New Stadiums/Playing Surfaces in 2003

[ChuckyTheGoat]

New Stadiums in 2003:

1) Eagles move from the Vet into Lincoln Financial Field (grass).

2) Bears are scheduled to return from Champaign to a revamped Soldiers Field (grass) on Sept 29.

Any other stadium/surface change info for 2003?

 

[4bubba]

CtheG

Good work.

 

[Wolftaz]

New Hybrid Turf to Be Installed at Heinz Field

March 27, 2003

PITTSBURGH - A new hybrid turf that stadium officials expect to be more durable than traditional grass will be installed at the Heinz Field later this month.

?Heinz Field is a first-class facility that accommodates multiple teams and activities,? said Dan Rooney, president of the Steelers, who manage Heinz Field. ?We want the playing surface to equal the standards of the rest of the facility.

?Given the challenges of maintaining the traditional grass surfaces in the Northeast and the amount of activity on the field, we felt this new hybrid surface would be the best route.?

?The Pittsburgh Steelers have done an outstanding job researching what would be the best playing surface option for our teams at Heinz Field,? said Marc Boehm, University of Pittsburgh athletic director. ?In selecting the DD Grass System, we will have at our disposal a revolutionary turf that has tremendous durability. It is a proven system not only nationally, but also in Europe where soccer teams play on it. I know the DD Grass System will be of great benefit for the Panthers, Steelers and our local high school teams."

The turf, DD GrassMaster, is a natural grass field. It is a combination of Kentucky bluegrasses, reinforced with polypropylene fibers that are sewn vertically into the sod every ? of an inch. The sand-based stabilization product was developed in Holland by Desso DLW Sports Systems in the late 1980s and has been installed in playing surfaces since 1992. To date, it has been installed on more than 160 fields.

In addition to many European athletic facilities, the surface is presently installed at the Denver Broncos? Invesco Field and B-Mets Stadium, home of the minor league baseball Binghampton (N.Y.) Mets, in the United States.

Installation is expected to be completed in early spring. Cost of the project is approximately $700,000.

 

[Wolftaz]

Georgia Dome to get new turf
Associated Press

ATLANTA -The Georgia Dome will replace its 11-year-old surface with new turf - called FieldTurf - in June for about $1.3 million.

NFL players ranked the state-owned Dome's AstroTurf 28th out of the league's 32 playing surfaces, according to a survey this year. Nine of the top 10 playing surfaces listed in the NFL Players Association rankings released in January were grass. The exception, Seattle's new stadium, which has FieldTurf, was third.

The new artificial turf is set on a base of sand and rubber. Detroit's Ford Field, which uses the same surface, was rated 11th on the list of best fields.

At times last fall, players complained that the Georgia Dome's playing surface was slick, particularly during an Oct. 6 game against Tampa Bay.

Information from: Constitution

 

[Wolftaz]

Giants Stadium replaced the natural grass turf with the new Fieldturf playing surface last month. This seems to be the new craze for cold weather playing surfaces.

 

[ChuckyTheGoat]

Thanks, guys. Good info.

 

[4bubba]

right,

Keep it going.

 

[Blazer]

Titans have redone thier field. They currently are growing a new type of sod in Georgia and giving thier old sod to a local high school.

After last year's embarrasing "worst grass in the NFL" ranking the Titans have stepped up to the plate and changed the way they will maintain the surface.

I don't have a source because I happen to know the irragation company that installs and maintains the pipes under the field.

I will try to find out what type of grass they are installing.

 

[4bubba]

Anybody else??

Great thread idea.

 

[4bubba]

xx

 

[Vegas Dave]

Turf makeover will benefit players
by Michael Oldham, Atlantafalcons.com
April 26, 2003

Looks like grass, feels like grass, plays like grass. Fieldturf, however, is anything but.

Earlier this week the Georgia Dome World Congress Authority elected to replace the aging Georgia Dome Astroturf with Fieldturf, a sand-rubber composite playing surface. The grass substitute has of a three-layer makeup consisting of a base textile level, a rubber and silicate composite fill on top of the base layer and lastly a surface of synthetic blades aligned in a pattern consistent with that of natural grass.

Since breaking into the football market in 1998 with the University of Nebraska, 20 other collegiate football programs and 12 NFL teams have followed suit, adopting Fieldturf as the ground beneath their cleats. On April 29, 2003, Atlanta became the 13th.

The Falcons? Superintendent of Grounds Maintenance Jim Hewitt chalks the change in the Georgia Dome up to key differences between Astroturf and Fieldturf.

?It (Fieldturf) is softer and it has a give,? Hewitt said. ?When players plant their foot and twist, like natural grass, Fieldturf will give a little bit.

?Astroturf is just a rug, a synthetic product without rubber or sand or anything in it so you don?t have the give.?

However, the advantage of the new turf gives over its predecessor does not stop with player traction.

?Fieldturf plays more like regular, natural grass and you don?t have the abrasiveness of Astroturf,? Hewitt added. ?I think it?ll be a lot more friendly to the players? knees and joints.?

