[eric.hanke]

Just read the May 12 MCAS Board Meeting Agenda.



Synthetic Turf at Ames Field??? Are you kidding me?



MCAS Agenda

[IndyTransplant]

Just read the May 12 MCAS Board Meeting Agenda.



Synthetic Turf at Ames Field??? Are you kidding me?



MCAS Agenda

Ridiculous......surely it will not pass.

[Southsider2k12]

Most of those have been proven to cause more injuries than regular grass. I don't like the idea at all. They are trying to save money at the expense of safety.

[Brian]

Most of those have been proven to cause more injuries than regular grass. I don't like the idea at all. They are trying to save money at the expense of safety.

Is this the same material that was recently installed at Valpo H.S. within the last year? I coached a Pop Warner Game there back in October and it was really nice, if we are talking about the same type of arificial turf.

[Ang]

Well, that stuff they use for arena football is very slick. I went to a Wyoming Cavalry game Friday and those poor boys were sliding all over the place!

[mcstumper]

IU tried to go with grass a few years back but it always ended up more mud than sod by the end of the season. They had to go back to artifical turf, but what they laid down was vastly improved over the old astroturf surface.

[CaddyRich]

A reporter once asked pitcher Tug McGraw if he preferred natural grass over artificial turf. He replied, "I don't know, I've never smoked turf..."

[eric.hanke]

The MCAS Board of School Trustees in a 6-0 vote, Dr Jones was not present, approved the proposal for ~$700k.

According to MCHS Athletic Director Falls the new "turf" has come a long way and will prevent injuries. LaPorte and Michigan City are the only two school districts in the DAC who do not have a synthetic field.

We currently spend ~$40k annually on the grass at Ames Field. MCAS Director of Plant Planning Dave Williamson stated we fertilize the field 3 times a month, cut the grass 3 times a week, and water the field twice daily with sprinklers that distribute 50GPM.

The new field material proposal included a machine that can “groom” and sanitize the field monthly or as needed.

[Ang]

Well, I suppose that's a good thing really, after giving it some thought. I know many of you know I was the Athletic Secretary at MCHS. Well, before that I was the Plant Planning Director's secretary. (Dave Williamson is a great guy BTW and I'm glad he finally got the director position--he started out as a custodian!).
A lot of people don't realize what a jewel Ames Field is in the athletic community. It has been featured in magazines, and is used several times for stretching and running by college teams travelling to South Bend to play Notre Dame. (I have personally met the coaching staff from USC--very nice guys).
So, again after giving it some thought, I think this is a good move for MCAS. It will free up many man hours spent on the field, which will allow for more time spent at the schools. In the long run, they will save money. And they will never have to worry about the embarassment of a brown patchy field--especially as high profile as it is.

I give it two thumbs up!

(Hey MCBorn--you should do a feature on Ames and all that stuff I just said!)

[MC Born & Raised]

Well, I suppose that's a good thing really, after giving it some thought. I know many of you know I was the Athletic Secretary at MCHS. Well, before that I was the Plant Planning Director's secretary. (Dave Williamson is a great guy BTW and I'm glad he finally got the director position--he started out as a custodian!).
A lot of people don't realize what a jewel Ames Field is in the athletic community. It has been featured in magazines, and is used several times for stretching and running by college teams travelling to South Bend to play Notre Dame. (I have personally met the coaching staff from USC--very nice guys).
So, again after giving it some thought, I think this is a good move for MCAS. It will free up many man hours spent on the field, which will allow for more time spent at the schools. In the long run, they will save money. And they will never have to worry about the embarassment of a brown patchy field--especially as high profile as it is.

I give it two thumbs up!

(Hey MCBorn--you should do a feature on Ames and all that stuff I just said!)

Your wish is my command. ;-)

But seriously, this is a no-brainer. I know people see the initial price tag and are flabbergasted at spending 3/4 of a million dollars on new turf, but it's a necessary expenditure. It'll save money in the long run, but being at least slightly ahead of the curve on something like this should serve as a point of pride for the community. If you want to be the best, you have to act like the best. I've definitely had my issues with MCAS and the board, but kudos on this move. If anything, you'll make money over a period of about 15 years all while playing on a superior surface with a lessened risk of injury.

[Ang]

Your wish is my command. ;-)

[Southsider2k12]

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...amp;TM=39809.22

A facelift for Ames Field
Synthetic turf will replace grass, and work begins Thursday

Adam Parkhouse
Sports Editor, The News-Dispatch

MICHIGAN CITY - Already considered one of the top high school football facilities in the area, Ames Field is getting a brand new look.

At Tuesday's meeting of the Michigan City Area Schools Board, a contract with Hellas Construction of Austin, Texas, to install synthetic turf at Ames was unanimously approved.

