F.O.Y.

www.sportsturfonline.com

F i e l d o f t h e Y e a r

32 SportsTurf | December 2012

CHALLENGESHaving a very limited travel budget is

offset by our ability to host many invita-tional tournaments each year. We mayrange from 1 to 3 weekend tournamentsduring our month of fall ball and 6 to 7weekend tournaments during our champi-onship season in the spring. The past 3years we have also hosted our local HighSchool District Tournament, as well as ourown Atlantic Sun Conference Tourna-ment. With our own conference schedule,weekend tournaments, and regular seasongames, we have averaged 90-100 games peryear on our field. Additionally, daily prac-tice is conducted on our field by our ownteam.

This creates a very special challengesince the majority of playing time is duringFebruary to May, when our bermudagrassis dormant. This is a huge reason why weoverseed with winter ryegrass. This helpswith the wear on the field which also aidsin the cosmetic looks and appearance.

Hosting teams from all over the countrymakes a pleasant experience as well. Wework on the main wear areas (outfield po-sitions) throughout the season with addi-tional seed and fertilizer.

We removed bermuda turf in highshade areas of landscape and replaced itwith crushed red rock (warning track ma-terial) in our picnic area. Redesigned theirrigation in common area to operate moreuniformly and to compliment the land-scape changes over the years. A wettingagent was introduced to facility and watermanagement program.

Additionally we paint our infield there-fore the infield must be wet prior to paint-ing. We did have times when we had towet the lines and batter’s boxes with abackpack sprayer, prior to painting, whenthe reclaimed city water was turned off.We have now designed and built a waterdevice onto our sprayer to enable us to wetand paint at the same time on a dry in-field.

PATRICIA WILSON FIELD,Stetson University, DeLand, FL

Level of Submission: College Category of Submission: Softball Head Sports Turf Manager: SteveBarnard Title: Field Maintenance Technician Education: Associate Degree, GeneralStudies Work History: Former foreman forthe City of DeLand’s Sperling SportsComplex for 25 years. Complex includes35-acre park (one full size baseball field;three adult softball fields; threesoccer/football fields, and four practiceareas, a total of 22 acres of bermudaturf). Full-time staff: Steven Barnard, fieldmaintenance technician; Frank Griffin,head softball coach; Vanessa Bataille, as-sociate head softball coach; and Joanna“JJ” Payette, assistant softball coach Original construction: 2002 Turfgrass variety: Tifton 419bermudagrass Recent renovation: In 2010, the in-field was tilled and laser graded; 23 tonsof clay plus 1½ tons Turface added to in-field; additional bullpen added on firstbase side; new scoreboard with fullvideo display; replaced netting asneeded throughout the complex; addi-tional drainage added by practice area,hitting area, and first base dugout tohelp with washouts; palm trees added tolandscape.

We laser grade our infield annually orbi-annually to maintain the standard weset for ourselves; additions to the com-plex as well as improved existing facili-ties to reduce long-term cost andmaintenance; maintain drainage slopes.

We have crushed red rock (warningtrack material) within the facility (exclud-ing infield); St. Augustine grass in the ex-terior perimeter of the facility; additionalenhancements occur daily with new in-novations and reconstructions. Overseeding: We overseed in lateNovember or early December after anapplication of preemergent. We use typi-cally 500 to 700 pounds of EagleSupreme perennial ryegrass on our en-tire complex. Drainage: Sideline drains; slight val-leys built into terrain emptying into cul-verts to retention area; field itself has a1% grade to outfield.

F.O.Y. | Patricia Wilson Field

34 SportsTurf | December 2012 www.sportsturfonline.com

SportsTurf: What channels of communication do you use toreach coaches, administrators and user of your facility? Any tips oncommunicating well?

Barnard: I have to unique advantage of the Head Coach,Frank Griffin, being my direct supervisor. This allows us to talkdaily regarding the scheduling of the facility operations and plan-ning around the team’s practice and game schedules.

E-mails are used when mass information needs to be distributedto administrators, players and visiting groups. A member of ourcoaching staff and school site administrator meets with the visitingteam representative to communicate the game day agenda and anypolicies and special needs request they may require.

