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Why wouldn't a kicker want to come to Laramie?

Cowboy Junky

Cowboy Junky

Well-known member
You get the opportunity to live and train at altitude. In fact, you get to kick at the highest altitude stadium in America. The ball travels farther in Laramie than anywhere else. You get the stiff winds of War Memorial stadium, sometimes at your back. You get to practice in an environment that is going to improve your abilities as a kicker faster than anywhere else. It's a challenge to kick the ball accurately with high winds. In Laramie, you get to learn to kick in the winds, and you get to learn to kick long because of the altitude. You can learn to be a great kicker, kicking in Laramie.

A solid kicker is going to have a chance to hang his name in the record books for longest field goal in college history.

You're going to get more opportunities to kick game winning field goals when your range is pushed back due to your strong leg and the altitude.

Really, as a kicker, what better environment is there to kick than Laramie?
 
Simple answer actually...temperature. The temperature has a drastic effect on air density. If you compare kicking in 77 degree weather to 23 degree weather, you will find that there is an 11% increase in air density at the lower temperature. Also, one must consider that the ball becomes harder in colder temperatures. This results in less "spring" off the foot.

If you watch some of the opposing teams kickers in other lower altitude games, you will actually find they have similar touchback rates in those games as they did in Laramie. If its cold in Laramie, it is not uncommon for their kickoff average to actually go down.
 
Besides the elevation (air density decreases about 3% per 1000 ft. elevation gain) the air in Laramie
is usually quite dry. Dry air is less dense than moist air.
 
Adv8RU12 said:
Besides the elevation (air density decreases about 3% per 1000 ft. elevation gain) the air in Laramie
is usually quite dry. Dry air is less dense than moist air.
Click to expand...

Correction: Dry air is MORE dense than moist air, further negating the advantage of elevation. Sorry
for my typo.
 
Uh, you sure that dry air is MORE dense? Warm air is less dense for sure, that's how L pressure systems are created, by rising warm air. Last I checked, if air has more H2O molecules per cubic L as opposed to none, that would make it MORE dense. Isn't that why the rockies use a humidor? Give the baseballs more density and therefore I think the curveball is suppose to break better.

I think it is well established that at similar temperatures, high altitude helps things carry. Start adding in other variables and I'm not sure the pros outweigh the cons.
 
Subcanis said:
Ask any pilot about pressure and density altitudes in Laramie. It's a good place for a kicker.
Click to expand...


Exactly. It has to be pretty cold to get the density altitude below the actual altitude, but at 70 degrees it will be higher than the 7200 ft altitude.
 
msuhunter said:
Maybe because it's Laramie???? :brick:
Click to expand...

Geeze! MSU Hunter! Do you ever just look at yourself in the mirror and wonder what other people think of you? Can you ever just stop.

Oh by the way. I noticed yet again. You lil Bobcats had a good year and AGAIN lost in the first round. God, I love it.
 
laxwyo said:
Uh, you sure that dry air is MORE dense? other variables and I'm not sure the pros
Click to expand...

Dry air is mostly O2 and N2 (2 atoms of Oxygen and 2 atoms of Nitrogen). Molecular weights 32 and 28 respectively. H2O has molecular weight 18. So when you displace O2 and N2 with H2O you make the air lighter, i.e., less dense. By Avogadro's Law the number of molecules in a specific volume of gas is independent of their size or molecular weight and is a fixed number (for the same temperature and pressure), no matter what the make up of gas molecules is. So even though, in a humid day, the air feels "heavy", it isn't.

Learned this in HS (not Heath Shroyer) chemistry and again in chemistry at old Wyo.
 
Yes humid air is less dense than dry air (at the same temperature and pressure) for the displacement (less dense water molecules displacing more dense oxygen and nitrogen molecules) reason explained by Adv8RU12...but there are still variables with friction as it is not completely a direct correlation with air density.
 
laxwyo said:
Isn't that why the rockies use a humidor? Give the baseballs more density and therefore I think the curveball is suppose to break better.
Click to expand...

