On Thu, 9 Feb 1995, Kurt Stutt wrote:
 
> The Houston Field House, even on its worst nights, is more lively than
> a lot of other places.  Thompson Arena at Dartmouth comes to mind
> immediately, since I'll be there Friday.  Nice arena, quiet crowd.  Then
> again, looking at the Big Green this year, there is not much to cheer
> about.  I haven't been impressed with the home crowds at Merrimack,
> Colgate or Brown either.
 
Having gone to Clarkson 84-88 & living near Dartmouth (74-84, 88-94)
Clarkson was a wakeup.  Dartmouth hasn't had much to cheer about since
1980 or so.  Back then, they got crowds.  They were still somewhat
quiet though.
 
 
>
> Then there are great places.  The Gutterson Fieldhouse is awesome, as
 
I think Walker was louder.  And there's "that damn bell" :-)
 
 
> 2.  Crowd composition.  Townspeople, and older folks, tend to be
> quieter than students and alumni.  RPI has a higher percentage of the
> former.  Nothing you can do about this, nor do you want to do.  I
> appreciate the support everyone gives RPI.
 
Dartmouth has 2-4 sections of 20(?) that are students.  The rest are
mostly empty, with townspeople & *lots* of kids from youth hockey.
Only the kids seem to know hockey.  After a call against Dart, you'll
hear the crowd call it bad, even if it wasn't.  They don't know the
rules.
 
> 3.  Band.  The Pep Band's location is poor.  They are on a stage at the
> end of the ice BELOW the top of the glass.  Much of the sound they
> produce goes directly into the glass and bounces back.  Doesn't make
> for good acoustics.  Either raise the stage or move the band to seats
> above the glass so they can project better.  No one else puts their band
> in such a bad location.
 
Dartmouth's band is usually at the basketball game.  It's a much worse
location from my point of view ;-) I've heard rumors that since they
couldn't come every night, they didn't want them at all.  This a was
few years ago & I heard it from one of the arena staff.
 
Instead, they play some rock songs over the loudspeakers.  I've always
found it really lame and annoying.  I really miss Clarkson's Pep band.
 
>
> 4.  Preparation.  Yes, the fans at other schools are better prepared,
> particularly Cornell and Vermont.  At Vermont, during the play-down
> round in 1992 Pete Ungaro and I (the WRPI crew that night, along
> with Pete's then-girlfriend, Pam the She-Nazi) were amazed that the
> student section was filled 45 minutes BEFORE the puck dropped.
> That's how seriously they took their job(?).  Next RPI home game,
> watch how many students are still filtering in as the announcer starts
> the opening proceedings.  Also, many schools, and I'll cite Cornell and
 
I've stood in line at Walker with a few hundred others waiting for the
doors to open over an hour before the game.  We filled the student
section, natch.  I felt lucky to get a seat.  Of course, this was the
St. Law. game.
 
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Tom Buskey      [log in to unmask]