A tip on communicating well is do not let small problems be-come big problems, address them early.

SportsTurf: What are your specific job responsibilities?Barnard: Being the sole field maintenance technician for Patri-

cia Wilson Field, I wear a multitude of hats. I am very lucky tohave players and coaches that have pre and post-game duties to aidin the upkeep of the facility. Our players can put out and remove afull infield tarp with the proficiency that would make any majorleague grounds crew proud. They also help with the application ofTurface on the infield when there is a weather issue.

Turf Maintenance: mowing, fertilization, pesticide application,aerification, top dressing, overseeding, water management, verticut-ting, ordering all products to be applied.

Irrigation: Repair and installationClay & Warning track: grooming infield and warning track

areas, practice and game day set up, edging, rebuild and maintain-ing mound and plate with bag clay,refurbishing bullpens, raking, blow-ing or hosing lip areas, raking com-mon warning track areas and keepingweed free, adding material as needed,aeravating infield.

General needs of facility: blowingand cleaning areas of batting areas,grand stands and sidewalks, repairs

and replacements of netting, windscreen and fences, help maintaingarden areas along with ornamental beds, lubricating equipment,change oil and filters while doing any and all repairs that can bedone in house, adjust reel mowers.

Participate in any and all projects or events during the year.

SportsTurf: What do find most enjoyable about your job?Barnard: I find all aspects of turf management to be the most

enjoyable part of the job.

SportsTurf: What task is your least favorite and why?Barnard: The least favorite area I consider is to be the general

facility maintenance tasks. Not that they are any less important inthe day to day responsibilities but they do not generate my enthusi-asm like growing good turf does.

SportsTurf: How did you get started in turf management?What was your first sports turf job?

Barnard: My first job was a Part Time position at the age of 17years old with the City of DeLand, Parks and Recreation Depart-ment back in 1981 participating in a variety of field maintenanceduties. After attending Junior College for 2 years and still unde-cided about a career direction, I met with Tom Sperling who wasthe Director of Parks and Recreation regarding a job opportunity inpark maintenance. Four years later he entrusted me with the re-sponsibility of supervising the Sperling Sports complex which was a35 acre facility and over time became 22 acres of Bermuda. Duringthat time I was fortunate to have Larry Nordman who was ourParks Manager to have as a mentor along the way. Before PatriciaWilson Field, Stetson Fastpitch Softball used Sperling Sports Com-plex to practice and play their home games. I met Coach FrankGriffin at this time which ultimately led to my current position.

SportsTurf: What changes if any are you implementing for thewinning field in 2012?

Barnard: Turf care wise, due to soil analysis we increased ourpotassium rates and added in an advanced minor pack twice a yearto aid in the deficiencies that arise in Florida soils. In the later partof 2011, we were able to implement a monthly wetting agent appli-

SportsTurf 35www.stma.org

cation program which we were able to continuethroughout the 2012 season which has provedvery helpful.

Facility wise, we replaced or entire back stopnetting, had the press box tower and grandstandpainted. We were able to obtain our own tri-plex reel mower for the sole use of our facility.

SportsTurf: How do you see the sports turfmanager’s job changing in the future?

Barnard: We are always in a series of con-stant changes and adjustments. Pesticide regula-tions and conservations of water managementwill always be a constant challenge. With risingexpectations and smaller budgets, it is impor-tant that good sound cultural practices are used.With the use of more modern technology andequipment we can perform some of these tasksin a timelier manner. With specific target datesto obtain each year and the windows of oppor-tunities becoming smaller, by becoming profi-cient in organization and better planning skillsit will enable the tasks to be met and completedon time and on budget. ■

36 SportsTurf | December 2012 www.sportsturfonline.com

F.O.Y.F i e l d o f t h e Y e a r

Level of Submission: College Category of Submission: Soccer Head Sports Turf Manager: PJ Ellis Title: Director of Grounds, University of Mary-land Full-time staff: Mac Wallace, James Franck,Neville Kelly, Casey Rezendes Other crew to recognize: Kurt Klinger, AlexSteinman, Ignacio Rodriguez, Trey Whelton, CurtisLazar, Patrick Sajak, Seth Whitehill Original construction: 2006 Turfgrass variety: Patriot bermudagrass Rootzone compostion: 100% sand Overseeding: We overseed with perennial ryestarting in late September and continue weekly ap-plications for 4 weeks totaling 15 lbs. of rye seed/M.The ryegrass germinates in the fall and becomesthe dominate turf in the early spring before beingchemically transitioned out of the field in late May. Drainage: Subsurface drains wrapped in gravelwith bridging sand on top. Smaller field drainsmove water to larger perimeter drain to be carriedoff field.

