A different perspective

After climbing up 175 aluminum ladder steps and diligently pacing yourself for about 10 minutes, you arrive at the top of what might be the most breathtaking view of the TCU campus.

High above the construction of Scharbauer Hall is the 140 foot tall blue and white colored construction crane Linbeck Construction uses to move objects as heavy as a forklift into place.

The crane boosts a boon about 160 feet in length that allows you to change your viewpoint of the campus. From this height, you see the campus in ways you never imagine.

After squeezing around the 6 foot high sky blue hydraulic engine that powers the steel cable, you notice the triangle flower patterns in front of Reed Hall and the mirroring of the landscaping of the adjacent water fountain across University Drive.

While on your way back to the crane operator house, you have to hold onto your highlighter yellow hard hat because the North Texas winds – even at 20 miles per hour - are noticeably stronger up here then on the ground.

Half way back you notice the congestion of student traffic in the courtyard between Reed Hall and Sadler Hall and make a mental note to yourself as you notice the one to two students walking on the other side of Sadler with no obstructions.

When you open the door to the crane operators housing the first thing that strikes you is the size of the operators work space. Barely wider then an office chair, the room is just big enough for one person to operate. You have to swivel the chair around and sit down before you can get to the main controls at the front of the housing.

The crane operator asks you if you would be interested in operating the crane so you can get a better view of the campus. This proves to be one of those dumb questions your grade school teacher tells you never exist.

Want to get a 360 degree view of the campus? From the operators chair all you have to do is take the joystick in your left hand which seems more like the joystick you would play pong on Atari with then the main control for a machine this size.

One click to the right, a small wine from the hydraulic engine behind you, and you are in business, slowly the crane creeps from pointing toward Sadler Hall to your target destination of the Campus Commons, at this rate the crane will rotate to your target location in about a minute.

One more click to the right and you will get there in half the time – now you are cooking with gas. As you near your ending location the operator tells you to click the controls back two clicks to the left – the engine stops - and the crane slowly drifts into place.

From the operators housing you cannot hear the sounds of the construction below you – all you hear is winning of the wind outside.

As the crane finally drifts to its final location, the full view of the Campus Commons comes into view and you are taken back by the view of both your new perspective and the silence around you.

As you look around your new vantage point you cannot help but smile as you realize this is a view few have ever experienced.