Global athletic apparel company New Balance has launched the Track at New Balance, a multi-sport facility where Team New Balance, professional and community athletes will train and compete year-round. Poised to break records, the athletic center will include a dual terrain indoor track that can be converted to a field, flexible basketball, soccer and volleyball courts, a sophisticated Sports Research Lab, the Roadrunner music venue operated by Bowery Presents and a beer hall named Broken Records where visitors can take in the action happening throughout the facility.
Located across from New Balance’s global headquarters at Boston Landing, The Track at New Balance joins the Auerbach Center (the official practice facility for the Boston Celtics), the Warrior Ice Arena (the official practice facility for the Boston Bruins) and the Boston Landing MBTA commuter rail stop.
“Fifty years ago this month, Jim Davis purchased New Balance and together with Anne, they have led the tremendous growth of our brand into the global athletic leader we are today, while still maintaining our unique company culture,” said Joe Preston, president and CEO of New Balance. “Jim also had the bold vision to completely transform the area around our global headquarters in Boston into a vibrant world-class sports hub for athletes and fans including the debut today of The Track at New Balance. The Track at New Balance offers the optimal training and performance venue for athletes of all abilities while driving New Balance innovation and technology insights through our new state-of-the-art New Balance Sports Research Lab.”
In designing The Track at New Balance, maintaining valuable sustainable practices was very important. Not only did New Balance redevelop a brownfield site to build this LEED Silver-certified facility that ultimately obtained a LEED Silver certification, but the roof houses a solar array of 2,491, 405-Watt modules that will cover approximately 72,956 square feet (or 1.67 acres).
Beynon Sports Surfaces, Weems Mechanical, Elkus Manfredi Architects, John Moriarty Associates and Paige Design Group designed and built the indoor track for speed, competition and daily training. The track itself features hydraulically banked turns, the widest allowable oval lanes at 42 inches wide and the maximum number of 6 oval lanes. As a result, runners experience a smooth transition from turns to straights and help maximize athlete acceleration.
The Track at New Balance has over 19,000 square feet dedicated to the New Balance Sports Research Lab. Outfitted with high tech imaging, 360-degree motion capture equipment, force plates that measure foot depression, a state-of-the-art hyperbaric chamber and more. Nestled below is Roadrunner, a 50,000-square-foot concert venue operated by the Bowery Group with a 60-foot-wide stage, over 30 speakers and half a dozen bars sprinkled on all sides.
The Track at New Balance will be open to the public.
