Are you going to miss the KU steam whistle? / LJWorld.com

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Asked at Borders, 700 N.H. on September 4, 2008

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“It’s really sad that they’re shutting it down. It’s definitely a part of KU’s tradition.”

— Jennifer Schwering, Kansas University graduate student, Lawrence

“I am not going to miss it because of how much grief it caused me by reminding me how late I was running.”

— Chris Williams, KU senior, Goddard

“When I was on campus, it was kind of nice to hear it. But now that I live off-campus, I can’t imagine I’ll miss it too much.”

— Emily Battenberg, KU junior, Shawnee

“That does make me sad. I’m going to miss how deafening it was walking by it. You can hear it from all over campus and know exactly how long you have to get where you’re going.”

— Emily Pounds, KU junior, Kansas City, Kan.

KU unplugs steam whistle to cut costs

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jonas_opines 4 years, 8 months ago

Well, I guess I will miss the very audible "Hey, class is over" reminder, for both teaching and as a student, but I won't miss the times the damned thing practically gave me a heart-attack when I was walking right by it when it went off.

kansas778 4 years, 8 months ago

The whistle brought about a guilt trip for me on the days I skipped class.

RETICENT_IRREVERENT 4 years, 8 months ago

No, not really. Just another source of noise pollution. Kinda like the train horn at 4:20 am. (And I am miles from any track).What am I gonna miss?Now that the RNC has co-opted the spousal unit's occasional mantra - "drill baby, drill", she will probably never utter it again. :(

vavs0929 4 years, 8 months ago

its a college... shouldnt they be able to figure out a way to make it more cost effective? Perhaps a group of eggheads will get on that...

snap_pop_no_crackle 4 years, 8 months ago

The steam released by the whistle was causing the polar ice caps to melt.

trinity 4 years, 8 months ago

hawklet, you mean you actually attend classes??? =:-O

Coach_Eric 4 years, 8 months ago

I always loved watching the freshmen and women jump at the sound of that thing.[sigh]

OldEnuf2BYurDad 4 years, 8 months ago

This from a school that has been known (by my own eyes) to water the grass in a rain storm.I live plenty close to hear it. I will miss it. It has been the not-so-melodic counterpart to the Campanile; for the other side of campus.

4thgencowgirl 4 years, 8 months ago

I will miss it. It's sad. Too bad we can give so much to athletics but yet we can let our traditions go to the wayside.

Hail2KU 4 years, 8 months ago

What a whopper of a savings! Maybe they should have told the donor first (or given him and others a chance to save the tradition) before summarily shutting it down. All these new administrators have no interest in 90 year old Kansas traditions.

coltrane 4 years, 8 months ago

NOT AT ALL

trinity 4 years, 8 months ago

i think it is sad that the whistle will no longer toot! and yes, on the occasions i'm on campus, i'll miss it greatly. isn't there something else that could be cut to save $$??

conservativepunker 4 years, 8 months ago

That is so sad. I loved the whistle. It was such a touchstone to an earlier era.

JJE007 4 years, 8 months ago

I'll miss it a lot...but I won't KNOW I miss it!~)

ohjayhawk 4 years, 8 months ago

I will miss hearing it when I come back to visit. I still remember when I went out there for a visit my junior year of high school to check the campus out before I applied. We stayed at the Days Inn at 23rd and Iowa, and I remember hearing the whistle when we first checked in and having no idea what it was. I thought it was a manufacturing plant of some sort. Anyway, it didn't take me long to find out what it was, and I enjoyed hearing it during my time there. Even though it did catch me by surprise on more than one occasion.

nurse 4 years, 8 months ago

Maybe Lew Perkins can fork over 3,000 bucks from the Athletic Department to keep it going? The "family zone" has shrunk this year, so he can sell more individual football tickets - it will shrink even more every year if the Jayhawks continue with their success. Come on Lew, help keep the whistle alive!

sgtwolverine 4 years, 8 months ago

I was expecting it to be saving the university serious money ... and then I saw the actual figure. Yeah, it seems a little silly to cut such a long-standing tradition for a $3,000 savings. But it'll probably be back before too long; somebody -- or a group of somebodies -- will step forward and pay for it.

Gootsie 4 years, 8 months ago

Yes and No.

hawklet21 4 years, 8 months ago

I was really surprised that the operating costs are so high, so I understand why it's gone. I will miss it, though. It is nice when you have those professors who can't keep track of time!

canyon_wren 4 years, 8 months ago

I can't really hear it out here in Utah, but I feel sad it will no longer blow. I don't get to Lawrence all that often, but hearing it really stirs up the old memories. It does seem like "penny-wise and pound-foolish" to cut out that for a lousy $3000 when there is so much other waste going on. Hail2KU is probably right when he says "All these new administrators have no interest in 90 year old Kansas traditions." And spacehog's quote from Bob Dylan is sad but true. I certainly would love to be able to relive some of my good KU memories--it's not possible!