Spring Break
New weight room is not enough
by David Sheppard-Brick
Associate Editor
Op-Ed | 9/2/08
Posted online at 12:26 AM EST on 9/2/08
Darkness, permeated by a sickly orange glow. The putrid stench of despair mixed with feet overwhelms your olfactory cavities. Stains run down the walls. "Is that blood?" you ask yourself. You rest your hand on a railing only to feel a moist substance that you hope is just water.
No, this is not the beginning of the next installment of the thrilling (and increasingly bad) Saw films. It's a walk through the bowels of Gosman Sports and Convocation Center. I know the first thing most people outside of Brandeis think when they hear Brandeis athletics is, "Debate is not a sport," but Brandeis actually has one of the better Division III sports programs around, and we should start acting like it.
First step: make it beautiful. Brandeis certainly has a flare for beautiful architecture. Just look at the giant green building in the center of campus (ok, bad example). But in all seriousness, most people who visit Brandeis who aren't prospective students come for speakers, concerts or sports, most of which are held in Gosman. Yet no one walks into Gosman and says, "What a beautiful building." Instead it's more along the lines of, "Why is the snack bar always closed," or "I wish it were bright enough to see the game; could they turn on some lights?" Why do we persist in small ventures "Yay, new shiny floors and a new treadmill I won't run on," and forget the bigger picture?
Yes, I know, the Celtics used to practice here, but there is a reason they left. As a photographer, going to take pictures at Gosman instills a sense of equipment loathing-if I only had $7,000 worth of equipment, or at least a set of flood lights, I might be able to take a good picture-but as a sports fan, it makes me think of a school that does not care about athletics. With basketball teams that seem to make the playoffs every year, Olympic-caliber fencers, a championship volleyball team and a whole host of other sports achievements, it's about time that Gosman took the path of a washed-up Hollywood celebrity and had a facelift.
The first step: Let's get some lights. Have you ever walked into Gosman and thought, "It's so warm and inviting in here?" Me neither. Let's invest in some lights that don't make me think alien autopsy. Step two: Why is it that I still get lost in buildings at Brandeis? Giving directions to a poor mother in Gosman by saying "Yes, I know they're playing basketball in there, but that's the only way to the swimming pool from here," is just a little ridiculous. Let's build a nice hallway, or at least unlock the back door for swim meets. And three: Lets get a sound system that works. I'm tired of thinking durning gametime announcements, "Did someone get a three pointer, or am I at the drive-through at McDonald's?" If Brandeis can spend a few million on a new science complex, let's throw a few million at the only building on campus people actually visit.
No, this is not the beginning of the next installment of the thrilling (and increasingly bad) Saw films. It's a walk through the bowels of Gosman Sports and Convocation Center. I know the first thing most people outside of Brandeis think when they hear Brandeis athletics is, "Debate is not a sport," but Brandeis actually has one of the better Division III sports programs around, and we should start acting like it.
First step: make it beautiful. Brandeis certainly has a flare for beautiful architecture. Just look at the giant green building in the center of campus (ok, bad example). But in all seriousness, most people who visit Brandeis who aren't prospective students come for speakers, concerts or sports, most of which are held in Gosman. Yet no one walks into Gosman and says, "What a beautiful building." Instead it's more along the lines of, "Why is the snack bar always closed," or "I wish it were bright enough to see the game; could they turn on some lights?" Why do we persist in small ventures "Yay, new shiny floors and a new treadmill I won't run on," and forget the bigger picture?
Yes, I know, the Celtics used to practice here, but there is a reason they left. As a photographer, going to take pictures at Gosman instills a sense of equipment loathing-if I only had $7,000 worth of equipment, or at least a set of flood lights, I might be able to take a good picture-but as a sports fan, it makes me think of a school that does not care about athletics. With basketball teams that seem to make the playoffs every year, Olympic-caliber fencers, a championship volleyball team and a whole host of other sports achievements, it's about time that Gosman took the path of a washed-up Hollywood celebrity and had a facelift.
The first step: Let's get some lights. Have you ever walked into Gosman and thought, "It's so warm and inviting in here?" Me neither. Let's invest in some lights that don't make me think alien autopsy. Step two: Why is it that I still get lost in buildings at Brandeis? Giving directions to a poor mother in Gosman by saying "Yes, I know they're playing basketball in there, but that's the only way to the swimming pool from here," is just a little ridiculous. Let's build a nice hallway, or at least unlock the back door for swim meets. And three: Lets get a sound system that works. I'm tired of thinking durning gametime announcements, "Did someone get a three pointer, or am I at the drive-through at McDonald's?" If Brandeis can spend a few million on a new science complex, let's throw a few million at the only building on campus people actually visit.
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