Virginia SportsTurf Managers Association SIDELINES. In this issue: Field Day Wrap-up, Thanks to our Sponsors! Call for VSTMA Scholarship Applications

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1 SIDELINES Virginia SportsTurf Managers Association In this issue: Field Day Wrap-up, Thanks to our Sponsors! Call for VSTMA Scholarship Applications PPL Park, Philadelphia, PA INSIDE President s Letter 2 VSTMA News 3 Field Day Sponsors 3 Confessions of a Soccer Pitch Manager 4 Symposium rd Quarter

2 From the President Vince Henderson VSTMA President Hello to all, I hope that everyone is surviving the heat. I also hope we get some rain soon so that we can take some pressure off of our irrigation systems and avoid water restrictions. For those trying to grow warm season turf this has been one of the best growing seasons as far as temperatures. For those trying to grow fescue and bluegrass during heavy use and these temperatures, well It seems that every year brings a new challenge. I would like to say thank you to all who participated in the Field Day held at The Collegiate School s Robbins Campus. This is a beautiful complex and Allison Moyer and her staff should be congratulated for their efforts. I believe that the educational topics were, as usual, very relevant and very interesting. I would like to note that we had two STMA Past Presidents (Abby McNeal and Bob Campbell) in attendance at this event. The nine-hole scholarship golf tournament held at Richmond Country Club was successful as was the Tailgate Reception that followed. Of course, much of what we do would not be possible without the tremendous support from our vendors. Please give them the opportunity to serve you. Lastly, I would like to wish Josh McPherson the best of luck in his move to the University of Missouri. This is a well deserved and great opportunity. We have been fortunate to have Josh serve on the VSTMA Board. I hope to continue the leadership that has been performed by our past presidents and just hope to figure out how they always seemed so relaxed. Fortunately, with cell phones and the internet they are not too far away. Best regards, Vince Henderson Turf Manager County of Henrico Recreation & Parks WHEN THE GAME IS ON THE LINE......you have better things to worry about than field conditioning. At Smith Turf & Irrigation, we know how important your athletic fields are to you. From irrigation systems to reel and rotary mowers, from line painters to conditioning, raking or grading products, from drag mats to aerators, we have the equipment you need to get the job done right. Let our team recommend a lineup that matches your goals and your budget, so the only thing you have to worry about is winning. 2 Office Orders

3 VSTMA News If you missed the 2010 Field Day, you missed a great opportunity to visit a fabulous complex, the Robins Campus of the Collegiate School near Richmond. Allison Moyer and her crew were great hosts and pulled off an educational field day. STMA past-president Abby McNeal and guest speaker Chad Price rounded out a great group of speakers including Mike Goatley, Shawn Askew, Jimmy Rodgers and Mike Skelton discussing such topics as dealing with your coaches and tips and tricks for baseball field maintenance. If you have an interest in hosting or have a suggestion for the 2011 Field Day please let us know. Finally the VSTMA would like to send a special thanks to our sponsors: Earthworks (Tailgate Sponsor) Smith Turf and Irrigation (Lunch Sponsor) Luck Stone (Breakfast Sponsor) Pioneer Paint (Refreshment Sponsor) Specialty Turf Fertilizer (Scholarship Golf Tournament Sponsor) Southern States (Scholarship Golf Tournament Sponsor) All Star Sponsors: G L Cornell, Landscape Supply Inc., Virginia Green Lawn Care, and Woodward Turf Farms Major League Sponsors: Buy Sod Inc., Carolina Green Corp., Oakwood Sod, Rain Bird, Sherwin Williams The VSTMA is calling for applications for the 2010 VSTMA scholarship. This is open to any 2 yr, 4 yr, or graduate student interested in sports turf management. This year the board has decided to award two - $500 scholarships to two deserving applicants. Details and the application can be found on the VSTMA web site: or by contacting Whitnee Askew (VSTMA Exec. Secretary) vstma@vstma.org or Proudly Servicing Virginia s Sports Turf for Over 30 Years ROANOKE, VA Telephone: Fax: Toll Free: Jared Russell (Cell): CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA Telephone: Fax: Kyle Bickling (Cell): WILLIAMSBURG, VA Telephone: Fax: Neil Jones (Cell): RICHMOND, VA SOUTHSIDE Telephone: Fax: Toll Free: WESTEND Telephone: Fax: Toll Free: Bruce Adwell (Cell):

