After years of wear and damage, Berkeley High School’s turf football field received a renovation over the summer, giving the school’s heavily used athletic field a new surface for the years to come. The two-million-dollar BHS Field Replacement Project, led by Berkeley Unified School District and CORE Construction, included removing and disposing of the old worn out turf and preparing the ground for the new installation. This new renovation is almost three times the cost of the last turf replacement in 2018, which cost seven hundred thousand dollars.
One major difference between the new turf and the old is the material of the infill. During the renovation, the former recycled tire infill — which gives the field a black color — was replaced with cork. Cork infill is a more expensive alternative, but is also regarded as being more environmentally sustainable and chemical-free, as opposed to tire infill. The new cork material has a shorter lifespan, so athletes can expect more infill displacement as a result, but will also reap the benefits of a natural material.
According to BHS athletic director Ross Parker, the old field was “Verging on dangerous, with patches coming up and seams ripping,” he said. The field is used by a multitude of BHS sports and physical education classes, starting in zero period and often remaining in use until about 9 to 9:30 p.m.
“It is entirely possible that the turf in Jacket stadium gets more use than any field in the country given the number of sports, the weekend groups out there, PE, and others using it,” Parker said.
For BHS senior lacrosse player Mire Vu-Beavers, the condition of the old turf was noticeable during games and practices. “I am excited because the old turf had a lot of patches and spots that are used very frequently in lacrosse,” Vu-Beavers said, “It was pretty worn down in areas that we needed it to not be worn down in.”
The uneven surface also affected how she played. Vu-Beavers said that there were areas where the turf was lifting, making her more conscious of where she was stepping. “There were times where I felt like I’d be very conscious of where my footing was just because I didn’t want to trip,” Vu-Beavers said.
The new turf has addressed some of those concerns — Vu-Beavers says she expects the biggest difference to be consistency, especially since the old field had become worn in high traffic areas.
However, not all athletes have been happy about the new transition. For BHS junior Natalie Jones, playing as forward and midfielder in field hockey, adjusting to the new turf has been more difficult. “The new turf is a lot slower for field hockey,” Jones said, “It’s really frustrating because the things that you can usually do on other fields you can’t do on this field.” Jones also mentioned that the new turf has affected the movement of the ball. She pointed to the large amount of turf pellets on the field, which she said often get stuck in her shoes and “drag down the ball.”
The difference has forced Jones to change parts of her playing style; she said she has had to work more on her skills to compensate for the new surface. “I have so many habits that I’m used to doing and they don’t work out on the new field,” Jones said.
Traction has also been a concern for some players. Jones described the new turf as “really slippery” and finds herself slipping when changing directions.
BHS junior Callahan Ford has been on the field weekly for football practice, and is in support of the new turf installation. “I do think that overall the field was a good investment for the school to make and we just need to get used to it for the time being because it’ll lay down and seem more like the feel from last year,” Ford said, addressing the initial learning curve others spoke about.
Parker described the old turf as one that had “run out of lives” and that replacing it was necessary to provide athletes with a more reliable surface. While the new turf has solved some of the safety and maintenance problems of the old field, athletes are still adjusting to the new feel and how it plays.