Russ Chandler Stadium

Infobox_Baseball_Stadium
stadium_name = Russ Chandler Stadium at Rose Bowl Field
nickname = "The Rusty C"


location = 255 Ferst Drive, N.W. Atlanta, Georgia 30318
broke_ground = June 5, 2001
opened = February 15, 2002
owner = Georgia Tech
operator = Georgia Tech Athletic Association
surface = Grass
construction_cost = $9,700,000 USD
architect = Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum (HOK)
tenants = Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (Atlantic Coast Conference)
seating_capacity = Chairback Seats: 1,100 Bench Seats: 3,057 Total Seats: 4,157
dimensions = Left Field - 328 ft (100 m) Left Center Field - 391 ft (119 m) Center Field - 400 ft (122 m) Right Center Field - 353 ft (108 m) Right Field - 334 ft (102 m)

Russ Chandler Stadium is a college baseball stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. It is located on the historic Rose Bowl Field on the Georgia Tech campus, which has been the home field of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets college baseball team for more than 70 years.The Official 2006 Georgia Tech Baseball Media Guide] The current stadium opened in 2002.

History

The Original Russ Chandler Stadium

A. Russ Chandler, III, a major financial supporter of the Georgia Tech baseball program, funded the construction of the first grandstand for the ballpark in 1985. Fans of Georgia Tech baseball affectionately called the 1986 stadium "The Rusty C" due to its extensive use of aluminum as a construction material.

The Current Russ Chandler Stadium

The current Russ Chandler Stadium was built in 2002. The new stadium features more brick and less aluminum in its construction materials than the previous one, but "Beesball" fans still affectionately refer to it as "The Rusty C." The stadium is located on the Georgia Tech campus in the heart of Atlanta's midtown area and offers fantastic views of the Atlanta skyline. [cite news|first=Al|last=Przygocki|url=http://www.nique.net/issues/2002-02-08/sports/1|title=The New Russ Chandler Stadium: Flashy beginning for baseball|work=The Technique|date=2002-02-08|accessdate=2007-09-15] On April 9, 2008, the stadium set an attendance record of 4,609 at the Georgia Institute of Technology Yellow Jackets versus the University of Georgia Bulldogs game held that night. The crowd total eclipsed previous marks for both post-season (4,468 vs. Southern California on June 2, 2000) and regular-season games (4,264 vs. Georgia on March 27, 2002).

Description

Field

Field Dimensions:
*Left Field: either 328 or 329 feet (~100m), depending on whether you believe the official media guide or the foul line post.
*Left Center: 391 feet (119 m)
*Center Field: 400 feet (122 m)
*Right Center: 353 feet (108 m)
*Right Field: 334 feet (102 m)

Due to the asymmetric shape of the field, the deepest point is actually 409 feet and lies just to the left of center field.

The fence height is a uniform 10 feet.

Seating

Seating Capacity: 4,157

This figure includes 1,100 chairback seats (mostly behind home plate, but also the front rows along the first and third baselines and several "open-air" skybox areas) and over 3,000 bleacher seats. There is room for additional expansion of the bleacher sections along the third base line that will bring the total seating capacity to over 5,000 seats, and there is ample spectator room adjacent to the bullpen along the first base line.

Facilities and Features

Parking

There are no dedicated parking facilities for Russ Chandler Stadium. Recommended surface lots on the Georgia Tech campus in the vicinity of the stadium include the adjacent Klaus College of Computing Parking Deck, Peters Parking Deck, and the Alexander Memorial Colliseum lot. Limited street parking may be available on campus, but those parking along Fowler Street past the right field fence and wall could be subject to damage from long home runs. The O'Keefe lot and others nearby (Architecture and Van Leer Electrical Engineering lots) are no longer available due to construction or other campus projects. Consult The Georgia Tech Athletic Association, Rusty C, or Beesball.com website links provided in the "External links" section below for maps and more detailed information on recommended parking.

References

External links

* [http://www.therustyc.com The Rusty C] , a fansite maintained by the fans in Section 10 of Russ Chandler Stadium.
* [http://www.beesball.com Beesball.com] , a very popular fansite with extensive information on the Georgia Tech Baseball program.
* [http://ramblinwreck.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/geot-m-basebl-body.html Official Georgia Tech Baseball website]
* [http://www.parking.gatech.edu/info/1_maps__schedules/1_parking_areas.php Georgia Tech Campus Parking Map]