Wednesday, September 24, 2008

All Good Things Must Come To An End.....

The Indianapolis Colts (GO HORSE!) has a new home in lovely downtown Indy, which means their former home must come down. Today was the day for the deflation of our beloved RCA Dome. I work in downtown Indy and was in the middle of all the excitement.

BUT, I missed every dang bit of it! But I sure don't miss a second of peering into windows of the nearby hotels that surround our building! You people would be amazed at the things that we have witnessed! Do people really think that we can't see them through the "tinted" windows? I might have to do a little blogging about some of the things we've seen...someday...maybe...maybe not...it scares me.....we'll see....

Where was my head? How could I miss such a HUGE history making event???? Well, my boss needed me to work. Really? Seriously? Are you kidding me???

Here's a little background for you....enjoy.

The RCA Dome was a domed stadium located in Indianapolis, Indiana, which was the home of the Indianapolis Colts NFL franchise for 24 seasons (1984-2007). It was completed in 1984 at a cost of $82 million as part of the Indiana Convention Center, with the costs split evenly between private and public money. It was finished nearly a year before the Colts actually moved to the city. In 1984, the Colts relocated to Indianapolis from Baltimore.

The stadium was completed in 1984. It was similar in design and appearance to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis and BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, owing in great part to the involvement of engineer David Geiger, pioneer in air-supported roofs[1].

The RCA Dome hosted WrestleMania VIII in 1992. WrestleMania VIII was the last appearance of Jake "The Snake" Roberts until 1995, "Macho Man" Randy Savage's last title win, Hulk Hogan's last match until WrestleMania IX, the return of The Ultimate Warrior, and Bret Hart's second reign as WWE Intercontinental Champion. However, WrestleMania VIII failed to sell out, the first WrestleMania to do so. And we all know that this is something to brag about!! I love me some Hulk Hogan!!!

The stadium was originally named the Hoosier Dome until 1994 when RCA paid $10 million for the naming rights for 10 years, with two five-year options to RCA at a cost of $13.5 million if invoked. The stadium seated 57,980 for football. Modifications were made to the stadium in 2001 to expand the suites and add club seating. Before that, the maximum seating for a football crowd was 60,272. The dome was officially dedicated on September 8, 1984, as a sellout crowd watched the Purdue Boilermakers defeat the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame.

Basketball was also played at the RCA Dome. The first game played there was an exhibition game in 1984 between an NBA All-Star team led by home-state hero Larry Bird and the United States Olympic Men's Basketball team, coached by Bob Knight, (stated proudly even if he did need anger management!) who was at the time the coach of Indiana University. The dome also served as the site of the NBA All-Star Game in February 1985, where a record NBA crowd of 43,146 saw the Western Conference beat the Eastern Conference 140–129[2]. Since then it hosted many NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship games, including four Final Fours (1991, 1997, 2000, 2006). The NCAA, whose headquarters are in Indianapolis, has committed to holding the Final Four in Indianapolis once every five years. The RCA Dome hosted its first Women's Final Four in 2005.

In addition, it hosted 1990 General Conference Sessions of Seventh-day Adventists, the Indiana High School Athletic Association's annual boys and girls championships, and served as one of two sites for the FIBA Men's World Basketball Championship Tournament in 2002, sharing the honors with Conseco Fieldhouse, the home of the Indiana Pacers. Additionally, the RCA Dome served as the site of the Indiana State School Music Association State Marching Band Competition, the Bands of America Grand Nationals, and the Drum Corps International Midwestern Regional, along with the NFL Scouting Combine in February of each year.

Originally the football playing surface was Astroturf, replaced with FieldTurf in May 2005[3].

Roof

The roof is made up of teflon-coated fiberglass and weighs 257 tons. It is held up by the air pressure inside the building. The ceiling is 193 feet high, though the height varies up to five feet as the materials expand and contract with the weather. As was the case with two other domes of this style, the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York and the Pontiac Silverdome outside Detroit, Michigan, there were warning signs posted cautioning patrons of the high winds at the doors when exiting. On September 24, 2008, the roof of the Dome was deflated.

Future



The stadium has been replaced by a new retractable-roof stadium, the Lucas Oil Stadium, in time for the 2008 NFL season. It recently was completed due south of the RCA Dome, which is slated to be demolished at a cost of $3,500,000[4].

The final game played in the RCA Dome was an AFC Divisional Playoff game between the Colts and the San Diego Chargers on January 13, 2008. The Chargers won, 28–24. The Colts also lost their final regular-season home game at RCA Dome on December 30, 2007, 16-10 to the Tennessee Titans.


The Dome Deflated...

Sixteen large fans that kept the dome's fabric roof aloft were shut down Wednesday morning, allowing the roof to deflate and fall within about 50 feet of the stadium floor.

The dome near downtown Indianapolis is being demolished, now that the Indianapolis Colts have moved to the nearby Lucas Oil Stadium.

Former Mayor Bill Hudnut gave the order to shut off the fans. The 8-acre roof took about 35 minutes to deflate.

The upper level seating area will be imploded in December.

The dome opened in 1984. It was the Indianapolis Colts' home until August, when Lucas Oil Stadium opened.

Once the roof is removed, demolition work will accelerate with an implosion of the dome planned for December.

I'm sure this moment was sad for some old timers but I see it as a bright new future! I love change!

Oh and BTW - we are a "green" city...80% of the domes materials are going to be recycled! Yay!!! And you can even purchase pieces for your souvenir shelf at home!!! hee hee Come on, I know you want to.....

10 comments:

  1. GEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESHH!!!! And you talk about too much to read in one sitting!!!???

    It does look weird though all deflated! I can't believe you weren't up there on the roof taking pics!

    And how come the Colts link goes to the Chicago Tribune??

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  2. Wow! I am not a sports fan but well written and interesting;) And cool about "the green city";)

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  3. Wow..that must of been a sight. My husband is a 100%colts fan since he was a little boy! If you only knew the stuff I have that says "Colts"!

    -Interesting facts on the dome!
    -Sandy Toes

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  4. Wow, TMI sistah! I too can't believe you missed the deflation of the Dome! Was there a sale at Macy's?

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  5. "OK,that was WAAYY too much for me to read. What was that all about?"
    Aunt Peg
    P.S. are your fingers sore from cutting and pasting ALL that???
    CHUCK the DOME!! Lucas Oil is better anyway. lol

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  6. i'm not that much of a colts fan to read that whole thing but i love your signature! very cute!

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  7. Ok, call me wierd but I just love the reference to the 80's Wrestlemania!!!!

    Whatcha gonna do when Hulkamania runs wild on you!!!!

    Yeeaaaahhhhhh (that's my Randy Macho Man Savage impersonation)

    Ok, enough I know. But at least you all get a bigger and better place for your boys to play!!! :-)

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  8. I feel like I just got sucked into watching The History Channel with my husband again.....did I pass out from to many drinks??? Just kidding! I pass through Indy all the time, and this was cool! Love ya!!

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  9. WOW!!!!! VERY INTERESTING!

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  10. Kinda cool! Since we have an outdoor stadium, i never realized that those roofs can deflate like that! i was sad when Memorial Stadium was destroyed and replaced by M&T Bank Stadium and Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

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