Ford Center...what did everyone think?

[samaj]

Just curious what everyone thought of the Ford Center and the 1st Semi-State at the new arena?

I will add this....we all know the food was expensive etc etc...and everyone understands that the host school, area coaches, and the people planning the event have ZERO control of that.  We can either have it in a gym, like Merriville, and have other issues, or have it in an arena and have the high cost of concessions.  Thats part of the deal.

I for one loved the "state" layout of four mats right down the middle.  The intros were good.  I liked that they did a great job of keeping people off the floor.   I think it was  huge upgrade from Roberts Stadium.

I hope we can keep it in Evansville and improve on things like availability of more than one shower for the kids etc etc.

[PURDUEdad]

I thought the venue was great. Not a bad seat in the house, and seats were comfortable. Announcers, girls singing, etc were all top drawer. This was a very good prep for the wrestlers fortunate enough to advance to next weekend. Concessions were high as you noted, but they were good.  A step up, but you gotta remember that some/most here might tend to be sentimental and prefer Roberts . . .

[jDub]

From a spectator's perspective, I thought it was absolutely awesome! Great looking, brand new facility. Comfortable seats. Great lighting. Plenty of space in the stands. Clean bathrooms. Good sound system. Great announcing. Timely progression of wrestling. Polite workers throughout the facility.

Great experience. Hope semi state stays there.

[MattM]

Overall a good experience.  I'm hoping that possibly the empty lot beside the building will be a parking complex by next year, but I guess the walk wasn't overly terrible.  I agree they need to open up a few more shower areas so the athletes can get cleaned up after they are done or during breaks.  I'm guessing their is a slightly better way to arrange that, and still keep decent security.

[BB145]

The box seats were awesome! And I liked the brackets on the TV's. Hopefully next year there wont be an Iceman game the night before, for the wrestlers trying to stay warm. Expensive yes but better than bleacher seats.

[mdcats1]

It was a great experience for the wrestlers and fans.  The facility was top notch.  I have been to the Iceman games, and UE basketball games there and the atmosphere is electric.  So the one thing I would like to see is the jumbo tron turned on and have the camera men scan from mat to mat so people not from Evansville can see what the Ford Center is all about.

[BlueBolt]

That was my first time in the building.  The only actual complaint I have is in no way specific to the Semi-State, and that is the complete lack of planning for parking when the place was built. 

Was it cold in the building, yes and for the reasons noted.   Food was expensive, but the quality was actually pretty darned good. 


There isn't a bad seat in the house!  You could see every mat from every section and the sound system didn't sound like its was under 8 feet of water. 

Personally I would like to see the scoreboard used to display the current match scores for the 4 mats

[samaj]

as a fan that has been to major league baseball, nfl football, ncaa wrestling finals, ncaa football games, and other sporting events at big stadiums in big cities, I can tell you that the walk to the Ford Center from the parking lot at the Centre is pretty much the norm at events these days.  Parking is available alot of times for a fee and it is alot closer (also like big city venues).   I know it would be great to have a huge lot right next door that would be free, but thats not the case.  I love the arena.  I didn't know if I was for or against it when they decided to build it...but I', def in favor of it know that it is up and running.  I think they did a great job on it.  AND...if you havent seen the ICEMEN play....you need to go.  I havent met a wrestling fan yet that hasn't loved the hockey games!

[highschoolsportsfan]

as a fan that has been to major league baseball, nfl football, ncaa wrestling finals, ncaa football games, and other sporting events at big stadiums in big cities, I can tell you that the walk to the Ford Center from the parking lot at the Centre is pretty much the norm at events these days.  Parking is available alot of times for a fee and it is alot closer (also like big city venues).   I know it would be great to have a huge lot right next door that would be free, but thats not the case.  I love the arena.  I didn't know if I was for or against it when they decided to build it...but I', def in favor of it know that it is up and running.  I think they did a great job on it.  AND...if you havent seen the ICEMEN play....you need to go.  I havent met a wrestling fan yet that hasn't loved the hockey games!

I agree totally!!  If you've been to Conseco (or whatever it's called now) or Lucas Oil in Indy, Rupp Arena in Lexington, KFC Yum Center in Louisville...the parking situation is the same.  You need to get there early to get a good spot.

I, too, would like to see the scores for the individual mats on the Jumbo Tron or perhaps an additional larger well-lit score board.  I was sitting on one of the ends and it was very hard to see the score for the 2 mats on the opposite end.  But, this was pretty minor.

Overall, I thought the atmosphere was awesome!  I hope the crowds increase in the coming years!!

[Walter Sobchak]

I once went to a fight and a hockey game broke out! . Loved the stadium hope it stays there for years to come ...do you think they could put a bowling alley in it? 

[pin2win]

COOOOOLD!!!!!! Other than that it was pretty sweet didnt mind the walk since the parking was free.

[dwarrep12]

Ford Center was a first class facility, not a bad seat in the house as mentioned and University of Evansville should be very proud!

