Bet you had one of these when you were a kid
Damn straight I did!
I was literally about to come in here and say sod it, lets just put a big thunderbird 1 in one corner of the stadium..
I would think so too!
Still quite the engineering challenge I would imagine and something that would have to be planned before building actually starts to be implemented. I doubt the timing will line up correctly for this.
Forgive me if I'm wrong but the architects were KSS? We then changed to Populous? (who apparently have done some NFL stadiums?
The renders/mock ups in the public domain are old KSS ones and there have been no new mock ups for aaagggeeessss? Part of me feels that's because they may have details of NFL compatibility in them which is sensitive business info we don't need our competitors to know?
4 pillars pushing up from each corner flag. Drop down cables from a framework that drop down to varied places on the pitch.
I foresee no way this could go wrong. People are talking about a space elevator for fudges sake, how difficult could a pitch-elevator be... Just get it done Levy!
Framework is a good word for it. I was thinking of a massive iconic X/pyramid shaped tripod which would be the load-bearing bit and also the bit the fans could walk all over. Girders could slide in from the side to 'cradle' the pitch once it's hoisted?
Engineering it is easy. Proving that it's safe is another thing entirely.
I suspect that central support would be key, as mentioned. The way around that is a roof that curves (like a lower case r if you were looking at a cross-section) where the roof supports are telescopic or retract over themselves and slide out under the raised pitch.
Then the problem is an aesthetic one. I'm not an expert in growing living stuff but I don't think it's enough to just have a pitch-sized aperture in your roof, it's probably not big enough to keep the stadium bright or to look after the grass. So you'd end up with a roof that was covered over the outer edges of stands, then a gap, then a solid bit where the pitch had lifted up. You'd also have to play all matches under floodlights as the pitch would be blocking out light.
I suspect it could be done, but I also think it would have to have been planned from the start, not a modified version of an existing scheme.
The pitch would
become the roof. It would not be in shade at all... There'd be some kind of skirt attached to the edges of the pitch platform so when it is raised there won't be any leaks into the stadium.
NFL games would be played on an artificial surface under the spotlights, and I don't see a problem with that..?
How long have populous been our architects? I don't think I've seen any mock ups from them? They've had time to plan something ..different.
IF we're going to groundshare with an NFL team I'd expect us to only do so if they sign a contract legally binding them to commit to the project for x years.
Lets say (pulling numbers out of thin air) they paid us £10m a year for ten years of using our stadium. I would be well up for blowing an extra £100m on making our stadium truly unique, iconic, eye catching etc and a Tracy-Island roof would definitely do that. Our stadium sponsor would definitely be up for that. Our world-wide profile would be up for that.
I think it's unlikely that Populous have gone with a pitch-hoisting idea but it sounds incredible. I'm just excited to see what they've got planned for us and I've unexpectedly become pro-NFL sharing if it means loads of cash for us (providing it doesn't ruin the stadium for 'soccer')
