Practicing inside is less than ideal for the Denver Broncos, but with lightning in the area Friday, they had no choice.

Unlike the myriad teams that have an on-site indoor facility, inclement weather forces the Broncos to scurry to buses and ride a mile northwest to the South Suburban Sports Dome, a facility maintained by the local parks and recreation department.   

This arrangement has lasted over a decade, and largely served the Broncos well; Denver receives just 15.5 inches of precipitation a year and the need to cancel outdoor practices is rare.  However, the indoor turf is heavily worn from constant use by rec-league soccer, flag-football and lacrosse teams, and when the Broncos began began their Friday practice, they skidded around. Several players lost their footing during the individual period of practice.  

"I try to stay off this stuff as much as possible," Broncos coach John Fox said. "But sometimes like today we needed the work and this was the safe place to get it done."

The Broncos began their work outside under ominous skies that turned threatening when lightning struck within three miles of the facility.  They promptly sprinted inside their headquarters building as officials sent the 2,917 fans back to their cars.

The relocated practice was closed to the public; there was barely enough room for the media, let alone the fans, in a building whose dimensions compromised the practice.
To simulate kickoff returns on the 80-yard field, the football was handed to returners Mike Adams, Matt Willis, Ronnie Hillman, Omar Bolden and Andre Caldwell; any actual kickoffs would have skipped off the dome's ceiling.  When receivers ran crossing or out routes, they had to hold up, because the distance from the sideline to the wall was less than 10 feet.
"Not enough room," said WR Demaryius Thomas. "But we got the job done."
"We just make do with what we have," Fox said. "We were able to manage it last year throughout the whole season and we'll do much the same this year."
It could be worse.  When Fox was in Carolina, the Panthers didn't have access to a nearby backup facility.  If they needed to conduct something resembling a full practice, they scooted several miles north on Interstate 77 to an indoor soccer field at a recreation center.  Otherwise, they would walk through their workouts on the stadium concourse.
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