It has been over a year since the installation of a new turf field at Pacific University’s Hanson Stadium, after going 10 years without any changes. Athletes who played on the turf, both before and after renovations, could tell the replacement made a significant difference.
“There’s a lot more traction and grip under our feet,” junior football player Bret Yap said, “We could immediately feel the difference, and it felt solid.”
Fellow junior football player Jason Burton agreed with Yap. According to Burton, the new turf has much better traction. He also credited it with being softer and having more give than the previous turf. Yap and Burton’s appraisals of the turf’s performance are exactly what one would hope to hear after making major changes to a sports facility. Other athletes agreed the turf has improved since the change was made, but not all saw its potential immediately.
Junior men’s soccer player Chris Abosamra noted that the turf took some time to break in, and said,“I noticed it was harder to run on, it but after a while it got better.”
Senior women’s soccer player Emily Thompson shared a similar sentiment, and said, “When we first got on it to do our fitness test, I just remember my legs were really heavy.”
Thompson praised the turf for being smoother and said the ball runs better on the new turf. According to Abosamra, the previous turf was more injury prone.
“We have definitely noticed a decrease in major injuries,” Head Athletic Trainer Eric Pitkanen said. “We still deal with a lot of injuries but there have been less major injuries in the last 14 months here.”
When it comes to the future of Hanson Stadium’s field, one major concern remains. The maintenance of the new turf.
“I think the old field got so beat up because all the public use it got, and maybe not as much grooming as it needed,” Yap said. “I hope we can maintain it better this time.”
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