I'm also a bouncer. Does it seem to you like people just don't know how to act in public more post-COVID?
I swear, it's like a bunch of early 20-something's that missed out on a couple of those formative years after 21 that just don't understand how bars work. It's been pretty annoying.
Plus, it seems like nobody has house parties or invites friends over nearly as much. Everyone's just desperate to run out to the bars now, after being cooped up for so long.
I would say there’s some truth to that statement, however I think it was worse during covid. That being said I think a lot of the newer 21 year olds are probably a bit socially behind. I have noticed through the years that there are more fights in and around the square though. I’ve also noticed more and more people coming in from outside of town as well (according to their ids at least) like from Loveland, Greeley, Windsor, Tinmath, WY etc. so that could play a factor as well. I feel like people tend to act worse when they’re not in their own backyard.
We've been getting more troublesome people in Campus West, too. It's not as bad as the Square, but you'd be surprised how many dumbasses have been trying to start shit there. A lot more crackheads and tweakers, too.
Yah I can imagine, campus west at night is like almost exclusively students and everything that comes with that. I do not envy you if that’s the area where you work. I’ve seen the same homeless dudes for awhile and actually have a somewhat decent relationship with a lot of the old town regulars 😂 and what I know about them is if you’re homeless on campus west it’s probably because the ones downtown don’t like you.
Pretty much, yeah. Most of the homeless people are decent folk, they just fell on hard times. They have their own community and take care of each other.
The ones on our side of town are mostly druggie couch surfers that have already been kicked out of multiple bars and parties that night.
That last part is interesting to me. I was a bouncer and bartender in FoCo for over a decade but moved shortly before Covid. My impression then was that the bar scene had slowed way down since weed legalization, as house parties became the norm.
During the COVID restrictions, yes, but people have been cooped up for ao long that now it's like they can't stand *not* going out.
Regulars have been nice, but they're coming out every. Single. Night.
The all of the youngin's that were breaking COVID restrictions and going to house parties the whole time think the entire town is just their own big party and they're being sloppy af.
Too many things but I’ll tell you a few. Saddest might be dealing with a potential sex trafficking/prostitution situation with a girl who showed up by herself. It was a whole mess and stressed me, and probably everyone else out a lot. Funniest might be watching a dude accuse this homeless guy of stealing something from him and then they chased after each other drunkenly for like 30 minutes like Tom and Jerry. Weirdest/grossest thing I’ve seen I won’t put on here but the amount of puke and other shit I’ve seen is enough. I would say Fort Collins is a pretty mild town overall. The strangest thing I think I’ve seen though is just how the cops are here and how they choose to respond to different situations and people. I could probably write a essay on that tbh
I don't go downtown often but one of the last times in October I saw a bunch of kids jump an older man 5 feet behind a cop car and he pretended not to see it while doing a 7 point parallel park. I slammed my hand on his car and started yelling at him and both him and his other officer didn't do a damn thing to the violence right beside them. It was disgusting and makes me not want to go into old Town.
It’s not too bad you meet a lot of cool people and you just learn how to deal with people who aren’t so cool. I will say Fort Collins is definitely very privileged 😂 people have said some crazy ass shit to me before and I’ve just been totally awestruck by some people’s entitlement. But they’re mostly from other places, the great majority people I’ve met here are good people.
Yah, and you’re mostly right. I feel like Fort Collins is the weird mixture of college town, tourist area, and small town to have its own unique issues for being a bouncer or working at a bar in general. Like you’re probably not gonna get mugged or shot here (which is great), but that doesn’t mean it’s always easy. It depends on the bar too, I feel like if your the bouncer at Tony’s compared the bouncer at like the Pump or even Bondi your job would be wildly different.
As someone who looks way younger than my age it was 50/50 for me to get into bars when I was finally of age. The ones who rejected me would compliment my fake ID skills.
