As reported this week in the D-H, Civil War tickets are being offered online for an average price of $287.

Don’t know about you, but for a working stiff such as myself, nearly $300 is a  lot of money to watch a 3 1/2-hour sporting event, even a rivalry game in which my favorite football team — Oregon State, of course — is playing for a spot in the Rose Bowl.

When I was a college sophomore I paid $16 to see the Who play at Memorial Colisuem on their “It’s Hard” tour, and I felt like that was a ton of money to for over even for a one-time shot at seeing my No. 1 band. Of course, $16 went a bit further in 1982 than it does now. Luckily, I made a bunch of money that fall scalping tickets I’d bought to the Who’s show in Seattle.

Anyway, the Civil War ticket situation got me thinking about something I’d thought about a number of times before, basically every time I hear about tickets to one event or another going for way more money than I’d be willing to pay. How much would I be willing to pay.

I really don’t believe I would spend more than $75 to attend any sporting contest, even a Civil War like this year’s or the Rose Bowl itself — and I’d have a hard time even making myself pay that much.

So I went around the newsroom and asked a number of folks the following question: “What’s the most you’d spend to see any sporting event, and what would that event be?”

Here are the answers:

Kim Jackson, news editor: $100 to $150, to see any Pittsburgh Steelers game.

Steve Lathrop, reporter: $25, to see any Seattle Mariners game.

Amanda Robbins, news clerk: She said she just spent $350 for a NASCAR weekend in Vegas.

Alex Paul, reporter: $100, for either the Civil War or the World Series.

Mike Henneke, Sunday editor: $40, for either a Mariners or Seattle Seahawks game.

Mark Ylen, photographer: $100 to see the Minnesota Vikings in a Super Bowl.

David Patton, photographer: $50 to see the Blazers in the NBA Finals.