When the new weight room and locker rooms are finally completed student athletes won’t be the only ones who are excited. Loren Ferré, Washburn’s athletic director, says the coaches and alumni are the ones who are really anticipating the new addition.

“The coaches are really excited,” said Ferré. “For the first time we will be able to have a weight room where not only the football team can lift, but other sports can lift in it as well.”

The idea of building a new weight room has been in planning for quite some time.

“It started a long time ago, even before coach Schurig had gotten here,” said Ferré. “It was the space of the weight room that was always the issue.”

The current weight room is estimated around 2,500 square feet. The new weight room will have an area of more than 10,000 square feet, around four times the size of the current one. With the completion of the facility coaches won’t have to worry about scheduling time when they can come in and lift since the facility is big enough for multiple sports to work out at the same time.

“Coaches shouldn’t have to worry about coming in at 6 in the morning to get a workout for their players,” said Craig Schurig, head football coach.

Sophomore volleyball player Ashley Shepard agreed.

“I know the volleyball team is very excited with the new weight room addition,” said Shepard. “We get to have our own set work out times and not worry about other teams interfering.”

Not only will the new facility be bigger, but it will have state of the art lifting equipment and also cardiovascular machines the old facility lacked.

“All the equipment in the current weight room will be added and we have a nice budget to add new equipment as well,” said Ferré. “Coach Schurig and football strength and conditioning coach David Trupp have been piecing together an equipment list that we need.”

With the addition of the new equipment, offices will be constructed so coaches can monitor the weight room and supervise the athletes who can come in and work out during the day instead of after practices. With the new offices, weightlifting classes will also be using the facility during the day.

“If everything goes smoothly with the bidding process and the Board of Regents meeting, construction on the new weight room should begin this summer and take about 12-14 months, and, at the latest, be finished in November of 2009,” said Ferré.