Ludwig Field, University of MarylandCHALLENGES

One special challenge has been a diminishing budget with increasing ex-pectations. In 2009, we opened a $500,000 golf practice facility and weremade to maintain the course ($41,000 per year) with no budget increase.The next year saw a ten percent budget cut which stretched our budget eventhinner. So creativity, a lessened dependence on contracted help, and a lot ofhard work allowed us to continue to provide the high quality playing surfacethat our teams deserve. Without the student-athlete, we would not have jobs

L to R: Alex Steinman, Neville Kelly, Kurt Klinger, P.J.Ellis, men’s soccer coach Sasho Cirovski, CaseyRezendes, Jamie Franck, and Mac Wallace.

SportsTurf 37www.stma.org

in college athletics, so the turf manager hasto be a problem solver by nature when itcomes to fiscal challenges to ensure main-tained quality.

The second and most daunting challengeis the weather. In Maryland, we growbermuda grass during the summer and earlyfall, then overseed and encourage rye grass forthe remainder of the fall, winter and spring.The opportunity to grow bermudagrass with-out any competition lasts only about 100days. Once the rye grass is chemically transi-tioned in the late spring, an evaluation of thebermuda grass must be made quickly to de-cide if areas can be regrown, sprigged or sod-ded before summer camps start three weekslater. Growing this field in during a Mary-land summer is a challenge enough; now adda non stop schedule of summer camps. Oncecamps begin in mid June, the field will notsee any type of significant break (even a weekoff) until mid December. So, growingbermuda grass in with all this foot traffic ischallenging and requires a full throttle, ag-gressive approach. This means mowing everyday, fertilizing weekly, staffing weekends tokeep an eye on field conditions so no prob-lem goes unresolved for more than a day. It isimportant to have a high quality, densebermuda grass stand for not only playabilityreasons, but for overseeding to ensure sus-tained quality for the rest of the year. If thefield is not thick with bermuda grass duringoverseeding, the seed will not be protectedfrom traffic and the rye grass will be spottyand the playing surface compromised leadingto deteriorating future field conditions thatwill require more sod in the spring becausethe bermuda will not grow back in theseareas. This leads to a higher cost to maintainthe field and a lessened quality of the surfacebecause bermuda sod does not performnearly as well with high traffic levels as a fieldthat you can grow the existing bermuda back.

SportsTurf: What channels of commu-nication do you use to reach coaches, ad-ministrators and user of your facility? Anytips on communicating well?

Ellis: Our work unit is part of the Facili-ties, Operations & Events departmentwithin University of Maryland Athletics.Each facility and sport has a liaison thatcommunicates directly with the coachingstaff for every day issues. Generally, mycommunication with coaches goes throughthe liaison. However, coaches know I am al-ways available to discuss field related con-

cerns through text messages, phone calls orin person. We also use a computer programcalled EMS (Event Management Systems)were all activities for each facility appear ona calendar making it easy to see when andwhere all practices, special events, and com-petitions will be occurring.

SportsTurf: What are your specific jobresponsibilities?

Ellis: As the Director of Grounds forUniversity of Maryland Athletics, I overseethe playing surfaces and common groundsof all of our outdoor athletic facilities. Wehave a good mixture of artificial turf andnatural grass surfaces. Our artificial turf fa-cilities are Capital One Field at Byrd Sta-dium, Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex,the infield of our baseball stadium and apractice football field. All of our naturalgrass fields are bermudagrass which includeour soccer field, softball, practicesoccer/lacrosse field, the outfield of our base-ball stadium and two practice football fields.Also, a part of my job is oversight of themen’s and women’s golf short game facility.The facility includes two bentgrass greens, aBermuda green and two Bermuda fairways. Imanage the budget for all of the facilitiesand all resources needed. I oversee a crew of6 employees made up of the following indi-viduals: two assistants, Kurt Klinger (Assis-tant Director of Grounds) and CaseyRezendes (Superintendent, Holman ShortGame Facility); three turf-technicians, MacWallace, Neville Kelly, and Jamie Franck;and one student technician, Alex Steinman,who is also our social media guru.

