ACCESSING THE ARCHIVES
In this retrospective , we examine historic issues of SportsTurf magazine , predecessor to SportsField Management magazine . For this edition of Accessing the Archives we ’ re gonna party like it ’ s 1999 .
The January 1999 issue kicked off the year with a profile of Dr . Henry Indyk , the SportsTurf “ Man of the Year ” for 1999 . According to the article , “ Indyk played a key role in saving the association seven years ago when it was deeply in debt and in danger of collapsing . There were many times when he spent money from his own pocket to travel to meetings and provide food for attendees before the association gained widespread recognition and corporate support .”
The January issue also outlined how to survive winter injury . “ Fields that enter winter in top shape have the best chance of emerging from winter stress in playable condition . Survival strategies include a well-managed , year-round maintenance program , and as much fall preparation as field use schedules , weather , time and funding allow .”
The Akron Aeros ’ Canal Park winning Professional Baseball Diamond of the Year was the highlight of the February 1999 issue . Director of Field Maintenance Rick Izzo explained , “ In 1997 , our first year of operation , the Cleveland Indians
affiliate Akron Aeros led all of AA baseball in total attendance with 473,232 , setting a new Eastern League record . In 1998 , Akron again led AA attendance , shattering our own record by drawing 521,122 to Canal Park .”
The March cover story by Paul Zwaska delved into “ Infield Soils and Topdressing .” Zwaska ’ s “ Goals for a quality infield skin ,” included traction , drainage and topdressing . He also outlined infield base soil testing and guidelines ; infield topdressing options ; maintenance issues and more .
April 1999 detailed vacuumassisted drainage . Dr . William H . Daniel developed a technique that uses vacuum power to assist drainage on athletic fields — the Prescription Athletic Turf ( PAT ) system . “ A vacuum is applied beneath the soil through special drain lines . The vacuum increases the driving force for water to infiltrate and move downward through the soil . This vacuum-assisted drainage is intended to enable fields to remain playable even after or during rainfall that would render other natural-turf fields unfit .”
In the May issue , Steve Wightman detailed field painting tips including setup , paint selection , painting techniques , timing , and equipment options .
The May 1999 issue also announced what was then the new Sports Turf
44 SportsField Management | March 2025 sportsfieldmanagementonline . com