Wrack
| (Continued from page 1)
for friction on the surface start to
| \Vear out.”
R.When that happens, the track
gets slippery, just like a table top,
;i >' he said.
^ ■! Our track is so bad, the runners
1 j slide when it is raining,” he said.
ei1, ‘‘They slide when it is not raining
:ac ' too.
:cti ffiNcxt, the foundation starts to
crumble.
B“Ours is crumbling, causing holes
^ in the asphalt foundation, which in
turn, causes holes in the surface,”
^ Thomas said.
'6 a U|Another problem with the track,
-0 ! Thomas said, is the separation of the
* fMrtan surface and the asphalt.
!: |‘Tt should be glued together, but
■yOf i.itisn't anymore and when it rains, air
bubbles form,” he said,
osed | He said some of them are as big as
? of six to eight feet in diameter,
nan\ I ?“The only way to get the air out is
uon I to cut a hole in it with a knife, ” he
use ! said. “Then there has to be a patch
liter- ipiit over the cut.
it ke I|“We have the worst track in the
Bnference. There is no doubt about
it.
■ He said the track was to be re
placed about three years ago, but
contruction began on Kyle Field and
J the track repairs had to be post-
* poned.
f ^ “It was a wise move because a new
i [track could have been damamged
i i with the construction, ” Thomas said.
S I \ He said when the track is resur-
d, the Tartan will have to be rip-
fed up, the asphalt smoothed and
repaired, and a surface poured.
I “That is about a $200,000 expendi
ture,” Thomas said.
Thomas said he is not sure where
the money for the repairs will come
from.
T think every department that
uses it, should pay for it.”
As for affecting the team’s per
formance, Thomas said the damage
has been minimal.
“We have, at this time, the best
team in the history of Texas A&M.
The bad thing is we have champion-
The track has become so de
teriorated that after nine years
of hosting the prestigious Col
lege Station Relays, it is no lon
ger suitable for competition and
the 32-school meet had to be
moved to Rice University.
ship athletes and the students can’t
see them.”
“The track facilities have cost a loss
of exposure for the team,” he said.
“Instead of watching them, all the
fans can do is pick up a paper and see
how the team did.”
Calling off a nine-year meet just
does not go unnoticed, and other
Southwest Conference coaches have
formed their own opinions about the
University’s facilities.
Clyde Hart, Baylor University
track coach said, “We ran at A&M
about two years ago and the track was
not in good shape then. There were
some pretty bad spots, and the run
ner’s spikes would go all the way
through the surface.
“Texas A&M has a fantastic team.
It would seem that practicing on
that track would hurt their chances
l3-hour seige ends
in New Jersey jail
United Press International
■NEWARK — Inmates in the vio-
lent crime section of the Essex Coun
ty jail shot a guard and took five
other guards hostage before surren
dering early Wednesday to end a 13-.
hour revolt.
■ Four of the guards were released
unharmed but exhausted by the
((deal. They were to be taken to the
spital for physcial examinations.
fifth guard who was beaten was
jed at the start of the negotiations
Jat ended the standoff at 3 a.m.
Ilhe wounded guard, who was shot
with a smuggled weapon, was in
stable condition with a bullet lodged
[between two ribs.
t Prosecutor Donald Coburn said
that as a result of the negotiations, a
grievance committee would discuss
inmate demands, including requests
for a larger law library, private visits
with wives and girlfriends, and bet
ter food.
Coburn, who estimated that any
where between 50 and 100 of the
jail’s 550 inmates participated in the
revolt, said there would be no repris
als or solitary confinement for dam
age to the premises, but there would
be prosecution for violence.
“There will not be charges against
anyone for taking the jail or property
damage,” Coburn said. “The shoot
ing of one guard and the striking of
sEWbthfi'f Will be 'irt^estigated by my
office.”
but they just keep on winning.
There is no telling what they could
do with a better track. ”
Baylor University resurfaced its
track in 1976 with a Chevron surface.
It is in “excellent” shape, Hart said.
Rice University, the site of the
1980 College Station Relays recently
spent $600,000 building a new track
and track stadium.
Coach Steve Straub said the cost of
the 8-lane track was about $300,000.
“We are currently, at A&M’s re
quest, taking up the College Station
Relays until A&M can build an
adequate track,” he said.
Straub said he has not been to
Texas A&M in two years, but “the
track was starting to deteriorate
then.
“What was a first class track in
1971 has been allowed to deteriorate
too much for a University like Texas
A&M,” Straub said. “It seems to me
that priorities at Texas A&M have
gotten out of line with the caliber of
track team the school has.”
The University of Texas replaced
its in 1977 with a Tartan surface.
Track team captain Tim
Scott, said he thinks it is “pathe
tic” that Texas A&M has a worse
track than many junior high and
high schools. “The recruits come
from their high schools to visit,
take a look at the track and say
‘Is this for real?’” he said.
Glen Swenson, director of facilities
said they have been pleased with
their track.
Swenson said their biggest prob
lem was with the tremendous num
ber of joggers who use the track.
“Jogging really wears a track
down,” he said. “It is like a rubber
tire: the more is it used, the worse
the surface gets.”
The NCAA track meet will be held
in Austin this summer and Swenson
said they will decide soon if their
present surface needs any repairs be
fore then.
Baylor University Coach Hart said
“it is obvious to just about everyone
that the track is worn out.”
Wally Groff, Texas A&M associate
athletic director, agrees that the
track is in “terrible shape” and needs
to be replaced.
“Last year, we tried to get a new
track but it was decided that is would
“Last year, we tried to get a
new track but it was decided that
is would be better to hold off
until Kyle Field construction
was completed because a new
track could very easily be dam
aged during the work. ”— Texas
A&M Associate Athletic Direc
tor Wally Groff.
be better to hold off until Kyle Field
construction was completed because
a new track could very easily be dam
aged during the work,” he said.
There is a feasibility study under
way regarding the pros and cons of
simply resurfacing the track or mov
ing across the railroad tracks and
building a new stadium.
“Leaving it where it is would be
more economical, but we are consid
ering the other position,” Groff said.
Thomas said he can see the advan
tage of bulding a stadium at another
position.
“During the spring, there are foot
ball players on the field, and men
and women running track, all at the
same time,” Thomas said.
“It is like a three-ring circus.
“Of course, the track stadium
would cost a great deal more and I’m
sure that is a main factor."
Athletic Director Marvin Tate said
he too is concerned with the track.
“Lm interested in having the best
facilities possible with the money
available to us,” he said.
“The process of getting a new track
involves the Athletic Council talking
with the companies who manufac
ture the type of product we need.
“Then,” Tate said, “we will work
with them and the University offi
cials to get what we want and need.”
The next step would be to present
bids to the Board of Regents, who
“Right now, we are at the stage of
talking with different manufactur
ers,” Tate said. “We would love to
have a new track by next fall.”
Tate said there are many steps the
athletic council must go through and
the final decision would be based on
what is best for the program and the
University.
THE BATTALION
THURSDAY, MARCH 27, 1980
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