Placer High to sell pieces of historic Earl Crabbe Gym floor

Placer High School fans will soon have the chance to take home a piece of Hillmen history. On Saturday, Aug. 23, the school will sell sections of the original Earl Crabbe Gym floor, which is being replaced after 89 years of service. The sale will run from 9 to 11 a.m. inside the gym on Agard Street. The floor replacement was part of the final phase of a long-term renovation of the Earl Crabbe Gym. Contractors salvaged what they could for the sale, including some especially significant pieces that will be on display at the gym and in the Placer Athletic Hall of Fame, according to Hillmen Foundation director and Placer alum Randall Fee. Pieces of the floor will be priced between $50 and $100, with 200 available. Payment can be made by cash, check or credit card. Proceeds will benefit the Placer athletic department and its programs. Fee says the more expensive pieces are the ones that are cleanly removed with no nails sticking out and that each piece ranges from 15 inches by 15 inches to up to three feet. "We have about 100 pieces where they have already removed the nails and everything in them. Those ones are all good to go," said Fee. "So that's kind of going to be that $100 group. All of them have great possibilities, especially if you know what you're doing as a woodworker." The Earl Crabbe floor has been the stage for nearly nine decades of Placer High athletics, hosting countless basketball games, volleyball matches, rallies and community events. The new court will replace the aging surface while preserving the school's tradition of excellence in athletics. "I wanted to make sure we don't overprice these so everybody has a chance to own a piece of that history," Fee added. While most of the original floor has been discarded, select elements will remain on display at Placer. The "Hillmen" sideline lettering has been preserved, with one section being repurposed into the press box at LeFebvre Stadium and the other displayed in the school's Athletic Hall of Fame room. Fee also said he hopes the iconic center-court "P" will be refinished and mounted courtside in the gym. Fee said the new floor, which keeps the same design but features richer tones and improved texture, pairs with brand-new LED lighting to transform the look and feel of the gym.