Rec Hall Debate…

[baccafarmer]

Get ready for a seat license for wrestling similar to football. Rec hall is sold out. Younger alumni/fans have been on waiting list for season tickets for over 7 years and still waiting. While many old timers have their seats near mat and pay same price as last row seats. Having those in lower bleachers paying a $100 season seat license would generate enough $ to paid all coaches salaries. Law of supply/demand should apply. Current $30/match for season tickets is a bargan. Many of these season ticket holders are not even members of the Nittany Lion Club.
For comparison tickets for Iowa wrestling in Carver Hawkeye range from $34 to $59 per match depending on seat location. PSU is leaving a LOT of $ on table with wrestling ticket
Pricing.

Agree 100%. Current season tix holders have a sports bargain like no other. I’ve heard the “seat license” topic several times over the past 2 years from a couple of neighbors affiliated with the machine. Jack the seat prices in combo with an annual seat license contribution … and PSU could triple revenue from wrestling. I think the only reason they have not moved to such a system is probably Cael’s affection for the existing fan base.

 

[HOCKEYGOD11]

Don’t forget the beer taps and bbq for photographers.

And those funky gold fish pedicure tanks ..

 

[johnstownsteel]

The seats are hard and compete with economy airline seats for being narrow. The visiting locker room is small and reminds one of the kind of place the Philadelphia Athletics would have used in the 1940’s. What can I call them …. the alley behind stands is narrow, crowded, and has a feel as old as some of the team pictures …. which stretch back to the early 1900’s. Our fans are packed so tight around the visiting team that coaches are unfairly restricted in what they say to their wrestlers. The A/C which was installed about 10 years ago does not alleviate the heat or bodily emissions. IN OTHER WORDS, ….. it’s perfect! When I think of Pennsylvania wrestling, I think of a cold winter night, faithful fans packed in tight holding their heavy coats, and yelling “right onto the mat”. Rec Hall fulfills all those dreams. Like I said, …. It’s PERFECT!

Great post!!

 

[nitlion6]

Great post!!

The like I gave you for this post is really a second like for bacca's post.

 

[98lberEating2Lunches]

the seat prices in combo with an annual seat license contribution

What exactly is the current PSU wrestling season ticket cost structure?

I didn't understand any PSU sport had a seat license. Is PSU moving toward that in lieu of mandatory Levi Lamb fund donations?

I thought each wrestling season ticket has a common mandatory Levi Lamb Fund donation, and it's only the season ticket itself that has a price that varies based on seat quality.

In contrast, I believe for PSU football all games bought as season tickets have the same face value, and it's just the Levi Lamb fund donation that varies based on seat quality.

This year for wrestling, as had been done in recent years for football, individually sold tickets are being variably priced, with some sold as "premium" (higher price) based on the opponent.

For men's hockey the PSU season ticket price varies by seat location but the Levi Lamb donation amount is common.

Maybe there's a shift on-going since donations to athletic fund were made entirely not tax deductible, for those who itemize.

 

[NoVa Lion]

I gotta see one in Rec Hall before they go money-chasing.

Go to psusports.com. There are plenty of seats for MD and Clarion for sale. If you really want tickets they are not that hard to get.

 

[nerfstate]

Go to psusports.com. There are plenty of seats for MD and Clarion for sale. If you really want tickets they are not that hard to get.

The plane ticket for our Minnesota guy may be a bit tougher. Though I've done that drive a few times, it's not fun in February.

 

[IndyLion1]

OK, so what are our requirements for a new wrestling arena?

A few thoughts:
- enough mat space for Kuhn's headlock
- extra ceiling space for banners
- not enough seating for Ohio State fans
- penalty box for Terry
- beer fridge for Willie
- elevated mat
- safety net for Lehigh and OKST

penalty box for Terry... this isn't far off what I heard at the IU match and what Dan Gable did to his wrestlers 😁

 

[TheRealSmee]

I've already written this other places so I'm just copying and pasting cuz, why re-invent the wheel?!? ☺

Rec Hall was built in 1928 and opened in 1929. The average guy was 5'7" and weighed 150 lbs. Now the average guy is 5'9" and weighs almost 200 lbs. The benches in that place are way too close together from row-to-row and other than "indented" spaces near the mat you have serious butt-creep everywhere else. There are plenty of lousy seats in there where you have to bend your body at a 45-degree angle to see the mat. The restrooms are antiquated, tiny, and there are not nearly enough for the crowds (Two men's and two women's?) For 6,000 people?! Concession space is abysmal and the selection is limited due to the facilities. Heat and A/C are questionable at best. Lousy parking. Don't even start on the locker room facilities for the teams. And the space itself restricts any sort of high-tech production. Talk about "history" and "atmosphere" all you want. Those are the rationalizations people make to justify some odd sadistic/masochistic desires.