But Atlanta?s groundskeeper is not the only one around the facility enthused about the prospect of a new surface on the field of the Georgia Dome. The players are looking forward to the change in greenery as well.

?It (Astroturf) looked good because it was inside,? linebacker Chris Draft said. ?But it was like playing on concrete.

?As long as it?s softer than the other surface we?ve been playing on, it?s good with me.?

 

[wannabe whale]

Totally Redone field at Ralph Wilson Stadium for the Buffalo Bills-supposed to be just like grass. Don't know all that much-but you can look into it if you use that angle.

 

[4bubba]

anyone else.

Good topic

 

[4bubba]

July 17, 2003

Baltimore Ravens

TURF INSTALLATION NEARLY COMPLETE

By Adam H. Beasley

Piece by piece, the field at M&T Bank Stadium is nearly stitched together.

Over the past few weeks, workers for Sportexe, a Canadian-based company, have painstakingly combined rolls of ?Momentum? artificial turf, creating the surface on which the Ravens will play this fall.

As of Wednesday, most of the field was in place, and the team expects the entire process to be completed by next week.

?It?s very exciting for us,? said team president David Modell. ?To be able to see our field?s lines and the marks in the end zone, it means it?s almost football season.?

When fans fill M&T Bank Stadium for the first time this season ? the team will host its annual mock game, free to the public, on Aug. 2 ? they will see a completed project with a consistent feel.

What they won?t see is the three weeks of labor, often in scorching heat, that was needed to put the field together.

?Momentum? uses polyethylene fibers blades and a rubber and sand infill to create the feel and safety of real grass.

Sportexe began the installation process by laying down about six inches of crushed stone, which is used as a base and drainage system.

Then, more than a dozen workers started laying down the turf. The process includes rolling sections of turf onto the stone and then connecting the turf by hand. Instead of having the lines and logos painted on the field, the Ravens had Sportexe sew them into the turf. That includes the massive Ravens head in each end zone and the shield that will adorn midfield.

With a surface of approximately 110,000 square feet, this takes a fair amount of labor. Sportexe sews the field and then seals the stitching with tape and an iron, according to project superintendent Mark Stukel.

When the field is complete, the installers will lay down the infill and the field will be ready for use.

?We?ve been here for about two weeks,? Stukel said. ?We?ve been working every day. We haven?t had a day off, except for a few weather delays.?

When finished, the field will be as aesthetically pleasing as it is safe. Since there is no painting involved, lines and logos will stay sharp all season.

There are also financial advantages to the turf, Modell said. ?Momentum? costs between $600,000 and $800,000 to install, which is basically a one-time expense.

In comparison, the Ravens previously planned on replacing the grass three times a season, at a cost of $125,000 a pop. After two years, ?Momentum? will pay for itself, while it will be good for another 13 seasons.

There?s also no maintenance needed, aside from periodic grooming. Once a week, the Ravens will keep the infill in place by running a drag broom over the turf. Afterwards, the field will look as new as it does now.

The key, of course, is how the team feels about the surface.

?Players and coaches want safety and consistency from a field,? head coach Brian Billick said. ?This gives us both.?

Beginning Aug. 2, the players will get to judge for themselves.

 

[4bubba]

New turf in Denver Practice field


NEW FIELD: Denver's new artificial turf practice field got mostly good reviews from the players.

The new field was part of the reason the Broncos were able to move training camp from the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley to their practice facility in Englewood.

``It makes it a lot easier to practice because we're not tearing up our fields that we are going to use during the season,'' coach Mike Shanahan said. ``That makes it nice. The hard part about having camp at your own facility is you just tear the football fields up. We've got a great facility and I think it's going to work out great.''

 

[4bubba]

anyone else?

Important topic.

 

[noodle]

thanks for the info, guys. good to know going into the season.

 

[4bubba]

New-look Soldier Field makes Chicago shine


The stadium also has several "nooks" where fans can stand and watch the action or meet up with friends during the game, and is open-ended at both ends, which could make field goals interesting.

Even the field is state of the art. Referred to as "Bears blend," the grass is six varieties of Kentucky Bluegrass that makes for a strong lawn. Underneath is a unique irrigation and drainage system, complemented by a heating system that will keep the field at 50 degrees, even in the dead of winter.

But the best news of all is that the seats are practically right on top of the lawn. Again, because of the dimensions architects had to work with, the seats are not only wide enough for even Bigfoot to sit in, but are very close to the field. From the center of the grass, it's about 65 to 75 yards to the front row of seats on the East and West sides, and the South seats are probably 10 yards away from the goal post. The acoustics of the stadium will also make the place loud, a good thing for the Bears, but not for their opponents.

The anticipation ends on Sept. 28, 2003 when the Bears host the Packers on Monday Night Football. Surely, bragging rights like never before will be on the line when these rivals meet in a stadium Bears fans will be proud to call home.