aluminum bleachers windscreen The new aluminum bleachers at Davis and Elkins College display their powder-coated red colors

Davis and Elkins College has some of the most eye-catching aluminum bleachers in the country and its simply because they decided to add red seat planks to liven up the spectator experience.

D&E is a small private liberal arts college located in Elkins, WV. The school was founded in 1904 and named for Henry G. Davis and his son-in-law Stephen B. Elkins.

Both were members of the US Senate.

Hence, the nickname for the sports teams is the "Senators." Very catchy and unique.

The school replaced their aging bleachers at the athletic field with aluminum bleachers supplied by The Park and Facilities Catalog.

But rather than order just regular sports bleachers, the school decided to spruce up the seats with the team's bright red coloring.

What a difference the color makes. The bleachers really stand out on the green grass surrounding them.

aluminum bleachers color

College decides to add color to aluminum bleachers

"The colors were intended to complement our school colors which are Red and White," said Jamie Joss, athletic director. "It really draws attention to them as opposed to the aluminum-only bleachers. Plus, having just aluminum can cause glare issues when playing."

The college provides several sports activities such as swimming, baseball, track, basketball, cross country, acrobatics, tumbling, tennis and volleyball. On the field with the new aluminum bleachers, students participate in men's and women's soccer and lacrosse.

The school competes in NCAA Division II in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC).

To make their aluminum bleachers even more vibrant, the college added a bright red banner that stretches along the back of the stands with the team's logo - the profile of a senator wearing a top hat from back in the day.

"The bleachers are outstanding. They allow for great viewing of events and wheelchair accessibility" Jamie said. "The construction is excellent and fans rave about them."

Brad Hutton, with BCT Construction that installed the aluminum bleachers, said "The bleachers were good to work with and went together pretty smoothly. The added color for the seat planks was a great upgrade."

aluminum bleachers colors

Sports bleachers can be powder-coated in four basic colors

Many people don't realize you can order different colors for aluminum bleachers. There are four basic colors - green, red, blue and navy. However, custom colors can be added as well.

With powder-coating technology, paint is electrostatically applied to a metal surface. The pigments are literally "baked" into the metal. This results in a hardened application that is durable for many years.

In addition, that hardened coating is very easy to clean, usually with just soap and water.

But what an impact adding color can make.

Especially when it comes to team pride and enthusiasm.

Sure, many smaller colleges like Davis and Elkins don't have the gigantic, 100,000-seat mega-stadiums like the University of Michigan or the University of Florida.

But with a little ingenuity and some color, athletic directors can create seating that yells "dedicated fan base."

That's just what Davis and Elkins College accomplished. The Park and Facilities Catalog was proud to be involved in the renovation of their field and we'd like to add "Go Senators!"