Give me a full-size seat of my own (my own!), with arm rests and knee room (some seats even have cushions!), that face the action. Plenty of restrooms with plenty of space in them. Real concession stands with real food options. 15,000 similarly-minded wrasslin' fans in the same space! (awesome!!) A comfortable temperature (except if you're near the flash pots!). Big open parking lots next to the building. So many locker/dressing rooms each wrestler can probably have their own! Goboes, follow-spots and light shows.

One other plus for BJC is that in Cael's stated efforts to grow the sport, doing wrasslin' in BJC allows more wrasslin' fans to buy season tickets. Sure I have tickets, but how provincial/entitled is that?!. A wrasslin' move to BJC opens up the doors to pent-up demand and gets people season tickets NOW if they want them, and allows for the possibility of creating new wrasslin' fans.

Bottom line... this isn't even close to being a competition. It's BJC all over a building that should be demolished and replaced. Every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

But, as an alternative, either a new build or just tear down Rec Hall gym is also acceptable. Just the northernmost section where the main gym is can be torn down (the rest can stay). New construction geared to wrasslin' and v-ball. 8,000 seats. And the sooner the better because it's my belief that between PSU and Penn, whichever one tears down their gym first, the other will be stuck with theirs for time immemorial to appease the historical folks. And I'm more than fine with Penn being stuck with the Palestra.

 

[mcpat]

I've already written this other places so I'm just copying and pasting cuz, why re-invent the wheel?!? ☺

Rec Hall was built in 1928 and opened in 1929. The average guy was 5'7" and weighed 150 lbs. Now the average guy is 5'9" and weighs almost 200 lbs. The benches in that place are way too close together from row-to-row and other than "indented" spaces near the mat you have serious butt-creep everywhere else. There are plenty of lousy seats in there where you have to bend your body at a 45-degree angle to see the mat. The restrooms are antiquated, tiny, and there are not nearly enough for the crowds (Two men's and two women's?) For 6,000 people?! Concession space is abysmal and the selection is limited due to the facilities. Heat and A/C are questionable at best. Lousy parking. Don't even start on the locker room facilities for the teams. And the space itself restricts any sort of high-tech production. Talk about "history" and "atmosphere" all you want. Those are the rationalizations people make to justify some odd sadistic/masochistic desires.

Give me a full-size seat of my own (my own!), with arm rests and knee room (some seats even have cushions!), that face the action. Plenty of restrooms with plenty of space in them. Real concession stands with real food options. 15,000 similarly-minded wrasslin' fans in the same space! (awesome!!) A comfortable temperature (except if you're near the flash pots!). Big open parking lots next to the building. So many locker/dressing rooms each wrestler can probably have their own! Goboes, follow-spots and light shows.

One other plus for BJC is that in Cael's stated efforts to grow the sport, doing wrasslin' in BJC allows more wrasslin' fans to buy season tickets. Sure I have tickets, but how provincial/entitled is that?!. A wrasslin' move to BJC opens up the doors to pent-up demand and gets people season tickets NOW if they want them, and allows for the possibility of creating new wrasslin' fans.

Bottom line... this isn't even close to being a competition. It's BJC all over a building that should be demolished and replaced. Every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

But, as an alternative, either a new build or just tear down Rec Hall gym is also acceptable. Just the northernmost section where the main gym is can be torn down (the rest can stay). New construction geared to wrasslin' and v-ball. 8,000 seats. And the sooner the better because it's my belief that between PSU and Penn, whichever one tears down their gym first, the other will be stuck with theirs for time immemorial to appease the historical folks. And I'm more than fine with Penn being stuck with the Palestra.

So you’re saying I wouldn’t have been considered short in 1929?

 

[mcpat]

Rec Hall is that starter home you wish you could go back to later in life. Not because it was a better house, but because you all hung out together in its smaller space and it was the best years of your life.

