SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/141613
Left: THE SUN is low in the sky and the stadium seating is being placed as close to the playing surface as possible. This means very steep seats and significant shade. Middle: Artificial lighting systems have been developed and are being used in Lambeau Field in Green Bay. Right: Most stadia, save three, in the NFL are used for multiple and varied revenue generating and charity events that can find parts of the turfgrass covered for up to 7 days. ized. It moves up through the sand and eventually encounters the cold air temperature where it condensates. This flips the moisture strata where now it is wet on the surface and dryer further down in the rootzone. While a tremendous help, the heating systems are not a silver bullet for growing turf in cold conditions. Light is a truly limiting factor in the fall and in some stadia throughout the season. Artificial lighting systems have been developed and are being used in Lambeau Field in Green Bay. Here at Penn State, we've been experimenting with a rollable light tarp. This system contains a series of LED lights in the wavelengths needed for optimal growth. The wavelengths can be varied to provide optimal growth conditions for particular species and in some instances for particular cultivars. We continue to work to get this system commercialized. Besides limitations of light and heat well into the fall and winter, it's important to realize the tremendous amount of traffic/damage that occurs to these surfaces. Football fields look big when watching the game on TV. When you attend an NFL game the stadium is large and bigger than life. This subconsciously makes us multiply the size of the field. The field looks immense. Really, the majority of the game is played on a small area. Research has shown that for most games about 80% of the traffic occurs between the numbers and between the 20-yard lines. The area receiving 80% of the damage is about 15,800 square feet, or the size of about two and a half golf greens. Think about that for a moment. Most stadia, save three, in the NFL are used for multiple and varied revenue gener- www.stma.org ating and charity events. There are the NFL events, college football games, high school football games, the FOP versus the FOF charity event. Lacrosse championships, soccer tournaments and professional soccer events dot the schedule. Then in summer when the temperatures are sometimes extreme, the stadium hosts between one and three summer concert events and/or monster truck rallies where at least parts of the turfgrass may be covered for up to 7 days and other parts must accommodate large cranes, and countless passes with forklifts, trucks and other utility vehicles. Considering the amount and kinds of events held on these surfaces, it's a testament to the field managers that they are able to provide a safe and playable surface week in and week out. Remember, there are no frost delays. Unlike baseball nobody stops playing for a little rain or even snow. For those of you managing high school SportsTurf 19