LSU Gold

Cyber-side Chat No. 42

by LSUsports.net (@LSUsports)
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Cyber-side Chat No. 42

August 26, 2004

TO: Fans, Friends, and Supporters of LSU Athletics

FROM: Skip Bertman, LSU Athletics Director

The 2004 LSU football season is growing ever closer, and I hope my last two e-mails about the access to the west side of Tiger Stadium and football game day traffic procedures have been helpful.

I remind you to visit www.LSUsports.net/westside to become familiar with the changes in the pedestrian access routes pertaining to the construction on the west side of Tiger Stadium.

There are a few other things I want you to know about the coming season, so this week’s Cyber-side Chat is a collection of various notes that should be helpful to your preparation for Tiger Football.

BUSES

The construction at the stadium has resulted in a number of parking changes, some very recent, including the relocation of buses parking at Tiger Stadium. Because we had to move all cars out of Lot A (the lot adjacent to the west side of Tiger Stadium) and across South Stadium Drive, all charter buses will now park to the south at the Special Olympic Pool parking lot. This lot is located just south of the LSU football practice fields, on the opposite side of the street from the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine.

Buses that are operated by Capital Transportation Corporation (CTC) will park along North Stadium Drive after the game. The CTC program has worked well and we’ve been able to make improvements and changes in that bus program thanks to your feedback. For instance, this year the buses will depart their respective locations three hours before kickoff instead of only two hours before the game.

STADIUM IMPROVEMENTS

When we introduced the Tradition Fund, we promised your contributions would help improve LSU’s athletics facilities. Some of those improvements will already be evident when you visit Tiger Stadium this year.

We have begun a complete overhaul of the restroom facilities in Tiger Stadium, and so far we have renovated 16 restrooms in the stadium. You’ll find them cleaner and with new fixtures for the 2004 season.

You will also notice that we have begun to power wash the outside of Tiger Stadium. You’ll be amazed at what a little power washing can do to an 80-year old facility, especially on the north end of the stadium.

Inside the stadium, we have so far used over 5,000 gallons of new paint and have added new interior lighting. The inside of the stadium has been painted white which, along with the new lighting, has brightened up the passageways beneath the stands.

PARKING

There is now more all-weather parking in the areas around Tiger Stadium than ever before. We’ve made improvements to the large parking lot at the corner of Nicholson Drive and Gourrier Lane, which is now called “The Fairway” because it is at the site of the old golf course back nine. You’ll find packed gravel driving lanes, shady oak trees and scores of picnic tables for your tailgating enjoyment.

This year The Fairway is totally free, but we may consider making it a pay-per-game lot in the future. There are over 1,500 parking spaces in The Fairway that should be suitable for parking regardless of the weather.

Two years ago we added a parking lot across from the Vet School, and this year we have expanded that lot to add more free parking at the corner of Skip Bertman Drive and River Road.

There are also two new paid reserved lots. Lot O has been expanded in front of the Natatorium, and a new lot that we are calling “The Oaks” has been paved on Nicholson Extension at the site of the old golf course front nine. This year The Oaks will be used by vehicles that have been moved out of Lot C due to construction, and in future years will be sold through the Tiger Athletic Foundation which funded the construction of this lot.

MISCELLANEOUS

Football season tickets were shipped beginning last week. If you haven’t received your tickets, don’t panic. They were shipped in batches by UPS Ground, with the last of the tickets leaving the ticket office earlier this week. Any undeliverable tickets will be available in the LSU Ticket Office beginning Monday, August 30. If you haven’t received your tickets by that date, please call the ticket office at (225) 578-2184.

We are designating the Mississippi State game as our “Wear Gold” game for the 2004 season. We hope you’ll wear your gold for that game and light up Tiger Stadium.

When you travel to road games this year, bring your radio. Thanks to new technology, you’ll be able to hear Jim Hawthorne and Doug Moreau describe the game on the LSU Sports Network in away game stadiums this year. We’ll let you know the frequency to tune to for each stadium when those games get nearer.

We welcome your comments, so write to us at LSUvision@etigers.net. Although we cannot promise a response to every e-mail we receive, please be assured that every letter will be read. Thank you for your continued support of Tiger Athletics.