Breathing Issues at the Horse Park

[NO-OX 1 120]

From what I'm hearing, we are back at the "Dirty Old Horse Park" again for the State Tourney. Just curious how many wrestlers actually feel that their performance is hampered by the conditions.  Everyone please respond. I feel that if one kid is affected that's one too many. The Horse Park creates an unfair disadvantage for many wrestlers that work hard all year to be subject to a place they cannot preform to there full potential. Time for a new venue. Let's hear it. Give me some numbers.

[halfhalfhalf 121]

Skin issues can be added to the list too.

[NO-OX 1 120]

Kinda ludicrous to have 448 athletes, with the potential for skin disease, to compete in an arena full of dirt and  2 showers. Someone is supposed to be looking out for our kids!!!  

[pin2win 58]

The Horse Park isn't the place for a wrestling tournament..esp the state tournament. 

[naplesme 58]

Worst venue ever. I and at least 2 of my assistant coaches had breathing and sinus issues. My wife has refused to attend again until it is moved to a venue that will actually be safe for the wrestlers, coaches and fans. The stands are dirty and dusty, the food over priced, and building is cold. It's called the Horse Park because it was meant for horses not human beings. The sad part is Mike Barren and the rest of the KHSAA don't care about the safety of the coaches, wrestlers, or fans. The only thing that matters to them is the bottom line: how much money can they make. If they cared they would have celebrated Brock Ervin becoming the first 5-time champion, Austin Myers winning his 3rd title in a row. Rather than celebrate these and other accomplishments they shuttled us in and shuttled us out, no celebration, just get us out now that they have collected their money. 

[tja 150]

is there not any highschool gymnasium that could possibly hold it just wondering?

[Ranger123 43]

Don't think so. Tough to accommodate both floor space and seating at a high school facility. But there are more than enough arena options around the state that work better for our sport and don't create health concerns.

[tja 150]

it's really ashame that the khsaa pushes our sport to the side considering we are at a point where Kentucky wrestling continues to grow and we have kids that can compete and win on a national level

[mommaswatching 8]

     I complained after the first year to no avail.   I agree the venue is not fit for a state finals.  I saw several ladies and small kids in the restroom battling nosebleeds.  Clothes, uniforms, jackets have been ruined because of the filth.  It is going to take a wrestler  and or a fan that has documented health issues  ie allergic to Horses, dust

 to SUE the KHSAA .  just saying

 

And just how does one become employed in this agency? 

 

[Zeus 117]

Could this all be fixed by simply putting a tarp over the dirt, but under the floor, for the tournament? I actually like the venue much better than the Civic Center; remember people complaining about the concessions there? However the wrestlers' health is most important.

[plantmanky1 58]

Gripe, complain, Gripe, Complain, Gripe, Complain.........same old story.

 

How bout doing something about it?

 

Ever worked on getting a site contract for an event?  Lot more to it than you think.

 

What are you willing to pay to be at a better venue?  You guys gripe now about the cost, what do you think it will cost if it went to a better venue?

 

Heck cant even fill up a 5500 seat horse arena, where you really want to go with it?

 

 

 

Solutions?  If your not going to provide any, then just shut up. 

[plantmanky1 58]

Could this all be fixed by simply putting a tarp over the dirt, but under the floor, for the tournament? I actually like the venue much better than the Civic Center; remember people complaining about the concessions there? However the wrestlers' health is most important.

 

 

See look here, a possible solution.  Good Post.  To answer your question no, the horse park can not put a tarp down under the floor as the floor will not settle like it should and stay together with a tarp between the dirt and floor.  It was discussed if a tarp could be put over the floor, however the price of that, and the thought that the tarp would not hold up, rip tear, would create more problems and possible safety issues.  

[Zeus 117]

Could this all be fixed by simply putting a tarp over the dirt, but under the floor, for the tournament? I actually like the venue much better than the Civic Center; remember people complaining about the concessions there? However the wrestlers' health is most important.

[grappler-of-old 44]

The only thing that is better than the civic center is that the tourney can be done in 2 days instead of 3.

