UC Riverside Track Facility to be Dedicated on Friday, March 2

Chancellor Timothy P. White's appearance on CBS reality show Undercover Boss helped drive refurbishment project

By Ross French on February 28, 2012

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (www.ucr.edu) — Chancellor Timothy P. White, Athletics Director Brian Wickstrom and Head Track and Field Coach Irv Ray will speak at the dedication of the new University of California, Riverside Track Facility on Friday, March 2 at 3 p.m.

White, Wickstrom and Ray will be joined by the members of the UCR track and field teams, as well as dignitaries including Riverside City Councilman Mike Gardner, Nola Tainter, Legislative Field Aide to Councilman Paul Davis, and Big West Conference Commissioner Dennis Farrell.

The general public is invited to attend the dedication ceremonies, with parking available in Lots 24 and 26. There will be a $5 parking fee for vehicles which do not have a UCR parking permit. The public may enter through the western gates adjacent to Lot 24.

The need for a new track was highlighted when White appeared on the CBS reality show “Undercover Boss” in May 2011. While working with the track and field team under the guise of “Pete Weston,” White learned that the surface had become too worn down to be used in competition and as a result, the Highlanders hadn’t hosted a home intercollegiate track event since 2005.

At the conclusion of the show, White pledged to raise the funds necessary to completely refurbish the facility.

“The new track facility is remarkably overdue. We are now, for the first time in many years, able to host home meets so our student-athletes can perform in front of their friends, family and the campus community,” White said. “It has a state-of-the-art surface, allowing for fewer stress-induced injuries and better training, permitting these men and women to achieve their highest potential.  That is what a UC experience should always be.”

Construction on the facility was completed in mid-December and the teams have been practicing on it since mid-January. The track is a state-of-the art, eight-lane, Rekortan M99 world championship surface with an additional inside lane for jogging. The sod on the infield was completely replaced and new long jump, high jump and vaulting pits were installed. The facility also features areas for shotput, discus, hammer and javelin. New aluminum bleachers completed the make-over.

The Highlanders will host their first home track meet on Saturday, March 10 as they host a dual-meet with UC Santa Barbara.

Photos from the Dedication Ceremony, March 2, 2012

Archived under: Inside UCR, Chancellor Timothy P. White, Intercollegiate Athletics, press release, track and field, track facility, undercover boss

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