Best News I've heard all year

[AllWeatherFan]

For starters, sell beer.

Finally we can agree on something.

 

[Griz til I die]

The one thing they really need to do is get rid of the tan bleachers on the north side. I can't stand those things. At least paint them maroon, or better yet replace them. I cannot stand those. They need to upgrade those.

 

[Mousegriz]

Those bleachers are the best deal in UM sports...those are the $11 GA tickets and even cheaper in non-conference. Pretty comfortable to sit in and many memories of watching great games and concerts from those old school bleachers.

Agree a different color would be nice but bet you can't just paint those. I'd like to see them raise the bar that holds the curtain on that same end a foot or two. It sits right in the view line to the big screen up in the north end zone.....a poor place for a big screen but even worse when the curtain blocks your view.

 

[EverettGriz]

The one thing they really need to do is get rid of the tan bleachers on the north side. I can't stand those things. At least paint them maroon, or better yet replace them. I cannot stand those. They need to upgrade those.

They look great when they're full.

 

[GoldenEagle]

It would be cool if they specialized/personalized the floor to something Montanan, like Oregon has the watermark forest of trees. My cousins' family (Baseman Floors out of Wisconsin) has done numerous NBA floors, if anyone has contacts within the athletic department.

How about a giant rendition of Dennis Washington's head at center court. Now that is a perfect symbol for University of Montana athletics.

 

[flatheadgriz406]

I think something like University of Washingtons court would be cool. A silhouette of the mountains and the M with a big ole Griz would be sweet!

 

[UMGriz75]

I think something like University of Washingtons court would be cool. A silhouette of the mountains and the M with a big ole Griz would be sweet!

Another $10 million bucks or so and we ARE the University of "Washington," so why not?

 

[EverettGriz]

It would be cool if they specialized/personalized the floor to something Montanan, like Oregon has the watermark forest of trees. My cousins' family (Baseman Floors out of Wisconsin) has done numerous NBA floors, if anyone has contacts within the athletic department.

How about a giant rendition of Dennis Washington's head at center court. Now that is a perfect symbol for University of Montana athletics.

For once a goldenshower idea holds some promise. I kinda like this plan. In fact, all of the bsc teams could put a picture of one of their best and brightest alums on their court. Here's ewooooo's:

 

[Jaredkuehn]

The one thing they really need to do is get rid of the tan bleachers on the north side. I can't stand those things. At least paint them maroon, or better yet replace them. I cannot stand those. They need to upgrade those.

Agreed. I always felt like they ran out of money and just left the old bleachers as a stop gap. The north bleachers were always such a let down to an otherwise beautiful renovation. If they had just replaced those with maroon bleachers that match the lower level bleachers, it would be a huge improvement. Admittedly it's a minor gripe, but I always thought that was a strange decision to leave those dirty, old, beige bleachers.

I'm excited about a new score board. I wonder if Griz Vision will get moved from the north rafters into the center court scoreboard. Anyone know when that goes up? I'm assuming after this season.

 

[Zirg]

A new scoreboard is the best news of all! The present one is a dinosaur!

This is a serious question and not presented with any vitriol:what exactly do you mean about the present one being a "dinosaur"? It provides up-to-the-second (in theory) stat updates and I think seems pretty impressive for how shabby the rest of the gym is. What exactly is missing? Video images? I don't think a new scoreboard or locker room or facility updates will improve attendance one iota. I don't think ANYONE (me included) has any tangible way to re-invigorate a once rabid fan-base. If anything, the last genius remodel killed our home advantage.

My #1 complaint:Can we PLEASE just get one US flag so everyone looks in the same direction for the anthem? Until they solve that 3rd-grade problem, I have no faith in the bigwigs to solve anything.

 

[GrizWhiz]

The one thing they really need to do is get rid of the tan bleachers on the north side. I can't stand those things. At least paint them maroon, or better yet replace them. I cannot stand those. They need to upgrade those.