 

Have I ever had to get a contract on a venue for an event?  Yes.  An event as large as the Ky state tourney? No.  But I also do not have the same resources and manpower that the KHSAA has.  

 

We will never fill the 5,500 seats at the Horse Park if we keep losing spectators because they cannot attend because of medical issues.  

 

The KHSAA took a chance by re-locating the state tourney.  They did nor foresee the problems that would arise from the move. ie-dust and allergy issues.  Hopefully they are in the process of solving this problem.  It may take a few years to solve however.   PMK1  what do you expect from parents and fans?  Do you think that they have all the answers?  If they did they wouldn't complain.  Comments like "don't complain unless you have an answer" are silly.  If you had the answer you wouldn't be complaining.  KHSAA is paid to solve these problems.  How would they know there were any problems unless someone complains about them.  Geesh. 

 

What has to be weighed is the cost of a venue that will not have these problems and the cost of fans and wrestlers who have medical problems.  I'm one of the lucky ones that have no problem with the Horse Park.  It's a decent size, plenty of parking and seats.  The traffic in and out is quick and easy to navigate.  There are a lot of positives for the Horse Park, with one BIG negative.  

 

My complaint are:

1.  No brackets or updated brackets available.  (easy solution--- Sell brackets)

2.  Brackets are available on line, but no Wi-Fi (another easy solution-- offer Wi-Fi)

 

If you have ever been to any type of event you know that concession costs are high.  There should however be a place where wrestlers and coaches can go to consume their own food.  (Maybe a few Trailers out back, 1 for coaches, 1 for wrestlers and 1 with showers for wrestlers). 

 

But I'm just a redneck from KY that don't nows much about big city.

 

As usual:  These are the opinions of GOO you can take them or leave them.  It doesn't really matter one way or the other. 

GOO OUT>

[NO-OX 1 120]

I started this thread, just wondering who all had breathing issues affected by the Horse Park , which in turn affected their performance in an adverse manner. This in turn creates a unfair disadvantage to those affected. The health and wellness as well as an equal playing field for all wrestlers should be concern number one, for everyone. For me has nothing to do with programs, admission costs , or the cost of a pretzel and a diet dew. It should be about the health of the wrestlers and putting them in the most productive environment for maximum performance. Being able to take a shower wouldn't hurt!!

[grappler-of-old 44]

I agree 100%.  As I stated.  I hope and expect that KHSAA is trying to resolve this issue.  But as we all know it takes time for things to change.  Contracts, licensing and the such.  I have faith in KHSAA that they will resolve this issue but probably not in time for any of the wrestlers in high school at this time.

[father_of_four 5]

With the previous post in mind (that a change in venue will likely not occur in time for any of our existing wrestlers in high school today), what could be done for those affected to help level the playing field?

 

You mentioned Showers could help, this could easily be accomplished by setting up an RV in the Parking lot, which might allow for an environment that is "Horse Free" for the wrestler to recuperate after his matches. This could be done by the Team/Family with or without KHSAA helping out.

 

Is there a way to setup a Room in the arena that can be Asthma/Allergy friendly? Sealed and Air-conditioned or filtered? I am not educated in the Medical field and not aware of what level of separation is needed from the contaminants. Could UK or UofL Colleges of Medicine be contacted and be of help in creating an isolated environment?

 

Others have mentioned laying down tarps or other material between the dirt floor and the mat.  Is it possible to have a membrane of any type that provides separation enough to allow the wrestlers to compete without being significantly affected? I'm not asking if its possible to accomplish, I'm asking if it were possible would it help those affected by Allergy/Asthma problems? If so, then it would be worth investigating if it could be done on some portion of the mats (maybe two) if the entire arena were not possible.  If this is not possible, I know there are some other rooms at Alltech Arena where a Mat could be setup away from the dirt floor area.  For the Youth State, we have used a large conference room for Registration/Awards that is large enough to setup a Mat and that area could be designated for specific matches (away from dirt). 