4 Article contributed by Jason Bowers, CSFM, Manager for PPL Park, in Philadelphia, PA. HELLO! It has been a while since I have seen or talked to any of my fellow VSTMA friends. If you have not heard, May of 09 was my last days as the Sports Turf Manager at Virginia Tech. I am now in PA, working for the new MLS team the Philadelphia Union at PPL Park ( com/). I began work here in February of It is a brand new stadium/ field, and I have learned a lot from this experience. Building a shop area and field from the ground up has been pretty challenging. The first month or two I spent most of my time working on equipment contracts, networking with salesmen, and talking with the field contractor. With a new team, the owners want to wheel and deal with everyone. It took three months just to get an equipment deal done working through our marketing department. Once that was done, I could focus some time to the field. The decision was made before I got here that Patriot bermudagrass would be used 4

5 for the playing surface or in soccer terms the pitch. The stadium is right beside the Delaware River, so watching what chemicals and fertilizers I put on the field is going to be a challenge. Luckily, this summer has been a Bermuda growers dream! We have already had 25 days in the 90 s and it s only the middle of July. I am continuing the practices I used while at Tech, a program of polymer coated fertilizers, organics, and Primo Maxx. The field was constructed on a 10 inch sand root zone mix of 90% sand 10% organic matter. I have a 30 inch main drain running east to west down the center of the field. Off that line there are laterals on 10 foot centers running north to south. I have no heat under the field, so I will have to utilize turf blankets over the winter and spring months. The sod was laid April 19th. The sod came overseeded with Perennial Ryegrass, just in case we might have a cool spring. As the sod was laid, they used 1 ton rollers to try and roll the turf smooth. Five days after the sod was down, I borrowed a pull-behind roller from Tony Leonard at Lincoln Financial Field (i.e. Philadelphia Eagles home). Two weeks after that I rented a 3-5 ton roller for 4 days. I still have bumps going across the field. I topdressed with about 110 tons of sand and broom dragged that in but still failed to achieve the desired level of 5

6 smoothness. After our first game on June 27th, I core aerified, swept the cores and rolled the field with an 8 ton roller. We have made the field about 20% better, but it is still bumpy. I have my hands full with this pitch! Another challenge I faced was our irrigation. I was told that it was below the root zone, which is 10 inches. Well, I solid tined the field Friday May 28th, Memorial Day weekend. I wanted to go around 8-9 inches deep, assuming that I had plenty of depth before reaching the irrigation pipe. It turns out the south end of the field was installed while the field contractor was on vacation. The irrigation sub-contractor was rushed by the grading sub-contractor and the irrigation lines were not installed at the proper depth. I hit pipe at 6 3/4 inches in the ground! I had a total of 18 different breaks on the field. So I spent Memorial Day weekend with the irrigation sub-contractor fixing all the breaks. Now I only aerify no more than 4 inches. That will be fixed at the end of the season. Other things I have learned are that architects are very sensitive when you suggest something too them. There were no fuel tanks in the architectural 6 New Field Construction Field Renovation Field Design & Specifications Laser Grading Drainage Systems Synthetic Infill Systems Synthetic Turf Collars Outstanding in our Field Toll Free (866) Fax (704) info@cgcfields.com drawing, and the solution has been filling up 5 gallon cans approximately 3 times a week. They also looked at the wrong code for storage of my equipment and now I cannot store my equipment in my shop area because the room is not up to code for fire rating. We ll see what happens when we get our C.O. I have had several games on the field, and the coaches are happy with the pitch even though I am not. I have learned that when a soccer team trains, that is just a term they use for practice!! Let me tell you, they (being both the home and visiting teams) train on the game field the day before the game. Each team is out there for about 1 ½ hours, so in reality, I have a full game played on the field before the game is actually played. And this past week I have had 3 games in 7 days, not counting training. So I do have my hands full, but that is why we do what we do; it is never easy, but seeing the fans, coaches, and others tell you the field looks and plays good, that makes all the headaches worth it. I love a challenge, and trying to grow Patriot Bermuda in Philadelphia, is a great challenge. There are plenty of haters out there and up here, but I am going to try and

