Clarkson University

Clarkson University
Location	Potsdam, NY
Distance from RPI	210 mi.
Venue name	Cheel Center

Clarkson University is the second furthest ECAC venue from RPI (only St. Lawrence is further, but only by a few miles). Located in Potsdam, NY, it is only about 10 miles from the St. Lawrence River, which marks the border between the state of New York and the Canadian providence of Ontario.

The Cheel Center is arguably the nicest rink in the ECAC. As opposed to the Houston Field House, which lies far from the core of RPI's campus, the Cheel Center is actually part of Clarkson's student union. It is well lit, has ample seating (though not quite as large as the Houston Field House), and is generally a very nice arena. Do not take these compliments to suggest that the trip to Clarkson is a pleasant one, however.

Clarkson is the least inviting venue of all of any of the venues we travel to. Their fans are loud and obnoxious, even more so than Union's. During the band's last trip there, several members were verbally threatened by fans, and it is actually somewhat surprising that a fight did not actually break out, though several were close.

Clarkson's band is no better than their fans. They are equally loud and obnoxious, and show no respect for visiting bands. They will play over us, taunt us, and generally do anything they can to make us feel unwelcome. They also have a rather annoying habit of attempting to show up visiting bands (or home bands when they travel). They will scream something to the effect of "Hey <other team>'s band. This is how a pep band is supposed to sound!" Apparently, however, it is their band's opinion that pep bands are supposed to sound horrifically out of tune. This was especially apparent when they did this during RPI's trip in 2005, when they surrounded our band and started playing Louie, Louie. After a few bars, RPI's band joined in, and generally outplayed Clarkson's band in both volume and, more importantly, quality, even though the band was outnumbered by nearly 2:1.

In addition to being a very unpleasant place to go to, getting to or from Potsdam is a problem in and of itself. No major highways go anywhere near Potsdam, making the already long trip even longer. This was compounded in 2005, when the game took place during a blizzard. With no accommodations arranged for the night after the Saturday game, the band had no choice but to leave Potsdam and travel back to Troy. The band's bus followed the team's bus slowly down the nearly impassible roads, and did not arrive back in Troy until after 4:00 AM.

...(and Clarkson still sucks)

Where to stay

In 2005, the band rented out a significant portion of a small resort named "The Stone Fence" in Ogdensburg/Morristown, including two nice town houses for the senior members. It also had a fine view of Canada across the river. These cabins proved to be very nice locations for Friday evening's obligatory road trip party. The resort was also incredibly inexpensive, as the middle of the winter is certainly not high season for a summer resort. The resort is a bit of a drive from Potsdam (nearly an hour), but it is worth the trip.

What to do

Unfortunately, there's not really much to do around Potsdam. There is a mall in Massena with a public, indoor skating rink, which is where the band spent the bulk of their Saturday during the 2005 trip.

Recent Trips

• January 22, 2005