"If you're gonna have a successful athletic program, then your facilities have gotta move up," Michigan City High School athletic director Bob "Bear" Falls said.

The total cost of the project, which will begin Thursday and wrap up by July 1, is $718,396. According to Shamus Petrucelli, regional sales representative for Hellas, the turf has an expected life span of 13 to 15 years.

"Quite naturally, that's a lot of money," Falls said. "But trying to run a program without putting money in is a very difficult thing.

"Our kids deserve to play on the very best we can offer."

Dave Williamson, director of Plant Planning, estimated the annual cost of maintaining the surface of Ames Field at $53,000 a year. That includes an estimated $28,000 a year for fertilizers, chemicals and fungicides; about $10,000 per year to water the fields; and another $15,000 for labor.

Not counted in that total would be the cost of resodding Ames. That, according to Williamson, is recommended to be done every five or six years at a cost of $75,000. However, in Ames Field's 14-year history, it's never been resodded. According to football coach Craig Buzea, that wear and tear was evident.

"I had officiating crews tell me before games that the field could be declared unplayable," Buzea said.

Ames Field's turf had its share of problems over the years. Four years ago, a fungus attached to the field, causing massive brown blotches, some 20 or 30 yards wide.

"I think it's the right thing to do," Buzea said. "There's a reason NFL teams, colleges and high schools are doing it.

"For the board to have the foresight to do this is awesome."

City will be the fifth school in the Duneland Conference to install a synthetic turf. Merrillville, Portage, Valparaiso and Crown Point all have some version of it. It's rumored that Chesterton and Lake Central also have it in the works.

At Portage, according to athletic director Jeff Smith, the cost of the project was $900,000, but that initial cost will be absorbed if the school gets 20 years of play out of the surface, as it expects to get.

"I think it's invaluable on a variety of levels," Smith said. "Just with the weather in Northwest Indiana, you get one rainout or monsoon rain and it tears the field up for the rest of the season.

"So from that standpoint, we've never lost a game to a rainout or field conditions."

Buzea was the football coach at Portage when the turf was installed.

"As soon as we got it in, it was the pride of the community," Buzea said.

In addition, Smith said the synthetic turf has created new revenue streams. For instance, Valparaiso University has had to rent the field on occasion when its soccer field has been unplayable. The school also rents the facility to the local Pop Warner Football program.

Those are all new possibilities for Ames Field, as well, according to Falls, although he doesn't foresee soccer being played at Ames during the upcoming fall season.

Hellas Construction (hellasconstruction.com) is the company that is installing its brand of synthetic turf at the Dallas Cowboys' new stadium. Hellas' product is called Fusion, not to be confused with similar products such as FieldTurf.

Part of the contract is the work must be completed by July 1 in advance of the annual Drum & Bugle DCI competition July 3. Petrucelli said there will be noticeable activity at Ames starting Thursday.

Contact Sports Editor Adam Parkhouse at aparkhouse@thenewsdispatch.com or 874-7211, Ext. 461.

[Southsider2k12]

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...amp;TM=56680.22

No time to spend money on turf
I found myself astounded while reading Adam Parkhouse's article "A facelift for Ames Field" [Wednesday]. We are in the midst of a serious economic recession, the worst in decades; people who work in the major industries that supply jobs and support our region are facing major cut backs and lay offs; and we are investing three quarters of a million dollars for new turf at Ames Field?

The economic issues we are facing are only one reason that this project is unimaginable; another is the quality of education these students are receiving. While the article went into detail about our need to compete with other schools in our district, it never mentioned where these funds were coming from, leaving the story hopelessly incomplete.

Indiana's public school system has been at the bottom of the nation for many years, and this year's results were no exception. While sports are certainly a great bonus for students, they are far from the most important part of the high school experience. Instead of spending more than $700,000 on turf, maybe MCAS could invest in the curriculum, additional education for teachers, improved educational materials, and raises for hard working, under-paid teachers.

We should not be rewarding a failing school system by investing in extracurricular activities when there is so much work that needs to be done to ensure that the students graduating from the school are actually ready for college. We aren't doing those students any favors by giving them nicer grass to play on if they are hopelessly unprepared for college and life outside high school.

It is unthinkable to spend this kind of money on something non-essential when we have so much work to do creating a school system that serves our children. What an embarrassment.

Emily Saxon Kysel

Indianapolis

[Ang]

Ok. This lady lives in Indianapolis. I'm sorry, but her opinion is important because why?

I think I'm going to write the Anvil Chorus. More to come....

[Ang]

Well, here's my letter. They edited it a little, but it gets the point across I guess...

