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]
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