 

I took my boys to a camp in Ohio with Mitch Clark (Ohio State, NCAA Champ in 1997) and he told a story of a NY HS State Tournament match, which he participated in that took place off-site, away from the normal State Tournament site due to his opponent having a medical condition. This occurred in New York in the mid-90's, surely KHSAA could arrange something similar in 2015 era? Maybe at Scott County HS?

 

What other things can be done to help level the playing field for these Wrestlers? I'd hate to see any deserving wrestler have to sit out for the ultimate goal they are working towards all year. Our Wrestlers, especially those that reach State work tremendously hard year round and deserve more form their Parents/Coaches/Teachers/Athletics Administrations.

[dscicle 6]

I've been trying to avoid posting on this issue since the last time I did (and brought up some of the same points that have been embraced in this topic) I got absolutely ramrodded.

 

I know for a fact the KHSAA is trying to remedy the situation. Several of their workers have the same health issues that many here have been complaining about. Here are the major issues that have prevented us from moving anywhere else:

 

1) Contract. Horse Park has a contract with the KHSAA through either this season or next (I think it is this season). After that, they are going to look LONG AND HARD for another venue. Bear in mind, THIS IS THE VENUE THE COACH'S ASSOCIATION AT THE TIME SELECTED from the list of possible venues. Many of these issues that have arisen since the contract was signed they thought they had accounted for. Apparently not. 

 

2) Prices at other venues. Freedom Hall was the first and foremost choice for State. The issue was that the KY Fairgrounds people wanted $10 per car per entrance/exit. Meaning that those wrestlers who won their semi finals matches who often go back to the hotel and rested...would be charged $20 or more to do that. No joke. They were unwilling to waver on that either. 

 

Other than the Horse Park and Freedom Hall there aren't any other VIABLE places to host our State Tournament. YUM! is owned by a cooperation and based on what I've been told from others who have gone for events...it would not only be too large but parking would be miserable...plus the huge cost to rent it. I think Memorial on the campus of UK is too small to put down 6+ mats, although it may be worth exploring. NCAAs put the mats down edge-to-edge so if we could do that in Memorial I say go for that. 

 

Remember that the coaches wanted 6 or more mats down so whatever venue we go to has to not only have room for the nearly 100 schools that now sponsor wrestling, but also have room to put down all the mats LEGALLY. 

[Zeus 117]

What about going back to a high school? Henry Clay can put down six mats somewhat comfortably, although they are butted against each other. The problem there would be enough space for spectators and the fact that school is going on that day. Is there any old HS in central KY that could fit six mats so we wouldn't have to worry about parking?

If it weren't for the breathing issues I would love the horse park. Plenty of space for spectators, mats and parking. Concessions are high anywhere. There has to be a way to fix the breathing problem. What about dousing the dirt with water to make it muddy before the tournament and then on Fri night? Only dry dirt gets blown up into the air as dust. Construction sites do this all the time.

[pin2win 58]

WKU has an arena I think would work for us. Diddle arena is the name of the arena.

[tja 150]

diddle would be great !

[pin2win 58]

Not sure of the cost to rent out the arena, but I believe it would an awesome spot for the state tournament. Plenty of space for mats. They've got push out bleachers, so we could push them in to hold more mats in the earlier rounds, and then we could pull them out for semifinals/placing rounds/state finals matches.

[firemans34 33]

Diddle would be a good location; however, that goes against the KHSAA trying to keep every state sporting event in Lexington (or at least not in Louisville)for their own selfish reasons. We were lucky to get a single mat for the finals.....only after fighting those "people". They will always do what best suits them. I'm all for a grass roots fight like the finals mat fight to get a venue change.

[NO-OX 1 120]

I think first and foremost the fight has to be the health of the participants involved . If there was some sort of an advantage given to a certain kid , this thread would blow up. But people don't seem as concerned when a unfair disadvantage is put on a group of kids with breathing issue . All caused by wrestling in an arena full of dirt.

[pin2win 58]

I'm pretty sure the girl's state basketball tournament is held in Diddle arena, with that being said maybe we could add on to the contract to utilize the arena for wrestling if it doesn't conflict with anything already scheduled.