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...amp;TM=54892.92

Synthetic turf good for Ames
After giving it some thought, I think synthetic turf at Ames Field is a good thing. A lot of people don't realize what a jewel Ames Field is in the athletic community. It has been featured in magazines, and is used several times for stretching and running by college teams travelling to South Bend to play Notre Dame, and the Drum & Bugle Show is held there every year. In addition to that, colleges and high schools in our state and other states - as far away as California - have come to visit Ames Field because they want to build a similar stadium.

The benefits to synthetic turf are that it will free up many man hours spent on the field, which will allow for more time spent at the schools. In the long run, they will save money. And they will never have to worry about the embarrassment of a brown patchy field - especially as high profile as Ames Field is.

Angelique Peters

Casper, Wyo.

Monday my daughter had the district-wide jr. olympics. I took the day off to spend with her. It was held at the new track/soccer field at one of our high schools. The soccer field is that synthetic turf. Man, I have to say that stuff is BEAUTIFUL. I was sitting on it and took time to really check it out, in the interest of Ames Field, and I am very impressed with that stuff.
Now I definitely support it for Ames.

[Southsider2k12]

http://blogs.post-trib.com/robb/2009/06/am...nearly_com.html

Ames Field facelift nearly complete
By
David Robb
on June 29, 2009 4:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
Construction to fit Michigan City's Ames Field with synthetic turf, which began in May, is expected to be completed by Wednesday.

"It's a big shot in the arm for the program, that's for sure," Wolves football coach Craig Buzea said.

Michigan City is the fifth school in the Duneland Conference to fit its football field with synthetic turf. Lake Central, Chesterton and LaPorte still play on grass.

"I know I've heard talk of Lake Central and Chesterton getting (turf) by next year," Buzea said.

[reddevil]

Hmmm, I remember when we used to have our swingsets on a parking lot. And the kids flew off the merry go round onto the concrete and we liked it!

Anyway, good for Ames Field. Now get rid of that "I'm a fountain, no I'm not a fountain, I'm a playground" eyesore and call it a day.

[CaddyRich]

I went over to Ames Field and looked through the fence at the new field. Figured, I paid for it...might as well take a look. All I can say is WOW! The end zones...the real goalposts (instead of those cheap looking ones they had before)...I'm sure it looks even better from the stands. Here's hoping we see a lot of Wolves' TD's in those end zones. Go Wolves!

[Southsider2k12]

So if anyone went to the drum and bugel show how did the turf look?

[Southsider2k12]

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...amp;TM=39837.75

Turf makes a world of difference for DCI event

Laurie Wink
The News-Dispatch

MICHIGAN CITY - This year, when the Drum Corps International competitors marched onto Ames Field, it no doubt felt a bit different.

That's because a new covering of artificial turf was laid down just in time for the DCI event. The Michigan City Area Schools spent more than $700,000 to replace the grass field, and is counting on reduced maintenance costs to help recoup the investment over the turf's 13- to 15-year lifespan.

Most performance fields now have artificial turf, according to Mike McGreevy, a staff member for and former member of the Glassmen Drum and Bugle Corps of Toledo, Ohio.

"It's easier on your body," he said. "You feel less stress."

The Glassmen have been performing well this year, said rifle technician Tom Padgett, from Kingsport, Tenn. The group ranked 11th in the final competition last August in Indianapolis, and Padgett would like to see them "in the single digits" this year.

Padgett said the corps' horn line especially likes the artificial turf.

"It's flat," he said. "You don't worry about holes and dips. It's all level."

Val Glasscock, assistant for tour operations with the Legends Drum Corps, Kalamazoo, Mich., said the new surface is "beautiful" and enhances Ames Field's reputation as a good place to perform. She stopped performing two years ago and has fond memories of being here.

"This is the best field to march on," Glasscock said. "Ask anybody."

Bart Jonker, treasurer of the board of Legends Performing Arts Association, was complimentary of the entire facility.

"It's such a pretty stadium," Jonker said. "You really take good care of it."

Jonker said the 60 members of Legends were competing in the DCI for the second year. Following the group's Sunday evening performance, Jonker felt they did well. His son Ryan and daughter April are in the percussion section of Legends.

Two members of the Michigan City Wolfpack marching band admired the new field as well as the expert performances of the competing drum corps. Freshman Christine Hutchinson, 15, said it will be much easier to wheel her xylophone onto the artificial turf than it was on grass. James Kaiser, 14, will play trumpet in the marching band as a freshman next year and also approves of the artificial turf.

"It looks a lot more professional than the real grass," Kaiser said. "You could hardly see the lines (in the grass)."

They'll be trying it out along with the rest of the marching band on Aug. 21, at the first Michigan City High School football game.

Contact Laurie Wink at lwink@thenewsdispatch.com.