Agreed. I always felt like they ran out of money and just left the old bleachers as a stop gap. The north bleachers were always such a let down to an otherwise beautiful renovation. If they had just replaced those with maroon bleachers that match the lower level bleachers, it would be a huge improvement. Admittedly it's a minor gripe, but I always thought that was a strange decision to leave those dirty, old, beige bleachers.

I'm excited about a new score board. I wonder if Griz Vision will get moved from the north rafters into the center court scoreboard. Anyone know when that goes up? I'm assuming after this season.

Is there any concrete info from the athletic dept. regarding plans to fix the filthy looking beige bleachers? They really do severely let down what is otherwise a fine looking facility. I suspect they hide them as much as possilble whenever showing the arena to recruits.

 

[UMGriz75]

Agreed. I always felt like they ran out of money and just left the old bleachers as a stop gap. The north bleachers were always such a let down to an otherwise beautiful renovation.

That was controversial. I was on the committee. The "North Level" is a very highly used floor space for volleyball, cheer squad, ASUM sports clubs, varsity team workouts, indoor tennis, dance, etc. It is a highly useful space in large part because it is "multipurpose."

The fold-able bleachers make it so.

We didn't "run out of money," we just couldn't justify any alternatives that benefited UM.

Those retractable bleachers, which give the Field House about 40% of its usable space during the week, are extremely expensive, but also deliver by far the biggest bang for the buck in terms of creating additional seating for events, while preserving that floor space for useful workout area.

At one point, a new Field House Manager, whose term was so brief I can't recall his name -- I think "Pat" who had managed state fairs in Nebraska -- decided that the mechanical complexity was so great, that the Field House could not afford to continue using them as a mobile apparatus, in the event that "something jammed and they couldn't be extended to accommodate basketball games."

I got the coaches together, we raised a ruckus, and, twenty years later, those bleachers are still providing important, if mundane, Field House space for cheer squad, football drills, basketball drills, ASUM sport club use, Science Fair, Garden Show space, Gun Show space, volleyball, etc. To my knowledge, they haven't "jammed" once in that time.

The part that game fans don't see is that fact that, during the week, those bleachers "don't exist" because of an engineering design that is, due to size, nearly unique, and for which the cost of replacement, these days, would be astronomical.

 

[UMGriz75]

Is there any concrete info from the athletic dept. regarding plans to fix the filthy looking beige bleachers? They really do severely let down what is otherwise a fine looking facility. I suspect they hide them as much as possilble whenever showing the arena to recruits.

The Field House used to be "run" by the Athletic Department. The FH Manager was an assistant athletic director. Sometime after Gary Hughes retired, or as part of the transition, the Field House jurisdiction was moved to Main Hall which appointed a "civilian" manager who answered to the VP of Finance. So thereafter, when we were meeting on various planning functions, Bob Duringer, the VP of Finance, was part of those meetings and had the final say on matters. The Athletic Department became a "user" like everyone else that used or wanted to use the Field House for events.

This was soon after the major renovations were completed that installed the "stadium" style design and seating, which really did make the whole thing look pretty classy ... except for the folding North End bleachers. But, the cost-effectiveness of having those there and preserving the floor space for other activities far outweighed any point in installing stationary seating, and there was no functional purpose in replacing such giant folding bleachers with another set at very high cost for no other reason than to look prettier. In any case, the Athletic Department would not be initiating any changes like that. As I mentioned, when one of the managers tried to take away the work-out space by fixing the bleachers in place as permanent seating, it was a consortium of coaches -- ASUM sport clubs, Campus Rec, Athletic Department, HHP -- that opposed that, and prevailed.

That was part of the Dennison Legacy -- the odd part -- that shifted a lot of revenue and control away from the Athletic Department. The Field House now became an independent source of revenue for the University as a whole (the Athletic Department, and everybody else, is charged for use), concession profits now went to Dining Services, etc etc.

