Spectators walking on bleachers that are not IBC-compliant can be hazardou

When you think about hazards at a football or basketball game, you're probably thinking the players are the only ones at risk. Actually, spectators can also get injured by an unexpected hazard: bleachers .

Think about it. Bleachers are the one thing separating you from the ground, so if they are old or weathered, they may collapse from underneath you. Aluminum bleachers need to be sturdier than regular seats because they take so much abuse from extreme weather and overly excited fans.

Besides needing to be sturdy, bleachers are also difficult to walk on. It's easy to trip or fall between the seats, especially when they are wet or icy. The likelihood of falling is even greater

Drawing for Miami Dolphins stadium that is undergoing a $450 million makeover (Source: NewMiamiStadium.com

When fans for the Miami Dolphins and University of Miami Hurricanes cheer their teams this fall, they will probably pay more attention to the structure they are in than the teams because the New Miami Stadium will be an incredible change from the old facility.

Dolphins owner Stephen Ross is spending about $450 million for renovations to the stadium that will truly make it a world-class sports facility. Early reports had that amount at $300. You can tell he is going all

Baseball fans enjoy the game from their aluminum bleacher

By Gerald Dlubala

This spring, when the umpire yells out the familiar, "Play ball!" it will mean opening day for many youth baseball programs with kids on the field and parents filling aluminum bleachers. It will also mean the opening of many new, exciting, all-inclusive sports complexes.

Popping up everywhere, these new mega-complexes are no longer related to the days of the old baseball diamond laid out in a local park or field that just happened to have enough room.

And the term "youth sports" has slickly been transformed into "youth sports tourism", the fastest growing segment in the travel industry.

With sports complexes being built and furnished costing millions of dollars,

Rowdy fans require sturdy aluminum outdoor bleacher

Want to know why aluminum outdoor bleachers need to be heavy duty and high quality? Consider the "Bleacher Creatures" who inhabit the left corner of Yankee Stadium or bleacher "bums" for any team. These are tough crowds.

Now that Major League Baseball season 2015 has officially started those fanatical fans in the bleacher section will be at it again.

That's usually the group that is the loudest, the most dedicated and the weirdest dressed. That's where you will find the craziest costumes and the cleverest signs. Every team has them. It's not just baseball. Football certainly has its share. How about the Cleveland Brown's Dawg Pound? Green Bay Packers Cheeseheads? Dolfans in Florida? Ever see the "Black Hole" where the rowdiest members of Raider Nation in Oakland hang out? Some of those

Aluminum bleachers at Wrigley Field (now gone). Photo by Kthypryn (Flickr

What do you do when your aluminum bleachers won't be ready on opening day? Hide under home plate? Get lost in the locker room? Run away?

This is certainly not a position any athletic director or site manager wants to be in. But that's what's happening to the Chicago Cubs as they officially announced they won't have 5,500 outfield bleacher seats ready for the coveted opening day game against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 5.

Ouch. Not a good way to start the year telling fans there won't be a place for them to sit. Opening day no less. The Chicago Cubs no less - those die-hard fans who truly believe at the start of every season that this could be THE YEAR.

Okay, hold on sports fans. You have to give the Cubs organization some credit. After all, they are