Why travel the country to watch Tiger Woods play when you can see him (although he's no longer on the GM payroll selling Buicks) every week on TV when he's healthy? Let's go see someone so obscure that he's willing to risk - REALLY risk it all - to succeed.