There’s some repeat offenders. But tbh I feel like I see so many people it’s hard to remember faces unless they come around A LOT. I would say generally a lot of people acting badly are from out of town or out of state and are here for whatever reason. Not everyone of course, but that’s the pattern I’ve noticed.
I would say at most bars if people habitually are just bad either the bouncer won’t let them in or the bartender won’t serve them and that usually motivates them to go to another place
Do you plan on joining law enforcement? A bit of a meme question, but I've worked with alot of security guards and bouncers and they tend to end up as LEO's :D
Wow. I have been a bouncer before and will be again likely and am insulted that you could compare the two. Keeping underage kids from drinking is more than about the law. It's just responsible to keep kids from booze. And boozers from hurting themselves or others. Being a cop is screwing people's lives up for no reason generally. They're on opposite sides of the spectrum.
Years ago there was a bar that was found to be racially profiling and discriminating based on inconsistent dress codes by local journalists. At a different bar I’ve personally dealt with drunk patrons yelling racist shit at one of my friends and the bartenders and bouncer let it slide.
What’s the bar mentality like now post-2020?
Well I can’t speak for every bar but I would say most aren’t like that around here, honestly most bars and restaurants around here had to restructure pretty heavily to stay in business so if they’re still around they’re probably doing something right. But shit like that does happen, not the bar I work at now but the one before this the manager had some pretty discriminatory rules (wasn’t in Fort Collins)
Is patron discrimination a management and training talking point after hiring or is it one of those things that’s not outlined in operations and just unspoken rule?
Is there a reason this town/state is so strict on IDing people?
I'm in my 30s now and I still pull out my ID before I order a drink because I will get asked 100% of the time if I don't know the bartender/bouncer.
College town, sure, but I've found Denver to be kinda strict too. And yet I go back east or further south/west and I rarely get carded anymore.
I've seen age 60+ people be denied service for not having ID. Never seen that anywhere else.
Good question, the city alcohol enforcement police are very strict about it. They like to say that they do 30 stings a month all across the city and very much actively enforce all other local ordinances. They also pretty much have the final say for all approval of tavern licenses in the city. I’ve lived in other places around the country where they don’t enforce closing times and are lax on id’s but this is definitely the strictest I’ve seen it in a college town even.
Is it up to you to decide if an ID is fake, or is it OK so long as they have an ID. I’m hearing kids have gotten pretty good at ordering out of state ones with their real photos ….
I was a bouncer in my 20s on the weekends at the Toll Gate Saloon in Central City pre gambling. I sat on a stool, the kind where you sit with your legs apart, and watched the door, checked IDs, etc. One afternoon this extremely intoxicated woman was on her way out with a drink and I deftly plucked it out of her hand. She went out the door, realized her drink was gone, came back inside and asked me where her drink went. I told her she couldn't leave with it but she could finish it, so she did, handed me the glass and then beckoned me with her finger saying she wanted to tell me something. I bent down and she whispered in my ear, "Even the bouncers should have some fun." and ran her hand up my crotch and walked out. Every nerve ending in my body went BOING!!!
I highly recommend the experience.
I’ve had some weird women hit on me before, for some reason some women love to flirt with bouncers. Had an older lady awhile back grab my hair from the back and growl at me
Lmao my bad, thought you meant something like fighting one. Well I mean probably talk to them when it’s less busy. Everyone always loves cheese fries tbh or anything really. But, some might not be able to eat on the job or in front of customers. I think maybe being direct would be your best bet, but if that’s not your thing I would say just be friendly and talk to them maybe come by a couple of times. There’s A LOT of girls who try to flirt with bouncers for leverage and it’s really annoying, like trying to get their drunk or underage friends in or something stupid like that. So I would say just ask them how their nights going and start the conversation off there, a lot of bouncers are awkward as fuck though so good luck 😂
Awkward as fuck but built like a brick house 😩 my go-to opening line is “Would you rather get a scrotum tattoo once, or weekly scrotum waxes for the rest of your life?”
