Many of the students and staff who work out never really think about the history of the weights or cardio equipment they are using, nor when it has finally become obsolete. They sometimes fail to hear the kinks in the bicycle equipment or feel the weights losing their density.
This job falls to the Recreational Center, who make sure the weights and cardiovascular equipment are up-to-date and as new as it can be. However, the staff made a decision to replace the cardio equipment in the Rec. Center long ago.
“We had actually been working on this for quite a while,” said Mindy Oden, Assistant Director of Wellness. “The new facility is about three years old, and that is perfect timing.”
While many of the free weights and the machine weights will remain, the cardio equipment will be getting a much-needed upgrade. Oden pointed out that this would help the Rec. Center save money on maintenance.
“By doing this lease, we’re [going to] be able to replace most of the cardio equipment which gets most of the abuse, and have all brand new equipment,” Oden said. “A treadmill is like a car; as soon as you drive it off the lot, it loses value.”
However, whether or not students are masters at realizing when it is time to change equipment, there is one thing that they can not help but notice: the lines.
The lines seem to form after 3 p.m. when students are just getting finished with classes for the day. As more and more students come to the Rec. Center, they can’t help but notice that while there are people waiting in the weight room area, there are many more people who are waiting to use the cardio equipment.
“Usually from three to nine, it is just packed,” Oden said. “We’re getting more pieces of cardio equipment [to help with that].”
Frank Garrison, Associate Director of Programs added, “The addition is in the treadmills because they’re more popular.”
As to whether there will be new types of cardio equipment coming in Oden points out, “There is no new equipment, but there is more of it. We will still have ellipticals, but they’ll be more up-to-date.”
The move for the equipment will take place immediately. Today, Jan. 29, and Friday, Jan. 30 will be move-in day.
“We are [going to] have some signs telling the issue,” Oden said. “We will do it in pieces. We’ll try to do it with as limited inconvenience as possible.”
Garrison further added, “We’ll do treadmills one day and ellipticals the next. The move will be between 8:30 and 11:30 in the morning.”
As to what will happen with the old cardio equipment Oden said, “The company we are using is trading it in.”
Summing up the moving issue, Garrison said, “We moved to a lease. Within that lease, we get full warranty and full service contract. The equipment will not be down as long as they have been down in the past. There is no additional charge to fix them. In reality, it’s saving the students money.”