The Cal Poly Athletics Department will hold its fourth annual athletics rummage sale from 10 a.m. to noon today. Various athletic clothing and equipment will be sold at Mott Gym lawn for $2 to $3 each.
Athletic equipment manager Steve Kracher founded the rummage sale to benefit the athletic department during his second year working at Cal Poly. The event helps manage the limited storage space in Mott Gym, he said, and it was necessary to get rid of old equipment and clothing to make room for current items.
Another goal of the sale is addressing the lack of funding for the athletics department, he said. Kracher uses profits, usually $1,000 to $1,500, to purchase towels for all Cal Poly athletes. This year, he bought 552 towels, approximately one per athlete for all the women’s and men’s teams.
“Our budget is very small, and (towels are) an item that we have to purchase yearly,” he said. “When you wash a student’s towel every day, it kind of gets worn out. (The sale) kind of helps offset that budget expense.”
The sale will include mainly clothing, such as jerseys, shorts, sweatpants and shirts, as well as miscellaneous items such as baseball bats and gear, backpacks and volleyballs.
A unique item that will be sold for the first time, though, is turf football shoes, Kracher said, since the football team no longer plays against teams who play on Astroturf. There will be approximately 50 pairs available. Any kind of workout clothing, however, is always the most popular at the sale, he said.
“The sweats and the shirts and the jerseys all seem to go very quickly,” Kracher said. “It’s nice to have the students pick up something for a couple dollars and be able to wear (Cal Poly clothes) around.”
In addition to students, athletes, staff members and locals check out the sale and everyone is equally charged by university requirement, Kracher said.
“There’s a woman who comes every year and spends a lot of time,” Kracher said of the diverse set of attendees. “She buys maybe 20 items for her children and grandchildren.”
Although Cal Poly athletes already own a good amount of gear, many plan to attend to show support and check out the items.
“I usually have a lot of Cal Poly gear because I play basketball here,” junior guard Kyle Odister said. “But sometimes they have some good stuff. I’ll probably walk by tomorrow and see what I like.”
Kracher anticipates a similar turnout and profit as previous years, as the department has about the same amount of items to get rid of each year, he said.
“We’re not like Texas or Penn State, or those big-time schools that spend millions and millions,” Kracher said. “I think we’re all pitching in together around here to make the best of a tight budget; you cinch up your belt where you have to and do what you have to.”