University of Iowa visitors' locker room has been painted 'Barbie' pink

[matcom]

<snip>

Iowa City, Ia. - You wonder what Bo Schembechler would say, assuming he regained consciousness.

The sole refuge is two waist-level drinking fountains, cold and silver, floating like pinballs on the head of a strawberry shake. Aside from that, the new visitors' locker room at Kinnick Stadium is Barbie's Dream House on acid, a pastel nightmare. You feel naked without a little dog in one arm and a handbag in the other.

Pink walls. Pink stalls. Pink seats. Pink ceiling. Pink carpet. Pink urinals.

Pink urinals?

"It's called 'Dusty Rose,' " corrected associate athletic director Jane Meyer, head conductor of Saturday morning's media tour. "That's actually a standard color (offered) by (the) Kohler (company)."

Dusty Rose. If it's good enough for the Hawkeyes, it's good enough for your guest bathroom.

"We want to maintain the history that Hayden Fry started when he came here," Meyer said. "We decided to take it the next step."

In case you don't know the legend, here's a recap: In one of his more brilliant gambits, Fry ordered the walls of the old visiting locker room at Kinnick painted pink. A psychology major, Iowa's football coach reasoned that the soothing color might placate some of the savage beasts that had pounded on the Hawkeyes for much of the 1970s.

And, heck, if that didn't work, it would at least give them something to think about - and complain about - rather than focus on the game. The old fox never missed a trick.

Over the years, Big Ten coaches tried little ways to counter Fry's stratagem. Most of them didn't work. A few did. In 1989, Illinois assistants wore pink hats on the sidelines at Iowa City, and the Illini won, 31-7. In 1996, Gary Barnett had some students paint Northwestern's home locker room pink the week they practiced for the Iowa game. The Wildcats won at Kinnick for the first time in 25 years.

http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050821/SPORTS05/508210354/1003/SPORTS

[youthere]

1. As pink as pink can be.

Got to see it two weeks ago...It's a hoot.

[everythingsxen]

2. I think I would have gone with a neon yellowish green

that would just hurt to look at after a little while.

[MercutioATC]

3. That's officially "digestive enzyme green"...

...the color of dorm rooms everywhere.

[Debi]

4. On Iowa!

Go Hawkeyes!

[RayOfHope]

5. My brother in law used to play football at K State

He said the Nebraska visitors locker room has exactly one toilet, right in the middle of the locker room. No stall, no screen, no privacy. When someone had to go, they would circle around with backs to the guy on the potty.