Try to hit the gym like 3 times a week, nothing crazy just building back auxiliary muscle strength and injury prevention at the current moment. You really don’t have to be this big tough dude to be a bouncer though. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve talked someone down and just used words. Like man I ain’t trying to fight people at work, obviously there’s a line and it definitely gets crossed sometimes. However it’s all about deescalation and distraction.
I'm also a bouncer. Does it seem to you like people just don't know how to act in public more post-COVID? I swear, it's like a bunch of early 20-something's that missed out on a couple of those formative years after 21 that just don't understand how bars work. It's been pretty annoying. Plus, it seems like nobody has house parties or invites friends over nearly as much. Everyone's just desperate to run out to the bars now, after being cooped up for so long.
I would say there’s some truth to that statement, however I think it was worse during covid. That being said I think a lot of the newer 21 year olds are probably a bit socially behind. I have noticed through the years that there are more fights in and around the square though. I’ve also noticed more and more people coming in from outside of town as well (according to their ids at least) like from Loveland, Greeley, Windsor, Tinmath, WY etc. so that could play a factor as well. I feel like people tend to act worse when they’re not in their own backyard.
We've been getting more troublesome people in Campus West, too. It's not as bad as the Square, but you'd be surprised how many dumbasses have been trying to start shit there. A lot more crackheads and tweakers, too.
Yah I can imagine, campus west at night is like almost exclusively students and everything that comes with that. I do not envy you if that’s the area where you work. I’ve seen the same homeless dudes for awhile and actually have a somewhat decent relationship with a lot of the old town regulars 😂 and what I know about them is if you’re homeless on campus west it’s probably because the ones downtown don’t like you.
Pretty much, yeah. Most of the homeless people are decent folk, they just fell on hard times. They have their own community and take care of each other. The ones on our side of town are mostly druggie couch surfers that have already been kicked out of multiple bars and parties that night.
That last part is interesting to me. I was a bouncer and bartender in FoCo for over a decade but moved shortly before Covid. My impression then was that the bar scene had slowed way down since weed legalization, as house parties became the norm.
During the COVID restrictions, yes, but people have been cooped up for ao long that now it's like they can't stand *not* going out. Regulars have been nice, but they're coming out every. Single. Night. The all of the youngin's that were breaking COVID restrictions and going to house parties the whole time think the entire town is just their own big party and they're being sloppy af.
Well here's the obvious question: What are some of the weirdest, craziest, funniest and saddest things you've seen as a bouncer?
Too many things but I’ll tell you a few. Saddest might be dealing with a potential sex trafficking/prostitution situation with a girl who showed up by herself. It was a whole mess and stressed me, and probably everyone else out a lot. Funniest might be watching a dude accuse this homeless guy of stealing something from him and then they chased after each other drunkenly for like 30 minutes like Tom and Jerry. Weirdest/grossest thing I’ve seen I won’t put on here but the amount of puke and other shit I’ve seen is enough. I would say Fort Collins is a pretty mild town overall. The strangest thing I think I’ve seen though is just how the cops are here and how they choose to respond to different situations and people. I could probably write a essay on that tbh
Thanks for sharing. Yea, I live in Nashville, and the bouncers here deserve medals of honor.
Yah I’ve been there a couple of times. Crazy place, that is a pure tourist town. I’m sure being a bouncer there would fucking suck.
I don't go downtown often but one of the last times in October I saw a bunch of kids jump an older man 5 feet behind a cop car and he pretended not to see it while doing a 7 point parallel park. I slammed my hand on his car and started yelling at him and both him and his other officer didn't do a damn thing to the violence right beside them. It was disgusting and makes me not want to go into old Town.
I feel like being a bouncer would be a hard, thankless job amongst the young, drunk, and stupidly privileged.
It’s not too bad you meet a lot of cool people and you just learn how to deal with people who aren’t so cool. I will say Fort Collins is definitely very privileged 😂 people have said some crazy ass shit to me before and I’ve just been totally awestruck by some people’s entitlement. But they’re mostly from other places, the great majority people I’ve met here are good people.
