New track facility to be dedicated before UNLV meet

Las Vegas is a major convention and vacation spot.

If UNLV women's track coach Karen Dennis has her way, it also will become one of the top locations for major track and field events.

The city and UNLV will take a major step forward in that regard Saturday afternoon when the school dedicates the new Myron Partridge Track and Sheila Tarr Smith Field with the UNLV Invitational track and field meet.

The new track and field facility, located adjacent to UNLV's Earl E. Wilson Baseball Stadium near the corner of Harmon and Swenson, cost $1 million to build. Scheduled to appear and take part in Saturday's noon dedication will be 1968 Olympic Gold Medalist Madeline Manning Mims.

"Everybody who has come here to train on it seems to love it," Dennis, the United States' women's national team coach for the 2000 Olympics, said. "I think we have a prime facility with the opportunity to make it even better with further additions."

Because of financial shortcomings, some amenities had to be cut. There is only one small seating area built for 250 fans, although there is plenty of grassy hillside space for further expansion. A press box and lighting also were temporarily scrapped. Dennis estimates it will take almost another $1 million to finish the project.

But the running track and field areas appear to be first rate. There are two high-jump pit areas, three shot-put pads and four pits for long-jump and triple-jump competitions. There are also two pole vault runways.

Dennis, who tested several facilities nationally to try to come up with the right texture for the track surface, is anxious to see how good the times are when some of the nation's top talent stops by Saturday.

"We tried to come up with the right barometer," Dennis said. "You don't want a track that is too hard because it can cause shin splints and other injuries. And you don't want it too soft because it will hurt the times."

Among the schools sending athletes to Saturday's grand opening are traditional college cross country power BYU, Southern Cal and San Diego State.

In fact, Trojan coach Ron Allice, whose women's squad is rated No. 3 nationally, is loaded with potential Olympians including freshman sprinter Angela Williams, Track & Field News High School Women's Athlete of the Year in 1997 and 1998 and the fastest female high school track athlete in history (10.98 wind-aided 100 meters).

USC also features redshirt freshman sprinter Kinshasa Davis, who ran the second-fastest prep 200 meters indoor time in history (23.73) in the 1997 Simplot Games in Pocatello, Idaho, and three-time All-American sprinter Torri Edwards, who finished third in the 100 meters at the NCAA Championships (11.18) last year.

Allice, who is sending a strong contingent of men's sprinters to the Texas Relays this weekend, said he also will bring several talented Trojan men to Las Vegas to compete, including 1997 Pac-10 triple jump champion Kedjeloba Mambo and possibily a couple of speedsters from the football squad, tailback Chad Morton and cornerback Miguel Fletcher.

"I'm hoping this will catch on here," Dennis said.

"I'd love to have some major meets here. If we can do that, we can get some extra revenue and slowly but surely add the extras that we need. If we had lights, we could put on some tremendous evening meets here. Everybody loves to come to Las Vegas and it's easy and cheap to get here for schools in California."

Dennis also would like to get some key prep events, such as the state high school track and field championships, into the new stadium.

Admission for today's meet is $4. Field events begin at 9 a.m. with the men's hammer throw, women's shot put and men's long jump. Running events begin at 1 p.m. with the women's 5,000 meters and conclude at 5:10 p.m. with the men's 1,600-meter relay.

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