Consider this a brief obituary for the Empire State Indoor Championships.
There will be no meet at the Buffalo Bills fieldhouse this year, or any year
in the foreseeable future. The Bills have raised the rental fee to $1,500
for 2007 and will charge $3,500 starting in 2008. There will also be an
additional charge for security service. Apparently a recent collective
bargaining agreement between NFL owners and the players union allows the
union to skim a portion of any rental fees charged for a club's facilities,
leaving not enough for the football club to meet expenses incurred in these
rentals. So up goes the rental fee to compensate. The new fees are simply
too high for the Flying Aces Club and the Western New York Free Flight to
absorb, especially in light of the low attendance at the contest during the
past three years. So, with regrets, it's goodbye.
There is a renovated armory in downtown Rochester with an arched beam
ceiling, maximum height 55 ft. Lots of floor area. Reasonable rental charge.
We're considering holding a contest there. Whether or not it will take place
remains to be seen. Even in the face of the apathy that diminished our
efforts at Buffalo, it could be a success.
Bob Clemens
Received on Wed Jan 31 2007 - 08:52:35 CET
This archive was generated by Yannick on Sat Dec 14 2019 - 19:13:44 CET