ABBOTT BLOG: Amazing renovated Hall of Fame is a must visit for all in wrestling
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by Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling
“Wow. Amazing.”
Those were my first impressions when I walked into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in Stillwater, Okla. this morning. This is the 40th Honors Weekend for the Wrestling Hall of Fame and it is also the big grand opening of the $3.5 million renovation at wrestling’s shrine.
If you have been here before, you have to come back as soon as you can. It is that different. It will be like you don’t know the place. For those who have not yet been to the Hall of Fame, it is time to make your plans and stop putting off the trip. You need to check it out.
I have a lengthy history with the Hall of Fame, and I can say that I am very, very impressed with the new changes. When I joined USA Wrestling in 1988, I actually worked for a month at the Hall of Fame, which is where the USA Wrestling headquarters were located before we moved the company to Colorado Springs. Early in my career with USA Wrestling, Myron Roderick, the legend and my friend who ran the Hall of Fame for many years, invited me down for Honors Weekend to assist with their media needs. I have continued to support their efforts since Lee Roy Smith became Executive Director.
The press releases will tell you that the renovation will “allow visitors to experience the rich history of wrestling in a new way, including interactive exhibits.” That is an understatement. This place has been transformed, taking all of the assets that made the Hall of Fame so great in the past, and presenting it in a modern and refreshing new way.
There have been many people at the Hall right now being very, very busy, putting on the final touches in just about every area of the facility. It will be opened for the public for the first time on Friday evening, with the traditional unveiling of the plaques for the Class of 2016. I expect that there will be tons of jaws dropping when the guests first walk in here for the first time tomorrow.
I spent the day in the Hall of Fame, working in the William S. Hein Library, helping the Hall’s fantastic PR pro Jack Carnefix on some items, as well as keeping up with a ton of things going on back at USA Wrestling. Over the years, I have spent literally hundreds of hours in the Hall of Fame, but it really was like I had never been in here before.
All of those who have donated money or provided countless hours as volunteers for the Hall of Fame have something to be very proud of. Actually, the entire American wrestling community can take pride in the fact that their sport’s museum is first-class.
The Hall of Fame’s Board of Governors and State Chapter leaders had a special preview at 4:00 p.m. today, officially the first group allowed in the new Hall of Fame and Museum. There were about 40 people in the group from all across the nation.
Krista Graff from the Hall staff welcomed the group and thanked them for their efforts supporting the project. “Pat yourselves on the back. You’ve done a wonderful job,” she said. Lee Roy Smith told the group “It’s your house and it’s always been your house.” Then the group was allowed to wander through all of the exhibit areas and discover things for themselves. The reviews were outstanding.
“What a change, a great change,” said Bob Smith of the Colorado Chapter. “It has all of these great electronic things to play with. This is beautiful. I would have never believed we could have done this.”
“This is beyond expectations,” said Distinguished Member Sandy Stevens. “And they will be able to change exhibits all the time. This is just a fraction of what they have to show here.”
My mind races, imagining the possibilities for what can be done at the Hall of Fame in the future. With such a strong focus on the digital world, there is an unlimited amount of videos, photos and information which could be added to the presentation here. Now that the vision has been realized and the infrastructure put into place, the Hall will be a living, growing, expanding place.
Even though the footprint has not been expanded considerably, there seems to be so much more space here because of the physical and visual design. As Lee Roy said to me, “it was purposed to be multi-purposed.” They will have the flexibility to do some many things in this facility, all of which will help celebrate the history and tradition of our sport while expanding the wrestling community.
This may be the initial grand re-opening for the Hall of Fame, but it won’t be the last. There is expected to be a series of special events during the upcoming year where the Hall of Fame will have activities related to the wrestling world. I am told they will do some neat things during the Olympic Games here, and they have other things in the works later. This is such a vibrant and rich experience, and the Hall expects to have many other opportunities to present our sport to new people in a new way.
I am excited for this year’s induction. There is a great class of honorees coming in this year, including Distinguished Members Brandon Slay, Carlton Haselrig, Dick Wilson and William Harlow. I had the privilege of being in Sydney, Australia when Brandon competed in the Olympics and have worked with him on USA Wrestling’s staff for a number of years. The special award winners include people I know very well, including Meritorious Official Marcia Haise and Order of Merit winner Ron Good, plus the impressive Medal of Courage winner Randy Bortles and Outstanding American Joseph Galli, Jr. Add in Dave Schultz High School Excellence winner Mark Hall II and Tricia Saunders High School Excellence winner Katie Brock, and you have a great group of honorees.
But I am especially excited about being here when the large group of guests arrive the rest of the weekend. Don’t worry. I am not going to write too much about it and spoil the surprise for anybody who is coming to the Honors Weekend, nor those who will have a chance to see it in the near future. See it for yourself.