SportsTurf: What do find most enjoy-able about your job?

Ellis: The most enjoyable part of myjob is the group of people I work with. Wework together as a team and we have agreat time doing it. We never go through aday without having a good laugh all whilecompleting our work with the highest qual-ity. I am a firm believer in making sure mystaff works hard and has a good time in theprocess, regardless of the weather or obsta-cles in our way.

SportsTurf: What task is your least fa-vorite and why?

Ellis: No question, tarping a field is byfar my least favorite thing to do. It is a neces-sary task for our job for the playability of the

fields but the late fall and early spring tarppulls can be brutal.

SportsTurf: How did you get started inturf management? What was your firstsports turf job?

Ellis: I started out in turf managementworking for a landscape company in myhometown for couple summers in highschool. I entered college expecting that iswhat I would go in to and learned aboutsports turf. My internship was my first sportturf-related job and that was with the Cam-den Riversharks an Independent Leaguebaseball team. From there I moved toMaryland and became the Director ofGrounds in 2011.

SportsTurf: What are the major chal-lenges in managing turf for so many differ-ent uses?

Ellis: The biggest challenge is getting thetime needed to do our basic daily operationson the field. Our soccer/lacrosse grass fieldin the spring may have a men’s and women’ssoccer practice and men’s and women’slacrosse practice all in one day. We spend alot of time working with the coaching staffson moving practices around to differentareas of the field. That can be difficult withjust one 100,000 sq/ft field. You always haveto find ways to be innovative.

SportsTurf: How do you see the sportsturf manager’s job changing in the future?

Ellis: I see my job changing in the futurewith the addition of the artificial turf to ourfootball stadium and more outside eventsoccurring. Concerts, soccer games andlacrosse games are just some of the outsidegroups that may rent the facility. The vol-ume of events is something our staff hasn’tseen before and requires additional prepara-tion to make those events successful. ■

We spend a lot of timeworking with thecoaching staffs on movingpractices around todifferent areas of the field.That can be difficult withjust one 100,000 sq/ft field.You always have to findways to be innovative.

38 SportsTurf | December 2012 www.sportsturfonline.com

F.O.Y. | Ludwig Field

“THE TRUE WONDER of hind-sight lies not in its ability toclarify situations and events,

but in its propensity to coat them with aglaze of dignity and glamour, even glory.”This was the opening line in RichardRubin’s book, “Confederacy of Silence.”What Richard Rubin did not know whenhe wrote this book was that those 31words accurately and completely summa-rize my time as the Director of Groundsfor the University of Maryland AthleticDepartment, a job that I am honored andprivileged to have had.

I could say that I went to the Universityof Maryland to share my knowledge ofproviding an efficient work atmospherethat produces unmatched results, but thatcould not be further from the truth. I wasthe one who was taught many lessons. Ihave since moved on to take part in an in-credible opportunity to rebuild a oncesought after and impressive sports com-plex near Cocoa Beach, FL, a complex thathas since faded into disrepair and waspurchased out of foreclosure. My nextchallenge; however, my previous chal-lenge was the single greatest learning ex-perience of my life.

I arrived at Maryland in June 2006 asthe Assistant Director of Grounds at 24years old. I was tasked by the administra-tion to make the department a depend-able and a consistently performing workunit. What I now know is those goals weresignificantly below the capabilities andtalent that already existed in that shop.

I was promoted to the Interim Directorof Grounds in March 2007 then movedinto the role as Director shortly after that.I began to evaluate the crew and run dailyoperations the only way I knew how. I wasrigid and unwavering, two qualities thatwould not let the creative ambition of thiscrew shine.

