Soon the famous words of the Texas Tech fight song - "and the victory bells will ring out" - will be true again.
The well-known tradition of the bells playing music between classes and after Tech victories has been on hold for the last year and a half because of construction.
The bell towers have been undergoing restorations because of inevitable weathering during the last 75 years, said Mike Ellicott, vice chancellor of facilities planning and construction.
The $3.1 million project has been under construction for approximately 18 months, Ellicott said. The victory bell, a gift from the graduating class of 1936, is rung for 30 minutes after each Tech victory by the Saddle Tramps.
Saddle Tramp President Matt Schultz said ringing the victory bells will be a great tradition to have back.
"It'll be nice to ring the victory bells again after basketball games for tradition purposes," he said. "It has been a Saddle Tramp tradition since the late 1930s."
The Saddle Tramps' ringing the bells, which weigh a combined 1,200 pounds and hang in the east side of the Administration building, has been a Tech tradition since former Tech student Arch Lamb, romised that if Tech beat Texas Christian University in a football game, he would ring the bells all night long, Schultz said.
Tech beat TCU, and to the dismay of the Lubbock residents, Lamb rung the bells all night. The time limit on ringing the bells after Tech victories soon was shortened to 30 minutes, Schultz said.
The carillon, played between classes by the music department, still is undergoing restoration, Ellicott said.
"We have just been doing repairs. Stones were loose, and the structure had deteriorated," he said. "(The carillon) should be completed around the end of March or early April."
The carillon is in the west tower of the Administration building and are comprised of 36 bells, playing organ-like music between classes.
The restoration project was primarily renovating existing stonework, and the repairs are mostly complete, Project Manager Rick Richeda said.
"The mechanisms will be replaced, and we will check the tones of the bells," he said. "It will help with the total improvements."
The last 18 months have primarily focused on repairing environmental damages the open structure has sustained, Ellicott said, adding 95 percent of the stone was reused, as was 98 percent of the roofing tile.
Ellicott said although the concrete used for the restorations is more modern, because of the effects of harsh weather conditions on the open structure, more repairs may be necessary in several years.
"The guy who has my job in 75 years may have to do some of the same things we are doing today," he said. "(The structure) cannot be waterproofed."
Ellicott said if any of the $3.1 million funding for the project is not used, the money will go to the Higher Education Assistance Fund.
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