Mostly it softens the baseball. A softer baseball is able to absorb some of the impact. I.e. think about hitting a nerfball vs. a hard ball.

I think the curveball breaks better mostly related to the pitchers ability to create more "spin" by having a better grip on a non-dry baseball.
 
Adv8RU12 said:
laxwyo said:
Uh, you sure that dry air is MORE dense? other variables and I'm not sure the pros
Click to expand...

Dry air is mostly O2 and N2 (2 atoms of Oxygen and 2 atoms of Nitrogen). Molecular weights 32 and 28 respectively. H2O has molecular weight 18. So when you displace O2 and N2 with H2O you make the air lighter, i.e., less dense. By Avogadro's Law the number of molecules in a specific volume of gas is independent of their size or molecular weight and is a fixed number (for the same temperature and pressure), no matter what the make up of gas molecules is. So even though, in a humid day, the air feels "heavy", it isn't.

Learned this in HS (not Heath Shroyer) chemistry and again in chemistry at old Wyo.
Click to expand...

Here is what some other dude that knows more than I says.
"That all of the computations that shows humid air is less than dry air rely on the ideal gas law, which fails to account for the polar nature of water molecules (and therefore the REAL nature of the gas). If an alternative equation that accounts for the non-ideal (REAL) effect of water vapor were applied (such as the Van der Waal) equation, it would become evident that, in fact, there was a higher molecular density associated with air having high humidity. It is not disputed that the mass/volume nature of dry air is greater than humid air – it is. The point Camp B is trying to make is that there is actually a higher moles/volume number associated with humid air compared to dry air. Therefore, because the ball has to flow through more molecules (even if they are lighter molecules) the frictional resistance is higher with wet air. RESULT: the ball will fly further when levels of humidity are low.
Again, all of the analysis we have been able to find apply the ideal gas law (which is incorrect). Additionally, all practical inspections into the frictional resistances rely on simple Newtonian Mechanics associated with dry air having a greater mass/volume density than wet air. Because one side believes the effect to be on a quantum level (i.e. frictional resistances with individual atoms because wet air has a greater moles/volume number), Newtonian Mechanics arguments are invalid."

Of course there was some other guy that said this point is true but the effects are minimal compared to others. One guy even said that since dry air is more dense in mass/volume, that buoyancy helps carry the ball further.

I thing I get from all of this is that Altitude and Temperature have more of an effect on how far the ball will go than humidity. It seems to be a debate even in Physics world if dry air adds or hinders ball flight.
 
Simple answer, the kicker who is the better kicker with the stronger leg will make the longer range FG's no matter where he is kicking. There is to much variances to discuss (altitude, humidity, wind speed, etc..) that in the end it all will come out as a wash and it will come down to the kicker, usually the stronger accurate leg wins out!!!
 
I still think any good kicker has every reason to come here.

1. The altitude makes the ball travel MUCH farther-you get to attempt longer field goals.
2. The wind makes the conditions very difficult-you get to learn to kick in the wind.
3. The combination of altitude and the wind is probably the most challenging environment for any kicker.
4. The altitude and the wind make it more likely that you could set a record for longest field goal that will stand forever.
5. It is colder. It doesn't really have much of an effect on how far the ball travels. Anyone that has ever kicked anything in the cold will tell you it is more difficult to kick in cold weather-which makes it more challenging to kick in Laramie.

Laramie is the perfect town for a kicker to challenge himself in.
 
When this thread started I never envisioned that it would turn into a air density debate. Kudos for that!
 
MrTitleist said:
When this thread started I never envisioned that it would turn into a air density debate. Kudos for that!
Click to expand...
No sh*t, Mr T.

I here a lot of young men will stay where they find the pretty young women.

In Texas, SMU stands for Super Model University.

Get more PIE.
To catch a kicker's EYE.
 
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