 

[82bordeaux]

Build a new facility, we have the fan base and the program to fill it. Don’t need to hold onto and old out of date facility for nostalgia sake. They can build a modernized , better facility.

Exactly. Teams that live off nostalgia become nostalgic.

 

[Folkstylefan]

Lol rec hall is like the place you all hung out at back home but when you go back it seems small inadequate and old

 

[johnstownsteel]

People are not all the same. It's just truth. I left home years ago for brighter lights and what I thought were my dreams. I've lived all over the south and eastern Pa... Classy restaurants, hip nightclubs and professional sports teams... but something was always missing. I finally moved back home because I realized it was the only place where I was truly happy. Smaller paychecks, smaller home, a sleepy area with not much going on for itself but I couldn't be more happy.... I will never leave again. And if God one day sees that I outlive my parents, I will die in that little house on the hill, the one with very few neighbors, farmland all around...the one I was raised in with my brother's. Far removed from all the things many in today's world considers their own dreams. Folkstylefan is right though, the things I've realized I need in this world will always seem old, small and inadequate to most but to me.... its the next best thing to heaven.

 

[nerfstate]

Exactly. Teams that live off nostalgia become nostalgic.

It will happen sooner or later. Perhaps much, much later, but later.

 

[STAND with PRIDE]

People are not all the same. It's just truth. I left home years ago for brighter lights and what I thought were my dreams. I've lived all over the south and eastern Pa... Classy restaurants, hip nightclubs and professional sports teams... but something was always missing. I finally moved back home because I realized it was the only place where I was truly happy. Smaller paychecks, smaller home, a sleepy area with not much going on for itself but I couldn't be more happy.... I will never leave again. And if God one day sees that I outlive my parents, I will die in that little house on the hill, the one with very few neighbors, farmland all around...the one I was raised in with my brother's. Far removed from all the things many in today's world considers their own dreams. Folkstylefan is right though, the things I've realized I need in this world will always seem old, small and inadequate to most but to me.... its the next best thing to heaven.

No mention of “what happens in the basement STAYS in the basement”?

 

[creamery freak]

People are not all the same. It's just truth. I left home years ago for brighter lights and what I thought were my dreams. I've lived all over the south and eastern Pa... Classy restaurants, hip nightclubs and professional sports teams... but something was always missing. I finally moved back home because I realized it was the only place where I was truly happy. Smaller paychecks, smaller home, a sleepy area with not much going on for itself but I couldn't be more happy.... I will never leave again. And if God one day sees that I outlive my parents, I will die in that little house on the hill, the one with very few neighbors, farmland all around...the one I was raised in with my brother's. Far removed from all the things many in today's world considers their own dreams. Folkstylefan is right though, the things I've realized I need in this world will always seem old, small and inadequate to most but to me.... its the next best thing to heaven.

You forgot to mention the 20 year old computer in the basement and the 5 handles you have stored on it for HR!

 

[johnstownsteel]

You forgot to mention the 20 year old computer in the basement and the 5 handles you have stored on it for HR!

Moved to the Library of Trolls. Yes...there is such a thing. Lol

 

[82bordeaux]

People are not all the same. It's just truth. I left home years ago for brighter lights and what I thought were my dreams. I've lived all over the south and eastern Pa... Classy restaurants, hip nightclubs and professional sports teams... but something was always missing. I finally moved back home because I realized it was the only place where I was truly happy. Smaller paychecks, smaller home, a sleepy area with not much going on for itself but I couldn't be more happy.... I will never leave again. And if God one day sees that I outlive my parents, I will die in that little house on the hill, the one with very few neighbors, farmland all around...the one I was raised in with my brother's. Far removed from all the things many in today's world considers their own dreams. Folkstylefan is right though, the things I've realized I need in this world will always seem old, small and inadequate to most but to me.... its the next best thing to heaven.

 

[El-Jefe]

Must ... resist ... the rest of this quote ...

 

[nitlion6]

I was reading some responses on BlueWhiteIllustrated (wrestling board) about new facilities and there are some bitter MOFers on there just whining about money, facilities and football. Nosoup4u just about spewed on himself. Hell, he makes some of our more wordy posters appear to be word misers.

