Student Athletes Discuss Peninsula’s New Turf Field
On Sept. 19, the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District (PVPUSD) board approved the construction of a brand new turf field at Peninsula. The idea was proposed after many Peninsula families suggested the building of a turf field, seeing that Palos Verdes High School already had theirs constructed in 2017. The Peninsula turf field project officially began on Oct. 19, and the district has set aside $1 million for the project in addition to creating a GoFundMe attempting to raise another $250,000. PVPUSD believes that now is the best time to construct the field in light of many sports practices being canceled due to coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic regulations.
A turf field has various advantages, including playing time being less limited by harsher weather. For example, if it rains, there will not be the concern of mud covering the field. One other asset presented by a turf field is that it requires less resources to be maintained. Turf fields do not need to be watered or sprayed with pesticides, which will save money for Peninsula; eventually, the savings will equal to the initial amount spent. The flat surface that the turf field provides for smooth playing is an additional perk. Sophomore football player Nathan Ikegami greatly appreciates that the turf field will prevent any injuries normally caused by divots and holes in grass fields.
“I am really excited to be playing on a new turf field,” Ikegami said. “With a new, [level] field, many injuries caused by an uneven grass field will be prevented, which [shows] how beneficial it is.”
However, a turf field has significant drawbacks, such as the higher temperatures that come with it. According to Safe Healthy Playing Fields Inc., turf can be as high as 40 degrees warmer than natural grass fields. This is a major cause of concern as Peninsula is located in Southern California, an area known to reach high temperatures. This increased amount of heat could melt the rubber turf, which many players consider a nuisance, as it would stick to cleats and make it difficult to run. Additionally, the new field potentially poses a serious risk to athletes due to the possibility of heat exhaustion or heat stroke from the increased temperature, which raises the need for new protocols that may need to be implemented upon return to play. Sophomore and girls’ soccer player Rachel Snead is aware of the problems that may arise from the implementation of the turf field, but feels that the athletes will be able to adapt.
“With turf, it will be nice not getting green stains that come as a result of playing on grass,” Snead said. “However, I mainly dislike turf because of the rug burns I get after falling, but other schools already have these kinds of fields, so I think that the sports programs will be able to overcome these challenges.”
In contrast to Snead’s opinion, many athletes are pleased that they do not have to play on the natural grass field at Peninsula anymore. A common complaint of the previous grass field was that it hindered the performance of Peninsula’s soccer teams. Sophomore and girls’ soccer player Erin Munz believes the introduction of a turf field will remedy this issue.
“Personally, I prefer turf fields over grass fields,” Munz said. “The main reason why is you do not have to worry about unexpected bumps on the ground that can change the course of the ball.”
The construction of the field is scheduled to be completed by January, which will allow both soccer and football athletes to take advantage of it for the majority of their seasons. With this long anticipated development, many students have high expectations of what it will be like playing on the new field.