[PHD27]

I'm sick and tired about hearing the "bad parking" sob stories.  I have no concerns with the parking...you just have to know where to park.  I got there at the beginning of the ticket round and only had to walk a block and a half, and parked for free...and there were three other open spots on the street.  Basically, I parked closer to the Ford Center than I did at the Castle Regional.  There are numerous side streets that have street parking on both sides.  They got rid of all the one way streets, so its easy to get around.

[Salzer]

Brrrrrrrrrrr 

[markio]

The box seats were awesome! And I liked the brackets on the TV's. Hopefully next year there wont be an Iceman game the night before, for the wrestlers trying to stay warm. Expensive yes but better than bleacher seats.

The ice stays down all season, so it doesn't matter if there is an Icemen game the night before, we have to leave the ice down.

Also, I have already talked to the people in charge about doing some added touches next year. For example, doing the finals with a 3 camera shoot on our HD scoreboard big screens. Replays and all. They said they would discuss it. I'm going to try my best to convince my superiors to cut them a break on it.

[frigginhurts]

great venue.   parking wasn't terrible...was maybe 2 blocks away and it was free.   It was a little chilly in there.
great p.a., great singer, refs did a nice job.
i agree that we need to use the jumbo tron to some effect.  either use a camera to have live video or put the updated brackets on there and scroll through them like the monitors in the concourse.

[MattM]

The ice stays down all season, so it doesn't matter if there is an Icemen game the night before, we have to leave the ice down.

Also, I have already talked to the people in charge about doing some added touches next year. For example, doing the finals with a 3 camera shoot on our HD scoreboard big screens. Replays and all. They said they would discuss it. I'm going to try my best to convince my superiors to cut them a break on it.

I'm loving your drive to make the wrestling event the best in the state.  From the Southern Indiana wrestling community thank you for keeping in your bosses year.  It's greatly approciated.

[randalllynch]

I liked the arena and even the the quick warm-up area with a mat just outside the entrance to the floor.  Would be nice to get a larger staging area for on deck & in the whole wrestlers on each end of the floor.  But all in all pretty nice.

Anyone have any idea how/if we can order the t-shirts they were selling at the arena?  They were sold out pretty quickly.

[Jon H]

I love the new Ford Center.   Beautiful complex with comfortable seating and great views of the entire floor.  The food was good and decent sized portions.  The prices were a little steep but as expected.   

I would rather be cold than hot............you can always add clothing but you can only take so much off............sorry for the mental picture

The parking isn't too bad for a Downtown arena.  I do appreciate that they sold tickets inside instead of using the booths outside.   

It sounds like Markio has a great plan for next year.  Thanks!

[italianmom]

  
This is without question, the best semi state venue in the state. The other semi states would walk a  1/2 a mile and wear a down parka to have the amenities of this facility. A+++  is my rating.

P.S. I hate cold weather and I am as cheap as they come but some things come with the territory.

[Alduflux]

My first visit to the Ford Center.

First the food is a huge improvement over normal high school wrestling cuisine options so the added bucks don't bother me one bit.  Parking is more agravating then Roberts but its not a big problem.

The LCD's were actually a source of aggrevation for me.  I prefer the print0uts.  The problem is wrestling is non-stop all day so I don't want to wait for the LCD to scroll to the matches I missed.  With the printouts I could quickly run to the wall and write down the 5 or 6 matches I missed.  I agree that using the scoreboard to scroll though the results would be a great idea and would solve the problem I had; that being I would not have to leave my seat while wrestling is going on to see the results.

I think during the anthem a spotlight should be on the flag.  Also, why is there a Canadian flag in the Ford Center?

The only real difference I noticed between Ford and Roberts is the seat cushions and the mat setup.  The rest is just bells and whistles to me.  I don't mean that as a slight on the Ford Center, I just always thought we were lucky to have a wrestling event at Roberts.

[BB145]

My first visit to the Ford Center.

First the food is a huge improvement over normal high school wrestling cuisine options so the added bucks don't bother me one bit.  Parking is more agravating then Roberts but its not a big problem.

The LCD's were actually a source of aggrevation for me.  I prefer the print0uts.  The problem is wrestling is non-stop all day so I don't want to wait for the LCD to scroll to the matches I missed.  With the printouts I could quickly run to the wall and write down the 5 or 6 matches I missed.  I agree that using the scoreboard to scroll though the results would be a great idea and would solve the problem I had; that being I would not have to leave my seat while wrestling is going on to see the results.

I think during the anthem a spotlight should be on the flag.  Also, why is there a Canadian flag in the Ford Center?

The only real difference I noticed between Ford and Roberts is the seat cushions and the mat setup.  The rest is just bells and whistles to me.  I don't mean that as a slight on the Ford Center, I just always thought we were lucky to have a wrestling event at Roberts.

The Iceman play there, a lot of the team is from Canada

[jDub]

I reviewed many matches from the Merriville semistate  on broadcastsport's website (thanks for the coverage btw), and without a doubt (or even slight inclination), I am real happy that I was attending Evansville semistate for such an important tourney. It was an absolutely awesome venue to see some of the state's best get after it!

For those that weren't able to be there, think of it as a mini Conseco (or Bankers  Life fieldhouse).

It was truly first class.