 

[El-Jefe]

I was reading some responses on BlueWhiteIllustrated (wrestling board) about new facilities and there are some bitter MOFers on there just whining about money, facilities and football. Nosoup4u just about spewed on himself. Hell, he makes some of our more wordy posters appear to be word misers.

He's a football board guy. With all of the typical reason and nuance.

 

[baccafarmer]

I've already written this other places so I'm just copying and pasting cuz, why re-invent the wheel?!? ☺

Rec Hall was built in 1928 and opened in 1929. The average guy was 5'7" and weighed 150 lbs. Now the average guy is 5'9" and weighs almost 200 lbs. The benches in that place are way too close together from row-to-row and other than "indented" spaces near the mat you have serious butt-creep everywhere else. There are plenty of lousy seats in there where you have to bend your body at a 45-degree angle to see the mat. The restrooms are antiquated, tiny, and there are not nearly enough for the crowds (Two men's and two women's?) For 6,000 people?! Concession space is abysmal and the selection is limited due to the facilities. Heat and A/C are questionable at best. Lousy parking. Don't even start on the locker room facilities for the teams. And the space itself restricts any sort of high-tech production. Talk about "history" and "atmosphere" all you want. Those are the rationalizations people make to justify some odd sadistic/masochistic desires.

Give me a full-size seat of my own (my own!), with arm rests and knee room (some seats even have cushions!), that face the action. Plenty of restrooms with plenty of space in them. Real concession stands with real food options. 15,000 similarly-minded wrasslin' fans in the same space! (awesome!!) A comfortable temperature (except if you're near the flash pots!). Big open parking lots next to the building. So many locker/dressing rooms each wrestler can probably have their own! Goboes, follow-spots and light shows.

One other plus for BJC is that in Cael's stated efforts to grow the sport, doing wrasslin' in BJC allows more wrasslin' fans to buy season tickets. Sure I have tickets, but how provincial/entitled is that?!. A wrasslin' move to BJC opens up the doors to pent-up demand and gets people season tickets NOW if they want them, and allows for the possibility of creating new wrasslin' fans.

Bottom line... this isn't even close to being a competition. It's BJC all over a building that should be demolished and replaced. Every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

But, as an alternative, either a new build or just tear down Rec Hall gym is also acceptable. Just the northernmost section where the main gym is can be torn down (the rest can stay). New construction geared to wrasslin' and v-ball. 8,000 seats. And the sooner the better because it's my belief that between PSU and Penn, whichever one tears down their gym first, the other will be stuck with theirs for time immemorial to appease the historical folks. And I'm more than fine with Penn being stuck with the Palestra.

Very logical and well put! Just the same, PSU wrestling matches only last 90-120 minutes (much less if it’s Central Michigan) and a small amount of bodily discomfort is a small price to pay for watching true excellence with your extended family.

 

[Cstroke]

You forgot to mention the 20 year old computer in the basement and the 5 handles you have stored on it for HR!

5 handles and 3 fingers..
And here we go.

 

[PSU Mike]

He's a football board guy. With all of the typical reason and nuance.

Nuance. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

 

[STAND with PRIDE]

5 handles and 3 fingers..
And here we go.

Sounds like a typical weekend at Wino’s place.

 

[tullfan68]

remember back in the day when all sports were mostly free well at least to the students!

 

[El-Jefe]

@82bordeaux may have underestimated age.

Post in thread 'bo bassett wrestling' https://pennstate.forums.rivals.com/threads/bo-bassett-wrestling.296429/post-6286006

 

[13th Grade]

I realize my opinion is of no real consequence, but put me in the club with those who love the history of Rec, and think back fondly to sneaking in the fire exit on the Atherton side with some friends and watching whatever we wanted for free. I am simultaneously in the club with those who would LOVE a modern ~10k seat arena that squeezed the fans (in comfortable seats) in close to the action while still allowing for flying opponents to land on their backs without hitting the scorers table. Lastly, two BJC duals per season is probably enough, and usually one would suffice.
Rec feels synonymous with PSU wrestling on one hand, but the program is in the midst of a reality that teenage me sneaking in the fire exit could never have imagined, and that reality may deserve more than Rec offers.

 

[Verolion]

Yes! I understand the economic side of BJC of having the larger matches there, and maybe that's what Kraft ultimately envisions too, but the 2018 match with OSU was lights out at Rec Hall (thank you Cassar and Nevills)... and could not be replicated at BJC.

