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Post by vabigpoppa on Nov 11, 2008 22:08:54 GMT -5
hey fresh did you get to take a peek at dedmon?
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Post by RUFresh on Nov 12, 2008 18:09:02 GMT -5
hey fresh did you get to take a peek at dedmon? eh not so much. from what i saw though, the top it's getting close. i talked to a few people and they said they've been working hard on it recently (what took them so long!!!). it's really pathetic they have to play the games at the start of the season in peters, i'm talking really pathetic. its worse than the bucdome in csu, it's worse than most high school gyms. administration should be ashamed of themselves for getting such a late start on the renovations and for our teams to be forced to play in there.
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Post by knvb141 on Nov 12, 2008 19:37:38 GMT -5
There are always delays in construction....playing winthrop in peters absolutely sucks....or maybe we can eliminate the deutches that travel w/ winthrop and make it a 100% Radford crowd.....Its temporary but it does suck. I just hope Dedmon is the top of the Big South in terms of facilities for recruiting...
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klep
2 star recruit
Posts: 45
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Post by klep on Nov 13, 2008 11:11:37 GMT -5
Guys,
Most of the time I just lurk, but I had to weigh in on this. I drive by Dedmon every few days to watch the progress. Construction has been ongoing for several months. When you rely on contractors and material vendors, you can always expect delays. Another thing to consider is that this is a renovation, not a new construction. Renovations alway uncover unexpected challenges. It's completely unrealistic for anyone to expect a major project like this to be completed in 8 months. I understand the frustration, but blaming the administration is not the remedy.
Second, playing our opening games in Peters isn't pathetic. I'm looking forward to it. If you haven't seen Peters since it was renovated, you'd be impressed. It's not worse than CSU or most high school gyms. It IS smaller, but the floor is first rate. The baskets are new, the endzone scoreboards from Dedmon have been installed and it is artfully decked out in RU red. It's going to present a significant challenge to everyone who comes there to play. It's a look back into the history of our program when all games used to be played there, and its probably the only time in our history that we'll be able to take this walk down memory lane. I'm somewhat disappointed that RU isn't doing more to highlight our past under the circumstances. I saw the High's first game in Dedmon, but never got to experience Peters. I think its going to be nostalgic. Anyone remember when our original school colors were purple and gray? I would have loved to see us in throwback uniforms for the first few games. It will be loud, hot and claustrophobic to our opponents. And given the pre-season accolades being showered on the Highlanders, having to play in a limited seat arena creates an almost perfect storm. There is already built in demand. If the team gets off to a good start, when Dedmon does reopen, there will be a great crowd on hand wanting...needing...to see this team play.
If you can, tune into the internet broadcasts to hear Rick Watson bring you the play-by-play this Friday. Pregame starts at 6:30PM.
JK
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Post by vabigpoppa on Nov 13, 2008 19:21:43 GMT -5
....the endzone scoreboards from Dedmon have been installed and it is artfully decked out in RU red.... hey klep, can you share any information about the renovations for dedmon? i assume if peters is using the old dedmon scoreboards, dedmon will be getting new ones? (video scoreboard hopefully lol)
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klep
2 star recruit
Posts: 45
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Post by klep on Nov 14, 2008 1:23:04 GMT -5
To be honest, I don't know a whole lot of specifics. The scoreboards that are now in Peters were the ones that hung on the track behind the baskets. When Dedmon reopens, there are going to be curtains behind the baskets, trying to make the arena a little more "intimate." The entire arena floor had to be replaced, and they will install a new basketball floor. In fact, that isn't scheduled to arrive until a few days before the scheduled reopening. Again, many things had to be done to get the arena back on line. Honestly, getting the building opened in January to me is a modern miracle. There will be a new lighting system going in with shutter capability. That will allow them to bring down the lights for player introductions and such. It's supposed to make the lighting better for television as well. If you didn't know, the Dedmon Center will now be an "athletes only" facility. No students. No intramurals. No racquetball courts. No weight room. The old Nautilus room has been converted to a 5,000 sq. ft. facility dedicated to athletes. The racquetball courts are going to be converted into the athletic study facility which had been on campus and had been relocated several timesover the years. I think you'll see a big scoreboard someday, but not this season. I'd like to see an over-the-court scoreboard with video capability as well. There have been rumors of realigning the court, but again, I don't have any direct knowledge of that.
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Post by RUFresh on Nov 14, 2008 12:03:31 GMT -5
klep-
thanks for chiming in. I'm sure the atmosphere will be electric and I can understand playing in Peters is a bit nostalgic, I just think by D1 standards, games are better played in an arena rather than a auxiliary gym. But it's a temporary solution so I guess I'm okay with it.
I did see the renderings in the media guide, love the idea of the black curtain making it more intimate and it looked like they had a bubble tunnell thing going from where the opposing team comes out from the lockers to the floor (i'm assuming radford will be coming out that way as well), which is a nice touch.
I just can't wait for the arena to be done (sounds like the players/coaches really want to get back, plus it's a great recruiting tool) and then I guess we can worry about what other major additions (as klep said a hanging over-the-court scoreboard w/ video, moving the court to add a permanent seating bowl, etc).
Klep, what do you think about them turning the Dedmon Center into more of a student-athlete venue, as opposed to when it was opened to all back in the day?
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Post by vabigpoppa on Jan 7, 2009 20:02:05 GMT -5
well it looks like the 1st game back is on the 21st, finallllllly
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Post by knvb141 on Jan 7, 2009 20:03:54 GMT -5
I want pictuuuuuuures
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Post by RUFresh on Jan 15, 2009 13:09:09 GMT -5
Looks pretty nice (love the court and the streel trusses). Remember when looking at the court sitting in the reserved blue section to the right will be a tunnel (i'm told) where the players come running out to spruce up the arena a bit. Also there will be black curtains behind each endzone seating to make the DC more intimate.
Next phase I hope includes getting permanent bowl seating and a hanging video scoreboard over the middle.
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Post by vabigpoppa on Jan 15, 2009 14:40:46 GMT -5
nice pics! i was hoping they would change center court to a big RU and they did, i would have made it even bigger like Georgia Tech's big GT, or UVA's haha i cant wait till the 2nd phase, i think i read they are starting that this offseason? it might just be me but it looks like the ceiling might be too low for a hanging scoreboard? also there are lights in the middle, i guess they would have to take those out or something. but i wouldnt mind video scoreboards behind the stands on both sides of the court though, that might look even more up to date and it would be different.
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Post by RUFresh on Jan 15, 2009 19:30:27 GMT -5
I've been to JPJ before for a story I did and also a couple times as a fan (maryland). It's a beautiful arena. I've said this before, I think we can model the Dedmon Center after Mercer's University Center. There is a virtual tour on there website as well.
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Post by vabigpoppa on Jan 15, 2009 20:52:18 GMT -5
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Post by knvb141 on Jan 15, 2009 20:58:05 GMT -5
I love the new court....I dream of the day that we have seats all over the arena tho...
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Post by vabigpoppa on Jan 15, 2009 21:32:46 GMT -5
do you guys think big art will be able to fit under that inflatable tunnel from the video? haha
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