Every year, AB Show attendees have a chance to tour local recreation and athletics facilities. Not only do these facilities show attendees what is available in the local market, but it also inspires innovations in their own spaces and showcases some of the highest class recreation facilities in the country. In New Orleans this year, attendees toured the recreation facilities at LSU, Southern University, Tulane University and Ochsner Fitness Center.
Southern University
The Horace W. Moody Intramural Sports Complex at Southern University opened in 2013. Attendees toured the strength and cardio space, filled with natural light and school branding, as well as the open gym space. In the open gym, students can play basketball and partake in scheduled intramurals like pickleball, badminton and archery. Staff at Southern University emphasized the ways they make each and every student feel welcomed at the rec center, and reminded attendees that the positive change students make at the gym, translates to positive changes in life.
LSU
At LSU, attendees first visited the field complex. 27 acres of ball parks and turf fields are exclusively maintained for student recreation, intramurals and club sports. A large gazebo at the center of several softball and baseball fields offers staff and students sweeping views of the facility.
Attendees then toured the URec facility. Following a 2017 renovation in three stages, LSU now boasts a state of the art facility complete with indoor and outdoor pools, additional outdoor ball fields and courts, an indoor track, climbing walls, three stories of strength and cardio equipment, an esports lounge and several group exercise studios.
Tulane University
Much has changed at Tulane since AB Show last visited, particularly on its intercollegiate athletics campus, where space is at a premium. Yulman Stadium has new synthetic turf that the athletic department hopes sees six years of use, or double what the previous field endured, given the fact the stadium not only serves as home to Green Wave football games and practices, but band practice, other sports team training and intramural use. Tulane's baseball venue, Turchin Stadium, features an all-turf field with a striped pattern. Recent renovations have updated the home dugout and indoor hitting facility, known as the Hack Shack. Moreover, the athletics administration building has seen two phases of renovation, the most recent completed in August. A welcoming rotunda greets visitors with a two story atrium celebrating Green Wave sports with wall graphics and two LED video towers.
Ochsner Fitness Center
AB Show attendees couldn't help but be impressed by Oschner Fitness Center's scope of offerings through a partnership with its namesake health provider. The sprawling facility is home to 10 separate bodies of water, an ever-expanding strength floor, a group cycling studio that houses more than 50 bikes, and fitness options that range from in-house Pilates instruction to new indoor pickleball courts.