Rec Hall will always be a special place.. from when I was a kid in the early 90's sneaking in the side door with my Dad to grab a free seat in the corner to watch Sanshiro Abe, McCoy, Kolat and Hughes brothers. Those were the days!

I used to sneak in during the 80's. Jimmy Martin's years. The mens locker room window was always open.

 

[RoarLions1]

Rec Hall isn't going anywhere during my lifetime (meaning it won't be demolished for a new building) AND I don't see a full-time move to the BJC.

Tbh, I understand the idea of wanting a bigger venue today, which wasn't on anyone's radar prior to 2012. It just doesn't make sense, building a new structure for seven days each Winter. Hockey had to do it because there was no alternative, the old Ice Pavilion didn't meet the rink size requirement, and would have been a horrible option for fans. Besides, there are 20 home hockey games avg/year, plus the opportunity of occasional conference playoff games.

Wrestling doesn't have the same issue. Then there's the BJC option, and competing against the only two permanent tenants of that building; Men's and Women's Basketball. I know, I know, flip basketball back to Rec Hall and let wrestling have the BJC. Riiiiiiiiiigghht, easy to say. I think two bouts each year at the BJC is a great compromise, so hopefully it continues. Choosing the best two bouts (Iowa and Michigan this year) for the BJC, then leaving Lock Haven, Oregon St, MSU, Maryland and Clarion at Rec Hall in 2022-23 wasn't all that horrible.

 

[Still in State College]

The thing is you have to look at revenue versus expense. From a financial perspective Wrestling, Volleyball (M/W), Gymastics (M/W) are all losers. So, without a huge benefactor what reason would make you put a larger investment into the programs? They have done several renovations to Rec Hall, and I think it is a great venue in its current configuration.

So, unless Ira is good to throw $200M at a facility she ain't happening.

 

[WexfordWarrior]

The thing is you have to look at revenue versus expense. From a financial perspective Wrestling, Volleyball (M/W), Gymastics (M/W) are all losers. So, without a huge benefactor what reason would make you put a larger investment into the programs? They have done several renovations to Rec Hall, and I think it is a great venue in its current configuration.

So, unless Ira is good to throw $200M at a facility she ain't happening.

How about an interior gut job and reconfigure with good sight lines and comfortable seats?

 

[NoVa Lion]

How about an interior gut job and reconfigure with good sight lines and comfortable seats?

Seats are quite comfortable if you buy a seat cushion from the Penn State Wrestling Club Clothing Sales Booth on the South Side or Rec Hall. I bought on at the MSU dual and they are great.

 

[Still in State College]

How about an interior gut job and reconfigure with good sight lines and comfortable seats?

I am not sure about sight lines. Not much you can do there. I would argue there are no bad views. If you want chairbacks you would have to give up 500 seats or so.

 

[CropDuster507]

Let me know my friend. I'm sure I could wrangle up a couple of Tix for you.

Go to psusports.com. There are plenty of seats for MD and Clarion for sale. If you really want tickets they are not that hard to get.

The plane ticket for our Minnesota guy may be a bit tougher. Though I've done that drive a few times, it's not fun in February.

Between coaching heavyweight at our local JUCO and coaching the athletes in my club 11mo out of the year, taking the time to fly out, catch an event, and fly back is extremely difficult. Once I build out more of a club staff to delegate and know my guys are taken care of, I gotta do it.

I had EVERYTHING set up for Silver Coach's Clinic for the 2020 Olympic Trials. I was gonna be in SC, PA for like 5 days. I've never even been on a freaking plane. Then, well, we know what happened... If I ever meet COVID, I'm catching a charge.

I got to see a dual in West Gym, once. My old coach (mentor, father-role type of guy) asked me on a whim to drive a couple hours down for them and VTech back when Walz and other killers were on their roster. I'll never forget it. I preferred it to CHA (though, CHA is awesome in a different way). The point I mean to make with this is... I'm extremely thankful that I got to catch an event in that hot little sauna of a gym, packed to the rafters.

 

[82bordeaux]

So, unless Ira is good to throw $200M at a facility she ain't happening.

Or I could hit the powerball.

 

[nerfstate]

I would argue there are no bad views.

The mat is partially obstructed in the lower rows of N1--maybe also W1 & W3. Otherwise, 100% of the seats in rec hall have a better view than probably 60% of the seats at the BJC.