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Basketball

EXCLUSIVE: The Rims at Carpenter Park Are, Indeed, Uneven

For $20 million, you'd think the contractor could have gotten the rims at roughly the same height.
By Tim Rogers |
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Photo by me

Let’s catch you up to speed: Tuesday morning, Matt Goodman and I made history by playing the first official game on downtown Dallas’ first public outdoor basketball court, which is part of the newly opened (and very cool) $20 million Carpenter Park. Then, yesterday, I revealed that the two rims at the court appeared not to be of equal height, a snafu rivaling what happened with the Dallas Wave and the Hindenburg. Yesterday I wrote: “I’d say the north rim is close to the prescribed 10 feet; it might even be a bit high. The south rim, though, stands at about 9 foot 8.” I promised to share more information with the basketball community when I had it. I now have it.

Sarah Hughes is the patient VP and project director for Parks For Downtown Dallas. After I broke the news about the rim situation, I asked her how the contractor could have committed this sin. She wrote back: “I’ve looked into the height of the basketball hoops at Carpenter Park. Here’s what I gather: there is a ~ 2-3 inch height difference between the two hoops. TxDOT requires that the posts hinge down for maintenance of the bridge [I-345]. That hinge detail allows for some variability in the height of the goal posts. This coupled with a slight slope of the court (for drainage purposes) is causing this variability in height. The team is looking into solutions.”

I had guessed the difference was 4 inches; Hughes told me it was maximum 3 inches. So this morning I conducted a journalism-style investigation into the matter, using an actual measuring tape. The court was empty. Traffic on the overhead highway was light. Sprinklers were sprinkling the grass, which seemed odd, given that it’s about to rain. Not sure how that will affect tonight’s planned Yoga-Rita event.

Anyway, here are my exclusive findings: I’m right.

More specifically, I discovered that the north rim stands at 9 feet, 11.5 inches, while the south rim is only 9 feet, 6.5 inches. Using maths, I have determined that the discrepancy between the two rims is approximately 5 U.S. inches, which is greater than my initial estimate and even more greater than what Hughes told me.

Dear reader, you have my word that I will not rest until this rim situation is resolved.

(Is it too soon for Hindenburg jokes?)

Author

Tim Rogers

Tim Rogers

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