Lexington Christian football joins wave of schools choosing artificial turf field
Due to delays with the installation of its new artificial turf football field, Lexington Christian’s home opener on Friday has been moved to Henry Clay High School for its matchup against Belfry.
The new field is expected to be ready for LCA’s Sept. 9 game against Christian Academy-Louisville.
LCA is among a number of schools to opt for artificial turf this season and not the first to have problems with getting the new field installed in time for their first home kickoff.
Mason County, Shelby County and Raceland also had to move home dates during the first two weeks of the season. For LCA, the problem was simply a matter of too much rain at a crucial moment during the installation.
“The bad weather came at the worst time in the process,” LCA Athletics Director Terry Johnson said, explaining that stone that helps provide a base and drainage for the field had not yet been put down in late July and early August and thus heavy equipment could not be put on the graded area until it was dry. “We were worried about shipping (of materials), but that hasn’t hurt us in the process.”
The calculus of choosing artificial turf over a grass field has become easier for school systems over the years when weighing a $750,000 to $1 million expense that’s expected to last at least a decade against the constant upkeep and worry over managing a grass field through weather and wear.
Aside from mowing, seeding and fertilizing, grass fields also require regular painting to get them ready for game day, Johnson said. While LCA has employees to mow its athletic fields, many schools rely on coaches and volunteers to keep their grass fields in shape, requiring hours and hours of work. Artificial turf wipes out those needs and makes the field usable for multiple athletic or other functions.
“I don’t know that it’s a dollar-for-dollar savings, but the savings of taking care of a grass field from all of those elements … it’s close to a wash over a 10-to-12 year period on all the things you have to spend money on, be it sod, fertilizer, seed, paint, labor, cutting the grass, those types of things.”
LCA twice moved home playoff games over the last few years because heavy rains the week of the game could have potentially destroyed the surface if hundreds of cleats tore up the slippery surface.
Frederick Douglass famously played in a mud pit Coach Nathan McPeek called “the worst field I’ve ever coached on” during the Class 5A state playoffs at Southwestern in 2020. That’s no longer a concern as both Southwestern and sister school Pulaski County installed turf for this season.
Schools like Boyle County and Madison Southern replaced existing turf surfaces as their old ones reached the end of their lifespans. Lafayette had been scheduled to do so, as well, but the timetable for the Generals’ new surface was pushed to after this season.
At Boyle County, the new turf also created an opportunity to move its softball program to its own facility and discontinue the practice of playing softball in one corner of the football field. The new Boyle softball field will be all turf, as well, joining schools like Clark County, which chose artificial surfaces for all of its outdoor sports.
Meanwhile, Estill County replaced its entire stadium and Trinity added a new video board to go along with its new surface.
Here’s a rundown of some of the new artificial turf surfaces installed for this football season around Kentucky: Eminence, Estill County, Green County, Boyle County, Mason County, Montgomery County, Southwestern, Leslie County, Lexington Christian, Madison Southern, Paducah Tilghman, Pulaski County, Raceland, Shelby County, Shelby Valley and Trinity.
This story was originally published September 1, 2022 at 7:31 AM.
