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/27931
FieldScience >> SAND SLITTING can increase percolation and break up compacted layers. But times have changed, and grasses and soil mediums have changed too. Better varieties and higher sand/soil mediums make for better wear and drainage. High sand profile baseball fields have improved the use of grass fields in competition with artificial surfaces. Of course, separate facili- ties for each discipline have been the great- est change in baseball and football. Most surfaces that I review are those Tips from David Frey David Frey has more than 45 years of experience in maintaining, renovating, designing and building all types of fields. He should be considered a “founding father” of STMA; Frey succeeded the legendary Harry C. Gill as STMA president from 1983-1985 when he was the head groundskeeper at the old Cleveland Stadium. He was involved in developing new types of mound clay, a powered device for field tarps, and using geotextiles for bench tarps and field protection. He currently owns Field Specialties, which builds and renovates natural grass fields. Here are some tips from the master: T HE BEAUTY OF A NATU- RAL GRASS surface is that with maintenance, it can last forever. I spend a great deal of time fixing and improving sur- faces and I have been asked how I develop a plan to evaluate them. Grade and consistency come first, followed by drainage and then grass cover. You may notice that I like to use the word “surface” rather than field. A field is an area, be it level and true or not, that is used for pasturing and raising crops. A surface is a spe- cific area that is designed for a particular ac- tivity, with defined dimensions, grades and variations. Some surface changes are a matter of time and/or use. Changes to the requirements of particular sports have required the surfaces to change size, position of the goals, and room around the outside of the playing surface. In- corporation of other sports to be played on the same surface requires other considerations. For example, NFL fields have changed dramatically. In the beginning the teams ba- sically would play anywhere they were al- lowed. Fields were not even the correct length (Tiger Stadium and Wrigley Field). Practice areas were totally different than the training centers you see today. Many teams practiced on only a field and a half and the indoor work was done in a warehouse. that have been used for many years and hopefully have some good basic structure. Baseball requires good drainage, particu- larly from the infield area. Fields that are built backwards are those where the grades run toward the infield. They are not easy to fix without lots of changes and cost. In most cases for baseball, I find the first thing I change is to raise the height of home plate, usually about 4 inches. Home plate and the mound are where everything starts. If they cannot drain the game is over. Do not get carried away with the idea that the plate and the bases have to be at the same height. Good plan, but does not always work unless you are in Florida. Raising home plate will raise the mound and the increases the grades on the infield grass, therefore providing better drainage. GRADE AND CONSISTENCY My approach to a football or soccer sur- face starts with the grade and consistency. Hopefully the surface was built with enough height to help the surface to drain. One rule of thumb is that you should be able to run at full speed and look over your shoulder and know the footing is consis- tent. Therefore, the grade might not be to specifications, but it should be consistent. The center of the field must not be lower than the sidelines. Bad or uneven grades would be reasons to rebuild the field. This In most cases for baseball, I find the first thing I change is to raise the height of home plate, usually about 4 inches. 14 SportsTurf | April 2011 www.sportsturfonline.com Home plate illustration ©istockphoto/XonkArts