Edmonton now considering heated natural grass...

[i]FIELD OF DREAMS?: There has been no decision on the future of the grass field at Commonwealth Stadium, but the Esks are interested in the new field technology at Lambeau Field in Green Bay.

"The city and us are going to send somebody down to look at it," said LeLacheur.

"It is a mixture of real grass and dirt.

"And then they put heaters below it - it is like a heated driveway."

FINISH LINES: The Eskimos will not change the seats in Commonwealth Stadium this year, but are looking at the idea down the road.[/i]

Whenever I watch a game from Edmonton the players are slipping and sliding all over the field, regardless of the time of year.

I say its time to put that new style turf in, because what they have now seems like a skating rink.

Upgrades are necessary, but still I rate Commonwealth as the best stadium in the country to watch a football game.
It is a jewel.

Natural Grass in commonwealth gives them a great advantage I'm sure the team doesn't want it to change at all.

Now its going to be the "Hugh Cambell heated which parts of the field at certain parts of the game" excuse. :lol:

Interesting concept but will be costly maintenance wise.

I'm for anything that helps gets rid of the horrendous slipping and sliding that goes on during every Eskimo home game.

If cost was the issue, they would have went away from the natural grass long ago. How the heck do you grow grass in the tundra anyway...:slight_smile:

Well just maybe the injuries are catching up to them during the very cold game days. The cost of maintenace could go for other expenditures. More profit as well. The Eskies have done a great job so far but just maybe they are thinking that it is time to move on from natural turf.

I agree , u will never see Edmonton get a guy like Kenton Kieth , they like North-south runners , its an advantage they will keep forever. its a big advantage when they are the only team with natural turf !

Heated grass......they should get a defense and an oline first.

The natural grass in Commonwealth is legendary. Would be great if it could be preserved. Only a first-class organization like them would send someone to Green Bay to observe the technology that they use. Would be so much easier just to sell-out and put turf like countless other teams.

i love how you guys whine and cry about our grass lol....football is played on grass its the best way to watch the game in person, and if you losers think that a team has an advantage playing on grass when all theese players played on grass growing up well then you guys are just sour pusse's,

Not totally true in most states they play on artifical turf. Most of our University football players play on artifical turf as well.
To me there is not advantage both teams have to play on the same conditions. I have heard though from some players in the newspapers stated that there is advantage to practice on the filed prior to playing on the field but that is what warm ups are for. So not advantage in this fans eyes. feel it should be standardized in the CFL field turf only but that is my opinion.

A quote from the Eskimos newest player:

[b]Morgan is looking forward to playing home games on grass field at Commonwealth Stadium.

"I grew up on grass and I love playing on grass," said the native of Hollywood, Calif. "A lot of players complain about playing on grass but I just love it."[/b]

Heck, if having grass can help us recruit players of Morgan's calibre, and if having natural grass, instead of artificial turf really does get into the heads of our opponents, to give the Esks a psychological advantage, I sure don't see the incentive to change it!

[url=http://www.cfl.ca/index.php?module=newser&func=display&nid=15461]http://www.cfl.ca/index.php?module=news ... &nid=15461[/url]

I wish every stadium had real grass.

what do you have against good turf?

Many players prefer the new turf to grass, and it’s cheaper to maintain

http://www.azcardinals.com/stadium/detail.php?PRKey=960

The first preseason game of the inaugural season at Cardinals Stadium is less than two months away and work continues to rapidly progress on the Cardinals new home in the West Valley.

Over the past couple of weeks, routine tests and maintenance have been conducted on the 17-million pound field tray which holds the natural grass playing surface for the stadium. The contractors and engineers are nearing the end of a 30 day process to commission the field and on Wednesday the field was moved all the way inside of the stadium in front of several local media members.

“Two weeks ago we did some small moving and then at one point we moved the tray halfway into the stadium,? said Bob Aylesworth, Executive Vice President of Hunt Construction. “We were doing some initial mechanization back checks which included some alignment verification and things went well.?

In the following days, work continued as stadium workers moved the field tray all the way inside of the building.

“What we did is we cycled the field,? continued Aylesworth. “By that I mean we moved it in and out, kind of like you are doing a lap in your pool. It is part of the whole process that will conclude in mid-June when we have the field fully commissioned. It’s a technical process of getting something ready to go. It is pretty rigorous, very technical and a lot of engineering.?

The unique rollout natural-grass playing field is contained in a single tray measuring 234 feet wide and 403 feet long. It is the first completely retractable field in the United States and will be positioned inside the stadium on game days to offer the preferred natural-grass playing surface for football. It will remain outside the stadium for the remaining 350+ days of the year to receive sunlight and watering.

CMX Sports Engineers of Phoenix has overseen the turf installation on behalf of Hunt Construction Group.

“This is not just cool, it is way cool,? said Michael Lloyd, President of CMX Sports Engineering. “We have a longstanding relationship with the Cardinals. Win or lose I’m one of their biggest fans but more importantly one of our first projects in this industry was helping them design their Tempe Training Facility. Then we were the engineers that renovated Sun Devil Stadium prior to Super Bowl XXX and then the Cards asked us to come back and help with the new stadium.?

The field tray is also powered by electronic motors mounted on steel wheels riding on tracks embedded in the concrete floor and takes approximately 45-60 minutes to completely move into place. The flexibility of this unique design allows Cardinals Stadium to serve as a true multi-purpose venue featuring a 160,000 square foot event floor for other prominent events such as NCAA Final Four basketball tournaments, trade and consumer shows, conventions, concerts, motor sports, and rodeos.

Tests on the distinctive tray will carry on in the coming days as the opening of Cardinals Stadium nears.

“Some days we will move it a little and some days we won’t move it at all,? added Aylesworth. “We’ll continue to cycle it some days, but it is a whole laborious, technical process at the end of which the contractors and engineers are comfortable that it works to meet the expectations of everybody.?

Thus far the engineers and design team are pleased with the way things have turned out and do not foresee any issues.

“This is by far the most interesting and exciting project,? proclaimed Lloyd. “From the drawing board, trying to figure out how to get the field in and out with the design team, and just being a part of it. This is the first one piece movable field in the states and to be a part of it is exciting.?

In addition to hosting Cardinals games, the stadium will host Super Bowl XLII in February of 2008 (www.azsuperbowl.com). It will also be the annual site of the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl and will host the first-ever Bowl Championship Series title game in January of 2007. The stadium will have a seating capacity of approximately 63,000 with the ability to expand to 73,000 for mega-events.


There must be some serious advantages to having natural grass if the Cardinals were willing to spend tens of millions of dollars in having a "field tray" of natural grass that can move out of the dome to get sunlight.