JOHN NEYLAN JOHN NEYLAN
On tour in
New Jersey In addition to the many presentations and
symposiums held as part of the 13th International Turfgrass Research Conference, delegates were also given the opportunity to visit some of the region’s leading sports turf and research facilities. Above: New Jersey’s Red Bull Arena, home to MLS side New York Red Bulls, boasts a sand-based, perched water table pitch with a bluegrass/ ryegrass surface 44
A
s mentioned in my previous article, the 13th International Turfgrass Research Conference (ITRC) attracted nearly 500 delegates this past July. A key component of the ITRC, which is held in a different country every four years, is the day set aside for Technical Tours which visit a variety of turf facilities in the surrounding region. With the conference being held in New Jersey, delegates were fortunate to have the option of visiting some iconic New York venues such as Central Park and Yankee Stadium, along with the likes of the United States Golf Association Museum and Testing Facility. The tour that interested me most took in Red Bull Arena, home of Major League Soccer side New York Red Bulls, Bayonne Golf Club and Rutgers University’s impressive turf research facilities.
RED BULL ARENA The Red Bull Arena was opened in 2010 in Harrison, New Jersey and is home to the New York Red Bulls soccer team. The club was a founding member of Major League Soccer (MLS) in 1996 and was originally known as the New York/New Jersey MetroStars before eventually becoming the New York Red Bulls in 2006 after being bought by the Austrian energy drink conglomerate. In addition to
AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT 19.5
the New York Red Bulls, Red Bull owns three other football teams in Austria (Red Bull Salzburg), Brazil (Red Bull Brasil) and Germany (Red Bull Leipzig). Red Bull Arena and its associated training facilities are maintained by a staff of four which is headed by director of grounds, stadium and training facilities Dan Shemesh. Prior to working with the New York Red Bulls, Shemesh worked at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts with the New England Patriots NFL side, as well as seven years as assistant groundskeeper and then sportsfield director with the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles. The Red Bull Arena pitch is a sand-based, perched water table construction with the turf consisting of bluegrass and ryegrass which was of high density and high quality. While the playing surface had some initial problems with turf establishment (from solid turf) with several replacements necessary, it hasn’t been resurfaced since 2013 when replaced using ‘Super Sod’ (used for NFL pitches). The stadium has a seating capacity of 25,000 and hosts about 50 events a year including soccer (the MLS seasons runs from March-September), occasional rugby games and concerts. The field was originally used for training which compromised the quality and presentation of the surface and subsequently there has been a four hectare training venue established which means no training is conducted on the stadium surface. As with most modern stadia, shade is an issue, particularly at the southern end. While there is translucent sheeting used in the roof which extends just beyond the touchlines, it does not permit sufficient light through for active plant growth. To overcome the shade issues and to improve growing