Students returned to campus this week to a renovated and upgraded Freeman Athletic Center, complete with new team facilities and workout equipment. Along with these improvements, steady progress has been made on the Fauver Field dormitory construction.
While the cold, wet weather has slowed the progress on Fauver Field, the date of completion remains fixed, according to Robert Schmidt, Project Manager of Wesleyan University Construction Services.
“Everything is progressing smoothly,” Schmidt said. “The recent cold spell definitely impedes progress but will not impact the completion date. We are on schedule to open next fall, though a slight break in the weather is expected for next week.”
While construction is well underway, students living in nearby Nic 5 residences reported that in the past week they have not been bothered by early morning noise. This is due to the fact that the foundations of both buildings have already been completed.
The newly opened facility in the Freeman Athletic Center has attracted enormous student turnout this past week.
“The facility is top of the line,” said wrestling/strength and conditioning coach Drew Black. “We have the best product for each area of the center. We went out researched many facilities and made a point to purchase only the best.”
Current additions to the gym represent an overall upgrade of all workout equipment and space. The cardio area has more than doubled in size and contains six treadmills, 12 elliptical trainers, ten computerized bikes, two other bikes, two rowing ergometers and one upper body ergo meter.
“We also added another dumbbell rack, smith machine, decline bench station, unilateral leg press and a cable crossover with a lat pull and low row station along with all the new racks for free weight training,” Black said. “The machine weights are all Cybex like our previous center, but they are brand new and are more unilateral with one arm, one leg options.”
According to Becca Feiden ’08, the gym is now more comparable to gyms she has seen at peer schools.
“There are a lot more cardio machines, benches, places to store your things and just space in general that the gym didn’t have before,” Feiden said.
“There is a lot more space which keeps the temperature down even when it fills up,” said Chris Brown ’07.
Students’ agree that the only down side to the new facility is its popularity, but most hope that the overcrowding will die down within a few weeks.
“It’s so crowded I can never get an elliptical machine,” said Cheryl Dinglas ’05. “I even went at nine in the morning.”
Black noted that the sheer number of people using the facility is indicative of its success.
“At most times during the day especially mid-day and in the late afternoon all the cardio equipment is being used, and the center is crowded with enthusiastic patrons,” he said.
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