ACCESSING THE ARCHIVES
In this retrospective , we take a look back at historic issues of SportsTurf magazine , predecessor to SportsField Management magazine . This edition of Accessing the Archives examines 1994 , a year in which the big story was the 1994 FIFA World Cup .
The United States played host to the World Cup that year , and SportsTurf magazine devoted much of the June and July 1994 issues to World Cup fields ( the 1994 World Cup featured 52 games across nine different venues ).
The June 1994 issue focused primarily on the Rose Bowl in Pasadena , California , which hosted the World Cup finals . During the summer of 1993 , the Rose Bowl football field underwent a major grade change in preparation for World Cup games . However , in spring of 1994 , a field check revealed that the ball didn ’ t roll true due to grade issues near the drain swales at the edge of the field . Thus , the field underwent another grade change .
To prepare for World Cup play , the existing sod was removed , and approximately 1,400 tons of new graded sand was brought in . The entire field was regraded to establish a one-percent crown over what would be the entire turf area . At points , the surface level was raised 6 inches from the field center back to the sidelines .
The July 1994 issue of SportsTurf focused on another World Cup venue — RFK Stadium in Washington , D . C ., and Tony Burnett , program director , agronomy . RFK installed 102,000 square feet of bermudagrass sod in mid-May of 1994 for games beginning in June . According to Burnett , by June 8 the field was settled in and good enough to support play . The RFK field was mowed at 3 / 4 inch while the sod was taking hold , then at 5 / 8 inch for the games .
In addition to the Rose Bowl and RFK Stadium , 1994 World Cup matches were played at Stanford Stadium ( California ), the Pontiac Silverdome ( Detroit ), Giants Stadium ( New York / New Jersey ), the Cotton Bowl ( Dallas ), Soldier Field ( Chicago ), the Citrus Bowl ( Orlando ) and Foxboro Stadium ( Massachusetts ).
1994 issues of SportsTurf also included Field of the Year coverage of Fitton Field at College of the Holy Cross ; McKechnie Field in Bradenton , Florida ; Mitchell Field at the University of Oklahoma ; Genoa ( Ohio ) HS baseball field ; and the University of Wisconsin at River Falls women ’ s soccer field .
In terms of association news , 1994 featured major partnerships between STMA and both PBI-Gordon and John Deere in an attempt to grow membership and educate members , respectively .
40 SportsField Management | September 2024 sportsfieldmanagementonline . com