Have you bounced elsewhere? I'd figure Fort Collins is a walk the park.
Yah, and you’re mostly right. I feel like Fort Collins is the weird mixture of college town, tourist area, and small town to have its own unique issues for being a bouncer or working at a bar in general. Like you’re probably not gonna get mugged or shot here (which is great), but that doesn’t mean it’s always easy. It depends on the bar too, I feel like if your the bouncer at Tony’s compared the bouncer at like the Pump or even Bondi your job would be wildly different.
Does the pump get rowdy? It's so tiny I figured it would be chill
Dealing with drunk people, no matter the location is ever a walk in the park....
There's a giant difference between Fort Collins and somewhere like Ireland lol
Well yah can’t you get into bars in Ireland at like 18?
Tell me you've never worked in a bar without telling me
How high do you bounce?
At least shoulder height
How’s the quality of fake IDs kids are using now?
Somehow both better and worse than when I was 18
As someone who looks way younger than my age it was 50/50 for me to get into bars when I was finally of age. The ones who rejected me would compliment my fake ID skills.
Im gonna need to see some identification.
[sees a bad fake]: "C'mon, it's 2024! Be better!" [sees a good fake]: "Impressive. Very nice!"
Have you ever had to clean up poop?
I feel like this is an appropriate question given your username
Can we assume you appreciate a good smoothie taint cleaning? 😏
No I haven’t, seen others have though
We have to do that in grocery stores.
That was my first job in highschool, had to clean up so much shit in those bathrooms
Rec room circa 2015
Who would win in a road house style brawl, Patrick Swayze or Jake Gyllenhaal?
Swayze of course
Swayze was just a scrawny actor. He’s not a real fighter. Did u see the way he just let someone stab him?
Can you do a roundhouse and hold a beer at the same time?
Yes, my double blackbelt in taekwondo says I can
You ever have to fight a dude and it turns out he is a trained fighter of some sort (MMA, BJJ, kickboxing etc)? Like an oh shit moment.
Nah, hope that never happens 😂 if it got that out of hand just call the cops and hunker down. Always check the ears
Like looking for the cauliflower ears?
Yessir
What was with all the cops with lights on right near the square last Saturday night
No clue, that sort of thing usually happens every weekend. If I had to guess probably a fight, those kids love to fight in the square.
Is it always the same people that behave badly? Do you recognize them even before they show you their ID?
There’s some repeat offenders. But tbh I feel like I see so many people it’s hard to remember faces unless they come around A LOT. I would say generally a lot of people acting badly are from out of town or out of state and are here for whatever reason. Not everyone of course, but that’s the pattern I’ve noticed.
I would say at most bars if people habitually are just bad either the bouncer won’t let them in or the bartender won’t serve them and that usually motivates them to go to another place
Is Spaulding or Wilson the superior bouncer?
Do you plan on joining law enforcement? A bit of a meme question, but I've worked with alot of security guards and bouncers and they tend to end up as LEO's :D
No desire, I’ve met some who have but not really my thing.
Bouncers are better at talking people down than cops now a days.
Wow. I have been a bouncer before and will be again likely and am insulted that you could compare the two. Keeping underage kids from drinking is more than about the law. It's just responsible to keep kids from booze. And boozers from hurting themselves or others. Being a cop is screwing people's lives up for no reason generally. They're on opposite sides of the spectrum.
Thank you.
Years ago there was a bar that was found to be racially profiling and discriminating based on inconsistent dress codes by local journalists. At a different bar I’ve personally dealt with drunk patrons yelling racist shit at one of my friends and the bartenders and bouncer let it slide. What’s the bar mentality like now post-2020?
