For your consideration in this decision - I have been playing soccer at the
Mayfield turf fields in Palo Alto since they opened last year, and can give
you an first-person review of how they compare to grass.

* They offer a perfectly flat playing surface that is wonderful for ball
sports
* They are playable in all weather, including heavy downpours
* Falling down is definitely not pleasant. You can get a nasty abrasion
from even a minor fall.
* I have seen a larger number of muscle pulls and tears in adult players,
but fewer ankle sprains than playing on bumpy grass fields.
* The rubber crumbs that make up the base smell very bad in hot weather (at
least for the first summer) and get carried home in shoes.
* The heat on the turf field is intense at temperatures above 70 degrees F
- much worse than grass

I don't have a position on turf vs grass for Encinal (if $$ were no object,
I would prefer well-tended grass), but as a parent of a Menlo Park student,
I strongly encourage field replacement of some kind. The dirt lots we call
fields at Encinal and Hillview don't fulfill their main purpose of
encouraging kids to exercise.

N. Goodman

_________________________________________________________________
i'm making a difference. Make every IM count for the cause of your choice.
Join Now.
http://clk.atdmt.com/MSN/go/msnnkwme0080000001msn/direct/01/?href=http://im.live.com/messenger/im/home/?source=hmtagline
Received on Tue Mar 27 14:38:31 2007