After consistent failures, on my part, toconnect with the staff I decided to try anew approach, to connect on a personallevel with my employees. The main areathat was missing was trust in me, and trustis the one quality that does not come withthe title of boss, trust must be earned. Thiswas as simple as saying good morningconsistently, asking how everyone was

doing, not being in a hurry to get to work ifwe were in discussion. Updating the shophockey standings and playing our morninggame of dominos was tops on my prioritylist. This meant that many times I would beworking late to wrap up administrative du-ties that I could have finished during thework day but I chose, correctly, to be partof my staff.

It did not take long for the culture ofthe work environment to shift to a happy,welcoming, trusting, results oriented workunit that I would not trade for any all star.Every member of this group was the allstar I wanted to work with. We trulyworked to embody the slogan, “work tolive, don’t live to work.” This atmospherewas rewarding at the highest level whenthe rest of the crew worked throughbreaks and lunch to make sure a staffmember could leave early to catch theirsons tee ball game or pick their niece andnephew up from school.

When hiring new staff I made sure thattheir personal qualifications and characterwas weighed more heavily than their pro-fession achievements. If you were moti-vated and would fit in with the staff thenthere was a spot for that person. It was myresponsibility to make sure that all staff isone step closer to where they want to beat the end of the day then where theywere when the day started. The result ofthis mentality was more incredible thaneven I could have imagined. The averageage of our staff was about 25 years old.The young staff respected and learnedfrom the older staff. The older staff drewenergy and excitement from the youngerstaff. Everyone was empowered to makedecisions, to problem solve, to work withcoaches. The work unit was trusted by alland widely known through the athleticdepartment and “the guys that get itdone.” This aggressive mentality allowedthis generation of young sports turf pro-fessionals to learn through problem solv-ing and making mistakes. This truly was arapid development work atmosphere.

When I left Maryland, my assistantPatrick Ellis took my place leading thework unit. Patrick joined the staff in 2007after he graduated from Penn State andworked his way into the Assistant Director

My time at Maryland: lessons in learning

position and now the Director of Grounds.Seth Whitehill, interned in 2008, rejoined thestaff the following year after graduation andis now the head groundskeeper for the LittleLeague World Series. Casey Rezendes was astudent employee while attending the Uni-versity of Maryland and is now the superin-tendent of the Maryland Golf Team’s shortgame practice facility. Kurt Klinger interned in2009 and rejoined the staff after graduationand oversaw budget tracking and budget de-velopment for the $760,000 operatingbudget. Kurt is the leading candidate to takePatrick’s position of Assistant Director. AlexSteinman, STMA and KAFMO Scholarshipwinner, interned in 2010 and rejoined thestaff in 2011. Alex’s future is extremely brightand has been asked by Dr. Mathias, professorin the Maryland Turf Department, to helpprepare the Maryland Turf Teams for theSTMA team challenge.

I truly believe it is the responsibility of theperson in charge of staff to ensure their con-tinued growth and development. What hap-pened following the execution of thispromise was nothing short of extraordinary.The grounds work unit was the most de-pendable in the department; the staff reten-tion rate was almost 100% with internsreturning because of our commitment tothem. Everyone on the staff felt a high senseof ownership because of their ability to makethe calls on agronomic practices, all the whilehaving more fun than any group of people Ihave ever known.

I was truly honored to be part of this teamand I can honestly say that no matter howbusy we were or what jobs lay ahead, I alwayswoke up looking forward to going into theoffice. I would love nothing more than seethis staff be recognized for their greatachievements in such a tough area of thetransition zone to successfully grow high per-formance sports turf. A task this staff has per-formed well as anyone in the country.

I believe the leader takes the criticism andlets the praise pass to the staff, works harderthan everyone and spearheads the most un-desirable jobs, and has a commitment toeveryone that works for him to ensure theircontinued growth. If this can be done, be pre-pared to see results that will induce a smilethat can be seen a mile away. Unselfish is thebest word to describe this mentality. How-ever, to try to sum up my time at Maryland inone word or even 31 words cannot do justiceto my experience, an experience that notonly made me a successful young sport turfprofessional, but most importantly preparedme for success for the rest of my life. A lifethat I will always stop and smile at thethought of my time at Maryland. ■

By Jeremy Menna