Published: August 01, 2009 07:57 pm         

Colts camp comes to life

TERRE HAUTE — As the Indianapolis Colts arrive today at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, preparation for the start of the 11th consecutive training camp in Terre Haute has been under way for months.

That includes nearly nine weeks of work on intramural fields that serve as practice fields for the Colts, plus the Cook Stadium game field.

Work on menus to feed the professional football team began in the spring. That means preparing a healthy, yet filling diet, said Mark Farner, director of dining service for ARAMARK at Rose-Hulman.

“No hamburger. No ground beef, because of all the fat and cholesterol. We serve turkey burgers. The general philosophy on the food is that they want food the players will like to eat, but make it healthy,” Farner said.

“You will not find fried fish out here, but a lot of baked salmon and baked trout, any kind of seafood item that is [prepared] healthy. Now, everybody likes chicken. You will not find fried chicken, but we make chicken like 30 different ways,” Farner said.

It takes 1,400 pounds of boneless chicken breast for the 18 days players are on campus. It means feeding at least 100 people at breakfast, 150 for lunch and 190 for dinner, when all players, coaches and interns eat together. It also means having drinks readily available.

Earlier this week, six pallets arrived containing 600 cases, or 14,000 20-ounce bottles of water, and eight pallets containing 16,000 20-ounce bottles of Gatorade.

Players can eat and drink from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., just before a required bed check. At 10 p.m., players can get deli foods, salads or deserts.

While there are five culinary cooks on staff, many food items are made on boilers or grills right in the meal serving line. Food is prepared to order, whether scrambled or over-easy eggs for breakfast or turkey burgers or fish for lunch.

“For dinners, they want it to be more of a special meal, with big items like lobster or tenderloin or scallops. It gives the players something to look forward to,” Farner said.

What’s the most requested food item?

“Barbecue sauce,” Farner said. “That’s one item we can’t have enough of. If we don’t have it, we’re in trouble. Somebody’s going to ask for barbecue sauce, no matter what the item. A couple of years ago, we had a coach take 5 gallons of barbecue sauce with him when camp was over. We make our sauce from scratch, so it’s not a pre-made sauce.”

The two primary practice fields contain Bermuda grass, which likes hot and humid weather. Cook Field has Kentucky bluegrass, which thrives in cooler weather.

“The Kentucky bluegrass is flourishing right now because it has been much cooler than normal this summer. The Bermuda is in fine shape and is ready for training camp,” said Kevin Lanke, Rose-Hulman sports information director.

Mowing and work on ensuring the thickness of grass began nine weeks ago, Lanke said. The football fields were painted Friday.

Last year, training camp attracted 22,308 fans, Lanke said. That is the second-largest attendance since the 2007 training camp, which followed the Colts’ victory in Super Bowl XLI. That year, the training camp attracted 27,340 fans, Lanke said.

Those numbers have a direct financial impact on the Terre Haute economy, said David Patterson, executive director of the Terre Haute Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“A daily visitor to Terre Haute means about $60 per person to the economy and $100 per person if they stay overnight here,” Patterson said.

He said the training camp regularly attracts more than 20,000 people, and while many from the Wabash Valley visit the camp, a large percentage of people come from outside the valley.

“Every year we meet families from far away. Last year, a father had his two sons here from Dallas, because he wanted his sons to see Peyton Manning. We always have people coming up from Tennessee,” where Manning played college football, Patterson said.

“Beyond the financial impact, the Colts have given visibility to the Rose-Hulman campus as well as our community. It is a professional organization that shows itself well in a highly visible field,” Patterson said.

“We hope that we can continue this relationship in the future. There are changes with Rose-Hulman, which is now seeking a new president. The training camp is a great thing for the community, Rose-Hulman and the Colts,” he said.

Training camp starts Monday with practices at 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Colts City, which includes interactive inflatables, a Colts in Motion traveling museum and a rock climbing wall, is open 8-11:30 a.m. and 3-5:30 p.m. Colts City will be open five times during the training camp.

The training camp is free; however, parking is $10 per car per day. That fee goes to the Rose-Hulman athletics department.

Howard Greninger can be reached at (812) 231-4204 or howard.greninger@tribstar.com