Good idea? Bad idea?

Recall this, however, when looking at UM's athletic department budget and when comparing with other schools. Many comparable schools include income and expenses from "athletic facilities" in their overall budgets, whereas UM shows this particular facility -- a relatively large overall budget item -- as just "expense" -- the costs of use -- but the revenue is booked for the University as a whole.

 

[Jaredkuehn]

Agreed. I always felt like they ran out of money and just left the old bleachers as a stop gap. The north bleachers were always such a let down to an otherwise beautiful renovation.

That was controversial. I was on the committee. The "North Level" is a very highly used floor space for volleyball, cheer squad, ASUM sports clubs, varsity team workouts, indoor tennis, dance, etc. It is a highly useful space in large part because it is "multipurpose."

The fold-able bleachers make it so.

We didn't "run out of money," we just couldn't justify any alternatives that benefited UM.

Those retractable bleachers, which give the Field House about 40% of its usable space during the week, are extremely expensive, but also deliver by far the biggest bang for the buck in terms of creating additional seating for events, while preserving that floor space for useful workout area.

At one point, a new Field House Manager, whose term was so brief I can't recall his name -- I think "Pat" who had managed state fairs in Nebraska -- decided that the mechanical complexity was so great, that the Field House could not afford to continue using them as a mobile apparatus, in the event that "something jammed and they couldn't be extended to accommodate basketball games."

I got the coaches together, we raised a ruckus, and, twenty years later, those bleachers are still providing important, if mundane, Field House space for cheer squad, football drills, basketball drills, ASUM sport club use, Science Fair, Garden Show space, Gun Show space, volleyball, etc. To my knowledge, they haven't "jammed" once in that time.

The part that game fans don't see is that fact that, during the week, those bleachers "don't exist" because of an engineering design that is, due to size, nearly unique, and for which the cost of replacement, these days, would be astronomical.

Makes perfect sense. I know that space is used for a lot of different purposes, so I get it. Its nice to know there was a logical process that resulted in the decision to keep those. There usually is, even if its not apparent on the surface. Thanks for the insight, that actually answers a question that has been simmering on my back burner for nearly two decades!

 

[GrizWhiz]

Is there any concrete info from the athletic dept. regarding plans to fix the filthy looking beige bleachers? They really do severely let down what is otherwise a fine looking facility. I suspect they hide them as much as possilble whenever showing the arena to recruits.

The Field House used to be "run" by the Athletic Department. The FH Manager was an assistant athletic director. Sometime after Gary Hughes retired, or as part of the transition, the Field House jurisdiction was moved to Main Hall which appointed a "civilian" manager who answered to the VP of Finance. So thereafter, when we were meeting on various planning functions, Bob Duringer, the VP of Finance, was part of those meetings and had the final say on matters. The Athletic Department became a "user" like everyone else that used or wanted to use the Field House for events.

This was soon after the major renovations were completed that installed the "stadium" style design and seating, which really did make the whole thing look pretty classy ... except for the folding North End bleachers. But, the cost-effectiveness of having those there and preserving the floor space for other activities far outweighed any point in installing stationary seating, and there was no functional purpose in replacing such giant folding bleachers with another set at very high cost for no other reason than to look prettier. In any case, the Athletic Department would not be initiating any changes like that. As I mentioned, when one of the managers tried to take away the work-out space by fixing the bleachers in place as permanent seating, it was a consortium of coaches -- ASUM sport clubs, Campus Rec, Athletic Department, HHP -- that opposed that, and prevailed.

That was part of the Dennison Legacy -- the odd part -- that shifted a lot of revenue and control away from the Athletic Department. The Field House now became an independent source of revenue for the University as a whole (the Athletic Department, and everybody else, is charged for use), concession profits now went to Dining Services, etc etc.

Good idea? Bad idea?