This will for sure be a memorable weekend. And what is great is that this amazing place will be here for you whenever you can make the time to get here. You will be glad that you made the trip.
Those were my first impressions when I walked into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in Stillwater, Okla. this morning. This is the 40th Honors Weekend for the Wrestling Hall of Fame and it is also the big grand opening of the $3.5 million renovation at wrestling’s shrine.
If you have been here before, you have to come back as soon as you can. It is that different. It will be like you don’t know the place. For those who have not yet been to the Hall of Fame, it is time to make your plans and stop putting off the trip. You need to check it out.
I have a lengthy history with the Hall of Fame, and I can say that I am very, very impressed with the new changes. When I joined USA Wrestling in 1988, I actually worked for a month at the Hall of Fame, which is where the USA Wrestling headquarters were located before we moved the company to Colorado Springs. Early in my career with USA Wrestling, Myron Roderick, the legend and my friend who ran the Hall of Fame for many years, invited me down for Honors Weekend to assist with their media needs. I have continued to support their efforts since Lee Roy Smith became Executive Director.
The press releases will tell you that the renovation will “allow visitors to experience the rich history of wrestling in a new way, including interactive exhibits.” That is an understatement. This place has been transformed, taking all of the assets that made the Hall of Fame so great in the past, and presenting it in a modern and refreshing new way.
There have been many people at the Hall right now being very, very busy, putting on the final touches in just about every area of the facility. It will be opened for the public for the first time on Friday evening, with the traditional unveiling of the plaques for the Class of 2016. I expect that there will be tons of jaws dropping when the guests first walk in here for the first time tomorrow.
I spent the day in the Hall of Fame, working in the William S. Hein Library, helping the Hall’s fantastic PR pro Jack Carnefix on some items, as well as keeping up with a ton of things going on back at USA Wrestling. Over the years, I have spent literally hundreds of hours in the Hall of Fame, but it really was like I had never been in here before.
All of those who have donated money or provided countless hours as volunteers for the Hall of Fame have something to be very proud of. Actually, the entire American wrestling community can take pride in the fact that their sport’s museum is first-class.
The Hall of Fame’s Board of Governors and State Chapter leaders had a special preview at 4:00 p.m. today, officially the first group allowed in the new Hall of Fame and Museum. There were about 40 people in the group from all across the nation.
Krista Graff from the Hall staff welcomed the group and thanked them for their efforts supporting the project. “Pat yourselves on the back. You’ve done a wonderful job,” she said. Lee Roy Smith told the group “It’s your house and it’s always been your house.” Then the group was allowed to wander through all of the exhibit areas and discover things for themselves. The reviews were outstanding.
“What a change, a great change,” said Bob Smith of the Colorado Chapter. “It has all of these great electronic things to play with. This is beautiful. I would have never believed we could have done this.”
“This is beyond expectations,” said Distinguished Member Sandy Stevens. “And they will be able to change exhibits all the time. This is just a fraction of what they have to show here.”
My mind races, imagining the possibilities for what can be done at the Hall of Fame in the future. With such a strong focus on the digital world, there is an unlimited amount of videos, photos and information which could be added to the presentation here. Now that the vision has been realized and the infrastructure put into place, the Hall will be a living, growing, expanding place.
Even though the footprint has not been expanded considerably, there seems to be so much more space here because of the physical and visual design. As Lee Roy said to me, “it was purposed to be multi-purposed.” They will have the flexibility to do some many things in this facility, all of which will help celebrate the history and tradition of our sport while expanding the wrestling community.
This may be the initial grand re-opening for the Hall of Fame, but it won’t be the last. There is expected to be a series of special events during the upcoming year where the Hall of Fame will have activities related to the wrestling world. I am told they will do some neat things during the Olympic Games here, and they have other things in the works later. This is such a vibrant and rich experience, and the Hall expects to have many other opportunities to present our sport to new people in a new way.
I am excited for this year’s induction. There is a great class of honorees coming in this year, including Distinguished Members Brandon Slay, Carlton Haselrig, Dick Wilson and William Harlow. I had the privilege of being in Sydney, Australia when Brandon competed in the Olympics and have worked with him on USA Wrestling’s staff for a number of years. The special award winners include people I know very well, including Meritorious Official Marcia Haise and Order of Merit winner Ron Good, plus the impressive Medal of Courage winner Randy Bortles and Outstanding American Joseph Galli, Jr. Add in Dave Schultz High School Excellence winner Mark Hall II and Tricia Saunders High School Excellence winner Katie Brock, and you have a great group of honorees.
But I am especially excited about being here when the large group of guests arrive the rest of the weekend. Don’t worry. I am not going to write too much about it and spoil the surprise for anybody who is coming to the Honors Weekend, nor those who will have a chance to see it in the near future. See it for yourself.
This will for sure be a memorable weekend. And what is great is that this amazing place will be here for you whenever you can make the time to get here. You will be glad that you made the trip.
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