7 show them how it s done! This is going to be a mutiuse facility. So next year they are talking about, football rugby, hockey, concerts, and even WWE events on the field. So with a crew of me and my assistant, things are looking busy! There will be a training facility built sometime in the near future, but right now the team trains on youth fields around the area. These fields are sub-contracted out; I just have to keep an eye on the sub to make sure he is doing a good job. Luckily, the sub is a Tech graduate and he knows what he is doing. I miss being in Virginia. I miss my Virginia Tech Turf family, and I miss talking to all you Sports Turf Managers in Va., but this experience has been a great learning curve for me even with the challenges I have faced. Please feel free to contact me if you guys have any questions about anything! I am still a Hokie and always will be! Best of luck to all you in the great state of Virginia! Make Your Sideline Look as Good as the End Zone. FieldSaver Sideline Tarps from CoverSports USA TM! Choose from Blanket or Premium Mesh Style. Blanket Dress Up the Home Team Bench! Special offers ONLY at For price quotes, colors, sizes and fabric specs, visit ersports.com/vstma We make covers for all athletic surfaces: Rain Covers, Growth Covers, Sideline Turf Protection FieldSaver Features: Durable-stands up to cleated football shoes and other abrasions Breathable-allows water and air passage Grommets at 3 intervals on all sides for stake down Premium Mesh Personalize with lettering or logos! In Philadelphia Since 1874 sales@coversports.com Stadium Padding BERMUDAGRASS PATRIOT BERMUDAGRASS TALL FESCUE SOD BLENDS ZOYSIA Waller Rd. Delmar, MD OAKWOOD SOD FARM 7

8 Prsrt Std U.S. Postage PAID Blacksburg, VA Permit No. 158 VSTMA Board Of Directors Vince Henderson, President Jimmy Rodgers, Vice President Allison Moyer, Secretary Kevin Moore, Treasurer Sam Doak, Information Officer Dean Whitehead, Past President Chris Bassett Rodney Hopkins Marc Moran Dave Myers Jesse Pritchard Mike Skelton The 2010 VSTMA Symposium will be held at Scott Stadium on the Universtiy of Virgnia campus in Charlottesville on Dec. 9th. While preparations are still being finalized, Dr. David Williams, Professor of Turfgrass Science at the University of KY is scheduled to speak as well as the VT Turf Team. For more details please visit: Mike Goatley, BOD Advisor VSTMA Professional Position Posting Positions are posted on If you have jobs available or you are looking for a job, please send your information to vstma@vstma.org. We will also post goods for sale or trade by non-vendors. Executive Assistant, Whitnee Askew vstma@vstma.org ~ VSTMA P.O. Box Blacksburg, VA S p o r t s Tu r f E v e n t s Calendar Aug 31-Sept. 1, VT Turfgrass Field Day, Blacksburg, VA Dec. 9, VSTMA Symposium, Charlottesville, VA Dec , Turfgrass Short Course, Charlottesville, VA Dec , Turfgrass Short Course, Virginia Beach, VA Jan , 2011, STMA Conference, Austin, TX Jan , 2011, VA Turf Conference, Fredricksburg, VA