Recall this, however, when looking at UM's athletic department budget and when comparing with other schools. Many comparable schools include income and expenses from "athletic facilities" in their overall budgets, whereas UM shows this particular facility -- a relatively large overall budget item -- as just "expense" -- the costs of use -- but the revenue is booked for the University as a whole.

I appreciate they very thorough explanation. I still wish there was a way to change the color of the seats to match the rest of the seats in the arena.

 

[coyote]

Is there any concrete info from the athletic dept. regarding plans to fix the filthy looking beige bleachers? They really do severely let down what is otherwise a fine looking facility. I suspect they hide them as much as possilble whenever showing the arena to recruits.

The Field House used to be "run" by the Athletic Department. The FH Manager was an assistant athletic director. Sometime after Gary Hughes retired, or as part of the transition, the Field House jurisdiction was moved to Main Hall which appointed a "civilian" manager who answered to the VP of Finance. So thereafter, when we were meeting on various planning functions, Bob Duringer, the VP of Finance, was part of those meetings and had the final say on matters. The Athletic Department became a "user" like everyone else that used or wanted to use the Field House for events.

This was soon after the major renovations were completed that installed the "stadium" style design and seating, which really did make the whole thing look pretty classy ... except for the folding North End bleachers. But, the cost-effectiveness of having those there and preserving the floor space for other activities far outweighed any point in installing stationary seating, and there was no functional purpose in replacing such giant folding bleachers with another set at very high cost for no other reason than to look prettier. In any case, the Athletic Department would not be initiating any changes like that. As I mentioned, when one of the managers tried to take away the work-out space by fixing the bleachers in place as permanent seating, it was a consortium of coaches -- ASUM sport clubs, Campus Rec, Athletic Department, HHP -- that opposed that, and prevailed.

That was part of the Dennison Legacy -- the odd part -- that shifted a lot of revenue and control away from the Athletic Department. The Field House now became an independent source of revenue for the University as a whole (the Athletic Department, and everybody else, is charged for use), concession profits now went to Dining Services, etc etc.

Good idea? Bad idea?

Recall this, however, when looking at UM's athletic department budget and when comparing with other schools. Many comparable schools include income and expenses from "athletic facilities" in their overall budgets, whereas UM shows this particular facility -- a relatively large overall budget item -- as just "expense" -- the costs of use -- but the revenue is booked for the University as a whole.

I appreciate they very thorough explanation. I still wish there was a way to change the color of the seats to match the rest of the seats in the arena.

I'm sure there is a way to replace the colored part on the same frame if someone wanted to pay for it!

 

[UMGriz75]

Trying to remember back, the Field House was added onto in 1970 with the addition of two more of the giant laminated beams to the North. That allowed changing the main arena configuration from east/west to north/south. That created North Level B and the Bleachers were installed there at that time. So, that piece of machinery -- and it is, in essence, a giant machine -- is coming onto just about 50 years old.

One of the problems with the current administrative set-up is the Field House is something of a cash-cow, and its primary function is "generate revenue for UM," and so at the management level, it's budget driven rather than public relations driven as it might be under the Athletic Department.

 

[DoubleNicks]

FWIW, I find Oregon's floor highly irritating. I do, however, really like the giant inlaid bear on Cal's floor.

Yeah, nothing too crazy like these:

But I do like the state outline (being the flagship university) at center court behind the main logo, like these:

Or maybe switching it up and doing the main logo as faded underneath the "Griz" script like:

Some other ideas that could be simple tweaks to the current floor:

but use

in the keys or in opposite corners of the court.

Or instead of just solid maroon for the key color, do a gradient of silver and maroon like:

 

[DoubleNicks]

I think something like University of Washingtons court would be cool. A silhouette of the mountains and the M with a big ole Griz would be sweet!

Yeah, something like that would be unique but still classy! Maybe not such a drastic change in color, though.

 

[DoubleNicks]

And I kinda appreciate the general admission bleachers because of the extra leg room.