Cedar Point Sports Center

I went to the open house at the Cedar Point Sports Center today. Just have to say its an amazing facility for the community and should attract numerous outside tournaments and events to the center. Its very well laid out and has numerous activities for the kids. They were hosting numerous youth basketball games and a high school girls basketball game while we here there. Sandusky should be very proud and thankful they have a facility like this.

Here is a link to some pics I took.

https://www.amazon.com/photos/shared/jsF54v_WQ3exrRFA6HIgMQ.-vxZppI...5J_fXUqPkh

Wow! thanks for sharing.

what an excellent addition for the area.

I love that CF is doing this for the Community

It looks very impressive, nice pictures DSShives. It looks like I can try that equipment that resembles an American Ninja Warrior course, please have EMS on standby.

First and foremost, the place looks great.

That said, I was really surprised to learn that there was no indoor track built. Indoor track is experiencing a boom in Ohio, and I (naively) assumed this was in the plans. There are very, very few good if not great indoor track venues, and I think the place really missed out a potentially huge revenue stream here.

But, that's a runner's perspective. I'm sure the $$ from pickleball will make up for it. :)

Kevinj, what type of track meets occur at those indoor venues? Are they used by area high schools/colleges? Or some type of "invitational" meets or pre Olympic events? I am just posing the questions as I never pondered that before. My son ran track in high school in these parts and there were some terribly brutal weather days as I recall, but I wonder if OHSAA would approve of the "fairness" of some using indoor facilities which are unavailable for others.

I still want to attempt that Amercan Ninja Warrior course. I question how much use some of that stuff will get as opposed to your indoor track idea.

Kent State Field House was the big venue my high school track team used to visit 20+ years ago, I think five laps equaled one mile. We would participate in these conditioning track meets during the winter months on Saturdays leading up to the regular outdoor season.

In the last ten years, several other universities built indoor tracks, including Youngstown State Watts Center:

Maybe in a few years, if there's a demand for it, the CP facility could add a wing going out the north side to house a track. The infield track area makes a nice area for football, soccer, and baseball/softball training. Being a runner myself, I can clearly visualize the indoor track addition!

jimmyburke said:

Kevinj, what type of track meets occur at those indoor venues? Are they used by area high schools/colleges? Or some type of "invitational" meets or pre Olympic events?

There is now a state-championship in indoor track in the state of Ohio, and it is run through the Ohio Association of Track and Cross Country Coaches (OATCCC); technically OHSAA is not affiliated with indoor track, but the rules of OHSAA are followed...you can read a quick blurb here.

The meets are all "open"...meaning athletes of any ages can run. We literally just got back from watching my 6th-grade daughter run the 1600m at Mount Union, and she was racing against high school, middle school, and one 30 year old. Each meet is a qualifying meet for the state meet (of course you need to be in high school to qualify for that).

Go Kylah! :)

It's grown from a "thing to do in the winter" in Ohio to an enormous sport; even my old high school (Ayersville...less than 50 kids per class) has indoor track as an official sport.

The current mecca in Ohio is the Spire Institute in Geneva; it's currently where the state meet is held, but most meets are run in older field-houses, with a few good ones; Kent State and Akron are both great places, and Youngstown is decent.

I was looking forward to indoor meets and a stay at Castaway Bay.

Where is the suggestion box? ;)

Along with your suggestion, you might want to include around $10 million for the construction and another couple hundred thousand dollars a year for operations of such a venue. Not saying it would be nice, but you can only build so much.

This all about training for the early entry running of the bulls, isn’t it? 🤣

Gotta be able to outrun those gold passers that'll be a half hour behind you, but way faster.

Hope Kylah left the 30 year old in the dust. I never realized the enormity of track & field.

I just drove past the CP Sports Center, not a car in the lot as it is Sunday & closed. But, kylepark's idea of a field-house addition off the north side looks doable as there is plenty of property. They need plenty of money to do it.

Money shouldn’t be problem with all the Gold Pass sales. 😁

The sports complex wants tournament sports that they can book all the time...ie...AAU basketball, Volleyball, etc...

On the second floor there is a walking track open to the public for free. I know it’s not the same as a running track but it’s still something.

CED23 said:

The sports complex wants tournament sports that they can book all the time...ie...AAU basketball, Volleyball, etc...

Of course; and done correctly an indoor track building is a multi-sport facility. Mount Union's, for example, is also home to indoor basketball and volleyball in the infield, and others (like pictured above at Youngstown State) can be used for field sports (field hockey, football, soccer, etc...). The designs are tailored to the needs of the community/college/city they serve.

These colleges aren't just building these for indoor track; they are rented out and used constantly by neighboring schools year-round, and are very significant revenue streams.

As long as the place is a long-term financial success, expansion would certainly not be out of the question, and a state-of-the-art indoor track (ahem, multi-sport complex that could also bring indoor field-sports) could only add to that success.

High school sports (even the outdoor ones) are no longer seasonal; they are year-round commitments, and schools are always in need of indoor facilities for their athletes to utilize.