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April 2007
NEWS YOU CAN USE
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STMA appreciates the support of our new members and those who have renewed their membership for 2007. If you have not renewed for 2007, and wish to continue uninterrupted benefits, such as receiving SportsTurf monthly, you have a one-week grace period to reactivate your membership. Non-renewed memberships will be dropped from our system on April 6. For facilities with multiple members, take advantage of our new Sports Turf Associate Membership -- all the benefits of a full price membership, but at a cost of just $75. Click here to renew on line.
Andresen Appoints New Board Member
President Mike Andresen, CSFM, has appointed David Pinsonneault, Public Grounds Superintendent from the Town of Lexington, Mass. to fill the Parks and Recreation board member position. READ MORE.
Travel Travails Contest Draws to a Close
The Travel Travails Contest officially closes tomorrow, but STMA will accept submittals through April 13. If you experienced a hassle getting to San Antonio for the STMA Conference, you have a chance to turn that painful memory into a free conference registration!
STMA is sponsoring a "Travel Travails Contest" with the winner receiving a free and full registration to next year’s STMA Conference in Phoenix. The STMA Conference Committee will select the attendee who endured the most arduous journey.
Please send your travel nightmare story in 200 words or less to STMA HQ no later than April 13. You can fax (800-366-0391) or email (STMAinfo@stma.org) your entry.
Easy, New Website Address for STMA
Finally, STMA has acquired the website address, www.STMA.org! After months of negotiation with Sven from Denmark, who previously held the address, STMA has taken ownership of the shortened address. Please change your Bookmark and Favorites from www.sportsturfmanager.org to this new address. Soon, you will be able to reach all of STMA’s staff using this shortened version.
STMA has Strong Volunteerism
Hundreds of volunteer positions on STMA committees and task groups have been filled. All members who volunteered for service have been placed on one of STMA’s 20 standing committees or many task groups. The STMA Strategic Plan will provide direction to these volunteers as they help guide the development of programs and services to benefit STMA members. Look for a complete list of committee volunteers in the May issue of SportsTurf.
Cancelled Golf Tournament Tops Last Year
The SAFE (The Foundation for Safer Athletic Field Environments) Jacobsen-sponsored Golf Tournament has surpassed all fundraising expectations. Even though the tournament never took place, donations exceeded last year’s tournament proceeds.
The tournament, held in conjunction with the annual STMA conference, was cancelled this year due to a huge ice storm that closed The Quarry Golf Club in San Antonio. Members who planned to play in the golf tournament generously donated $11,797 in registrations fees. Adding to that generosity is Jacobsen, A Textron Company, that is providing a 50 percent matching contribution, bringing the total to $17,695.50 raised for SAFE! In 2006, the golf tournament, which was played in Orlando, raised $17,515.00.
The SAFE Foundation is the charitable arm of the Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA). It was formed to provide funds for research, scholarship and education to help those preparing for a career in sports turf management and to help those in the profession with the challenges they face in managing athletic fields. In 2006, SAFE awarded $12,500 in scholarships and co-funded an educational DVD on Mound-building and Home Plate Maintenance. Thus far in 2007, SAFE has allocated $12,500 for scholarships and has funded two hands-on educational laboratories: one at Mount San Antonio College and the other at the University of Tennessee. These hands-on learning laboratories were awarded to undergraduate student members competing in teams from their colleges in the annual Collegiate Challenge, held at the conference. The contest involves a written exam, case study analysis, and plant, insect and disease identification. SAFE awarded $4,000 to each winning team to be used for a hands-on learning laboratory.
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The 2-MINUTE TIP FOR SUCCESS
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To gain higher visibility for the work that you do, be sure to include a short news brief or promotion in your facility’s sports program. If you aren’t asked for this information on an annual or bi-annual basis, be sure to let your facility know that you have relevant information for the sports program that would be of interest to fans.
When writing a brief article include your name, title, experience, education and a short summary of the management of the field, including irrigation, mowing frequency, fertilization schedules, painting practices, etc. Also include any unique facts about the field’s history, when it was built, type of turfgrass and its characteristics, and other pertinent information. Be sure to give credit to your crew for the work that they do.
If your employer is receptive to placing an advertisement in the facility’s program that highlights your work on the field, contact STMA headquarters. We can easily put together a customized ad for you. Click here for samples of “thank you/congratulatory” ads that STMA has created. This service is provided to you at no charge as a benefit of membership.
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TURF RUNDOWN
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The Sports Turf Research Institute (STRI), located in the UK, has been awarded funding worth more than £25,000 by WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme) to carry out two sets of trials assessing the use of processed sand on artificial and winter sports pitches.
Processed sand, which is manufactured from 100% recycled glass, will be trialled as a material for the construction and maintenance of second and third generation artificial sports surfaces.
Using a medium-fine grade of processed sand, the STRI will test the pitches for ball rebound, traction, hardness, fibre integrity, force reduction and energy restitution. In order to assess these factors under realistic conditions, STRI will apply accelerated heavy wear using a differential slip wear machine at a rate of 40 matches per week.
The second trial will assess the performance of processed sand as a top dressing for football pitches. The STRI has linked up with Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council to carry out the trial on four of its football pitches. As part of the trial, the pitches’ playing and turf quality will be monitored and pitch users will be asked their opinions on the use of processed sand to see if playability is improved.
Andrew Owen, Soil Scientist at the STRI, comments: “After our initial trials looking at the potential of using processed sand on the golf course, we were keen to expand this research to other sports applications. Artificial sports surfaces are an area where processed sand might offer both players and groundsmen enhanced performance."
Bronnie Allen, WRAP’s Material Development Manager for Glass, comments: “We are delighted that funding has been awarded to the STRI, to further build on their invaluable research into processed sand’s viability in the sports turf sector. If similar results are found with artificial surfaces, the sports industry will have a high quality product which not only provides performance benefits but is a sustainable material which will provide the industry with a recycled alternative to quarried materials.”
Other operational trials will be carried out in looking at the performance of recycled glass in artificial sports turf, grit blasting, water filtration, brick fluxing, mortars, adhesives, cement repair products and cement blocks.
The Sports Turf Research Institute, www.stri.co.uk.
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