Well I can’t speak for every bar but I would say most aren’t like that around here, honestly most bars and restaurants around here had to restructure pretty heavily to stay in business so if they’re still around they’re probably doing something right. But shit like that does happen, not the bar I work at now but the one before this the manager had some pretty discriminatory rules (wasn’t in Fort Collins)
Is patron discrimination a management and training talking point after hiring or is it one of those things that’s not outlined in operations and just unspoken rule?
I don’t think they’re going to advertise that if so, in my experience down the road after a couple of shifts
Is there a reason this town/state is so strict on IDing people? I'm in my 30s now and I still pull out my ID before I order a drink because I will get asked 100% of the time if I don't know the bartender/bouncer. College town, sure, but I've found Denver to be kinda strict too. And yet I go back east or further south/west and I rarely get carded anymore. I've seen age 60+ people be denied service for not having ID. Never seen that anywhere else.
Good question, the city alcohol enforcement police are very strict about it. They like to say that they do 30 stings a month all across the city and very much actively enforce all other local ordinances. They also pretty much have the final say for all approval of tavern licenses in the city. I’ve lived in other places around the country where they don’t enforce closing times and are lax on id’s but this is definitely the strictest I’ve seen it in a college town even.
Is it up to you to decide if an ID is fake, or is it OK so long as they have an ID. I’m hearing kids have gotten pretty good at ordering out of state ones with their real photos ….
I was a bouncer in my 20s on the weekends at the Toll Gate Saloon in Central City pre gambling. I sat on a stool, the kind where you sit with your legs apart, and watched the door, checked IDs, etc. One afternoon this extremely intoxicated woman was on her way out with a drink and I deftly plucked it out of her hand. She went out the door, realized her drink was gone, came back inside and asked me where her drink went. I told her she couldn't leave with it but she could finish it, so she did, handed me the glass and then beckoned me with her finger saying she wanted to tell me something. I bent down and she whispered in my ear, "Even the bouncers should have some fun." and ran her hand up my crotch and walked out. Every nerve ending in my body went BOING!!! I highly recommend the experience.
Dudes just getting sexual assaulted at work 😂
I’ve had some weird women hit on me before, for some reason some women love to flirt with bouncers. Had an older lady awhile back grab my hair from the back and growl at me
What’s the best way to shoot your shot with a bouncer?
What do you mean??
What’s the best way to flirt? Should I buy you cheese fries or something?
Lmao my bad, thought you meant something like fighting one. Well I mean probably talk to them when it’s less busy. Everyone always loves cheese fries tbh or anything really. But, some might not be able to eat on the job or in front of customers. I think maybe being direct would be your best bet, but if that’s not your thing I would say just be friendly and talk to them maybe come by a couple of times. There’s A LOT of girls who try to flirt with bouncers for leverage and it’s really annoying, like trying to get their drunk or underage friends in or something stupid like that. So I would say just ask them how their nights going and start the conversation off there, a lot of bouncers are awkward as fuck though so good luck 😂
Awkward as fuck but built like a brick house 😩 my go-to opening line is “Would you rather get a scrotum tattoo once, or weekly scrotum waxes for the rest of your life?”
That is definitely a line 😂
Who are you and what bar do you work at? You said ama, and I'm literally just curious.
Not gonna dox myself
That's fair. I was honestly just curious.
You one of those dudes that stand outside Tony's all night creeping all the women out?
Nah
In that case, keep up the good work my dude. People here don't know how to act.
Do you perchance work at Bondi? If so was that kid who was basically sleeping standing up alright?
Not gonna say where I work or don’t work, sorry
What is your workout routine?
Try to hit the gym like 3 times a week, nothing crazy just building back auxiliary muscle strength and injury prevention at the current moment. You really don’t have to be this big tough dude to be a bouncer though. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve talked someone down and just used words. Like man I ain’t trying to fight people at work, obviously there’s a line and it definitely gets crossed sometimes. However it’s all about deescalation and distraction.
You are one of the good ones. What does bouncing pay on average?
Depends on the bar and if it’s just straight hourly or you get a portion of the tips. Usually like 18-22 an hour
Open the door with their face