Tracks in the State College Area

Outdoor Tracks
There are two outdoor tracks in the area. The Penn State outdoor track is south of the Bryce Jordan Center, between University and Porter Roads. Pluses: It was recently re-surfaced and is a great track. Minuses: It's always windy there. The State College High School outdoor track is also a fine track, renovated  with a new polyurethane surface in the summer of 2001, and is a little less exposed to the wind. It's on the hill behind the High School and Welch Pool. It's almost the same distance from Rec Hall as the Penn State track (about 1-1/2 miles).  Local adults use the high school track, especially when the Penn State track is closed for events like the Special Olympics.

If you go to either track (especially with small children), please bring along a little common sense.  The coaches don't appreciate kids riding bikes on the tracks, throwing sand from the long-jump pits, splashing in the steeplechase water, bouncing on the pole vault mats, and so on.

Indoor Tracks
On July 1, 1999, Penn State opened a new indoor,  Multi-Sport Facility that  includes a gorgeous 200-meter track with six 42" lanes -- the Horace Ashenfelter III Indoor Track.  By the way, Mr. Ashenfelter is a Penn State grad with a wonderful history.  Born in 1923 in Phoenixville, Pa, he is the only American to hold the world record in the steeplechase, achieving that feat at the 1952 Olympic Games, winning in 8:45.4. The victory helped him win the 1952 Sullivan Award as the nation's top amateur athlete.  He also won the 1949 national collegiate two-mile title while at Penn State.  He was an FBI agent after college and during his competitive days, and has been a good and generous friend of Penn State.   Anyhow, we have a stagger chart for the MSF/Ashenfelter track.  There are also eight (48") 60-meter straight lanes for dashes and hurdles. (By way of comparison, the PSU outdoor track has nine 48" lanes.)  MSF/Ashenfelter is an impressive high tech facility, with hydraulically adjustable banking, a sophisticated computer timing/display system, 800 permanent seats, and additional portable seating.  It is one of the fastest indoor tracks in the U.S.; some national year's-best times have already been run there.

The new facility is just behind the Bryce Jordan Center.  It is a $16 million Intercollegiate Athletics facility  -- that is, it isn't being paid for out of tuition or state appropriation dollars -- and is primarily intended for varsity and club sports. It is generally available for open recreation to faculty, staff, or students Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, during the Fall and Spring semesters, while the university is in session. But again, PSU teams have priority.  For more information, call 814-865-8887.

There are two other PSU indoor options. One is the track above the bleachers in Rec Hall, which is 257 yards around (6.85 laps to the mile). The Rec Hall track is hard but banked. There is a pace chart and an explanation of the distance markings that are posted on the walls around the track.  Rec Hall is open 7 am to 11 pm (although there is some competition with gym classes and team sports events). The other is upstairs in the IM building on Curtin Road. This one is 8 laps to the mile; it is not banked and is really best suited to jogging.  The IM building is open 7:30 am to 11 pm.

With the latest enlargements and enhancements to Beaver Stadium, one of our old foul weather stand-bys has fallen to the wayside. The path under the bleachers at Beaver Stadium that offered a semi-sheltered 525 yard outdoor circuit is now enclosed by gates that are usually closed.

In case you're curious:  State College high school also has a pretty nice little indoor track (11 laps to the mile), but that is not available to the general public.


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