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We talkin' 'bout practice facilities, man!


Klomp

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After watching Friday’s official opening of the grandiose TCO Performance Center, legendary Vikings coach Bud Grant marvels at the facility each time he visits. Grant, who is still on the Vikings’ payroll as a consultant, has an office at the TCO Performance Center. 

Grant: “I was born 50 years too soon. I go back to places where you used to have pot-bellied stoves in the locker rooms in Canada, and to see something like this means I’ve lived quite awhile."

https://www.twincities.com/2018/06/15/commissioner-roger-goodell-calls-vikings-new-facility-special-place-at-ceremony/

 

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  • 1 month later...

When they had training camp in Mankato, Vikings players were always seen on reporting day carting televisions into their spartan dorm rooms. Now that the Vikings have moved camp to the TCO Performance Center in Eagan and are staying at a local hotel, TVs can remain at home. Still, tight end Kyle Rudolph said the roughing-it element of camp hasn’t changed a lot.

Rudolph: “We’re at the Country Inn & Suites, so we’re not really staying at the Ritz-Carlton or anything. But it’s the same thing. It’s ball all day long. We’re here at TCO until the sun’s down and up first thing in the morning and right back in the building. So in terms of removing yourself from reality and the real world, it’s the same way, and that’s how training camp has to be.’’

Thielen: “The biggest part is just the resources, having the hot tubs, the cold tubs and the world-class facility. Having the trainers in the big training room where they have all their stuff, they don’t have to lug it around, and the equipment staff, things like that. Mankato was a special place, they were great hosts, guys loved being there, coaches loved being there. I’ve overheard a couple of coaches say, ‘Man, I miss Mankato.’ It’s definitely different, but when you have a world-class training facility and you have the resources that we have here to take care of our bodies, there’s not a more important time than training camp.’’

https://www.twincities.com/2018/07/28/vikings-no-longer-in-mankato-dorms-but-still-a-roughing-it-element-to-camp/

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1 hour ago, vike daddy said:

Thielen: “The biggest part is just the resources, having the hot tubs, the cold tubs and the world-class facility. Having the trainers in the big training room where they have all their stuff, they don’t have to lug it around, and the equipment staff, things like that. Mankato was a special place, they were great hosts, guys loved being there, coaches loved being there. I’ve overheard a couple of coaches say, ‘Man, I miss Mankato.’ It’s definitely different, but when you have a world-class training facility and you have the resources that we have here to take care of our bodies, there’s not a more important time than training camp.’’

https://www.twincities.com/2018/07/28/vikings-no-longer-in-mankato-dorms-but-still-a-roughing-it-element-to-camp/

This is such a great point about the move that often gets forgotten.

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2 minutes ago, vike daddy said:

plus the sense of... permanence... or home.

as opposed to being in a transitory nature.

And to that point, I liked how Zimmer said going down to Mankato for training camp made more sense when camp was 5 weeks long and not the 2 weeks we have now. 

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  • 2 weeks later...
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What’s most notable about the Vikings’ new practice facility is how big of a role technology and analytics played in its construction. Now, the Vikings are certainly not the first team to embrace technology, nor are they the first team to use analytics.

But the Vikings are the first team to build multiple rooms in a new facility specifically devoted to these things. It is impossible to overstate how much football will change over the next decade with more widespread advancement and acceptance of technology and analytics.

 

https://www.theringer.com/nfl/2018/8/15/17693024/minnesota-vikings-facility-technology-data-analytics-rick-spielman-draft

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The Vikings, Anderson said, drew about 63,000 fans for their first year of training camp in Eagan — which was similar to the team’s approximate attendance figures in recent years in Mankato. The team has said it drew roughly 68,000 fans during the final year in Mankato, and routinely drew between 50,000 and 65,000 fans to Minnesota State University, depending on the length of camp. The Vikings had an extra week of open practices in Eagan, and fans claimed roughly 90,000 tickets for this year’s practices.

With roughly 72,000 of those seats available for free, though, fans could reserve them ahead of time and decide not to attend practice; Anderson said the Vikings often saw fans reserve four tickets for a daily practice session, and only use one or two of them. The Vikings released additional tickets during training camp, once they had a better handle on security processes and daily attendance rates, and the way they handle ticketing could change for 2019; Anderson said the team will look at the no-show rate and adjust for future years to make sure more fans can attend and more seats are full.

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-first-training-camp-in-eagan-plays-to-mostly-positive-reviews/491265741/

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23 hours ago, Klomp said:

The Vikings, Anderson said, drew about 63,000 fans for their first year of training camp in Eagan — which was similar to the team’s approximate attendance figures in recent years in Mankato. The team has said it drew roughly 68,000 fans during the final year in Mankato, and routinely drew between 50,000 and 65,000 fans to Minnesota State University, depending on the length of camp. The Vikings had an extra week of open practices in Eagan, and fans claimed roughly 90,000 tickets for this year’s practices.

With roughly 72,000 of those seats available for free, though, fans could reserve them ahead of time and decide not to attend practice; Anderson said the Vikings often saw fans reserve four tickets for a daily practice session, and only use one or two of them. The Vikings released additional tickets during training camp, once they had a better handle on security processes and daily attendance rates, and the way they handle ticketing could change for 2019; Anderson said the team will look at the no-show rate and adjust for future years to make sure more fans can attend and more seats are full.

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-first-training-camp-in-eagan-plays-to-mostly-positive-reviews/491265741/

I attempted to reserve 4 seats for my family and was unable to do so. The ticket reservation website read, “No available seats at this time.” We were bummed as we attend training camp every year. It looks like seats may have become available, but wasn’t worth the risk as I live 2+ hours away from Eagan. I really hope they make the proposed change mentioned in the above article. If I reserve seats, I’ll be there. Heck, I’d even pay.

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  • 5 weeks later...

You know how when you first leave home and then come back for a visit and notice that there’s a new gas station or they’ve turned old Target into Super Target? Well, imagine how Tom Johnson felt coming back to find the $125 million TCO Performance Center in the place of run-down Winter Park.

Johnson:  “Man, it’s crazy. Rick had no problem walking me around for an hour and half yesterday, showing me every detail, and the lights and what they do. From the chiropractic place to the turf, man, it’s A1 the best place I’ve seen. It’s a great attraction for the community, for the team, for the owners. So, definitely motivates you to continue to win and do big things.”

http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2018/09/tom-johnson-taking-unexpected-return-minnesota-stride/

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