Polar Vortex - What If and When?

[OgtheDim]

First home game is in less then 25 days.

And its freaking cold out there right now.

Yeah....yeah...I know...Ontario weather almost always has a thaw sometime before March Break.

But, this winter freeze has gone on for awhile and doesn't seem to be easing off.

So, I gots myself a series of questions:

How warm does it have to get to and by when does that have to happen for the field to be ready?

How warm does it have to get to and by when does that have to happen for the stadium to be ready?


And if the field and stadium are not ready, what are the alternatives according to league rules?

[Pint]

No idea but anything above -30 and i will be standing in my section (drinking some sort of hot alcoholic beverage)

[Initial B]

I heard that the long range forecast shows below seasonal weather up to March 17th...

[FluSH]

Hot Toddie's for everyone!

[Alonso]

No idea but anything above -30 and i will be standing in my section (drinking some sort of hot alcoholic beverage)

Problem is the stadium won't open for the game because the stadium isn't winterized, meaning no washrooms, and no concessions, and no go because that can't happen.

Game would most likely move to the skydome or move date(s).


EDIT: I would say anything in the +5 c in the forecast and the game goes ahead at BMO

[Redcoe15]

Shirts off!!!

[Yohan]

season opener vs Portland 3 yrs ago? was really cold, but I don't remember any issues with the stadium

[tfcleeds]

Might as well do a dress rehearsal for when we're hosting games in November!

[Alonso]

season opener vs Portland 3 yrs ago? was really cold, but I don't remember any issues with the stadium

Yeah you're right: http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate...th=3&cmdB1=Go#

It was -2 that day... game was on.

But if I remember correctly they had $100,000+ in water pipe damage which perpetuated the subsequent skydome games...

[Suds]

Jameson

That is all.

[Hustle]

we are putting jameson in the pipes to prevent water damage? Nice! you can buy alot of Jameson for less than $100000.

[Cashcleaner]

You know, when we're at home playing teams like Houston, Dallas, or LA and going through a local cold snap, that usually gives us a bit of a leg-up against the competition who normally train and play in much warmer climates (or at least milder compared to Toronto).

This year, though, we've got DC United and Colorado visiting in the months of March and April when our weather is usually at it's most extreme during the MLS regular season. Unfortunately, I doubt that's going to have much of a positive impact for Toronto as both teams experience similar climates and weather systems.

As for the readiness of the pitch and facilities at BMO Field, I'm confident we won't have any issues, but if they do arise I'm pretty sure there is an agreement with Rogers Centre to host an emergency match or two if it's needed.

[Cas87]

As long as it is sunny and anything at or above -5 C then the game will be at BMO

[FluSH]

Shirts off!!!

LMAO

[hulkrogan]

Good thing the geniuses at league HQ have said "Not if, but when" to a winter schedule. I hope they have been paying attention to this winter and noticing how many games would have been cancelled or had about 10 fans show up league wide.

[Fort York Redcoat]

There is no chance of the opener being moved.

[Phil]

The big concern for the game ops people will be the stadium. The grass has heating and should revive pretty well given a couple weeks (starting soon) of proper heating.

The water pipes need to be turned on for the south, East and north sides. The west side is in a heated building. The temp has to be warm enough to open the pipes. If we get a couple days before the opener that has moderate temps then it should be fine. The longer the pipes are on, the more resource they have to dedicate to having plumbers on call 24/7 during the cold.

[gdg_9]

According to this long-range forecasr, it should start to warm up (at least to + highs, and lows no colder than -5) by mid-March.
http://www.accuweather.com/en/ca/tor...onyr=3/01/2014


March 22 is forecasted to be +2 degrees and overcast.

It's going to be a cold one for sure... but hopefully warm enough to prevent any stadium issues.

[Waggy]

Hot Toddie's for everyone!

[Red CB Toronto]

After seeing the conditions in Denver last year that the USA and Costa Rica played in during their World Cup qualifier, nothing would surprise me in terms what scenario the Reds would play in.

[Heart of Stone]

The C.Rapids home-opener was snowed out last year... game delayed until the next afternoon... huge snow-banks lined the field.

[Abou Sky]

Good thing the geniuses at league HQ have said "Not if, but when" to a winter schedule. I hope they have been paying attention to this winter and noticing how many games would have been cancelled or had about 10 fans show up league wide.

I don't mind if they move to a winter schedule as long as it isn't within the next 80-90 years

[jazzy]

You know, when we're at home playing teams like Houston, Dallas, or LA and going through a local cold snap, that usually gives us a bit of a leg-up against the competition who normally train and play in much warmer climates (or at least milder compared to Toronto).

This year, though, we've got DC United and Colorado visiting in the months of March and April when our weather is usually at it's most extreme during the MLS regular season. Unfortunately, I doubt that's going to have much of a positive impact for Toronto as both teams experience similar climates and weather systems.

As for the readiness of the pitch and facilities at BMO Field, I'm confident we won't have any issues, but if they do arise I'm pretty sure there is an agreement with Rogers Centre to host an emergency match or two if it's needed.

what a total disappointment IF any games are held in skydome ! There are reasons it is a horrible sporting venue . Anyone who actually likes the place is an apologist or wealthy enough to drink through the complete game . My seasons are strongly because of BMO and our environment there........and while on topic IF we had to spend a season there for construction of a new stadium, (anyone thinking about that?), I'd prob miss many games or simply walk the concourse.......call me crazy...

[jazzy]

Good thing the geniuses at league HQ have said "Not if, but when" to a winter schedule. I hope they have been paying attention to this winter and noticing how many games would have been cancelled or had about 10 fans show up league wide.

this won't happen ...mainly because FIFA is now considering moving to a schedule similar to ours....

[jazzy]

The big concern for the game ops people will be the stadium. The grass has heating and should revive pretty well given a couple weeks (starting soon) of proper heating.

The water pipes need to be turned on for the south, East and north sides. The west side is in a heated building. The temp has to be warm enough to open the pipes. If we get a couple days before the opener that has moderate temps then it should be fine. The longer the pipes are on, the more resource they have to dedicate to having plumbers on call 24/7 during the cold.

it is the heat/cold , back and forth that pops the plumbing. some frozen pipes when thawed will pop, if they have/had any water in them, we need a gradual thaw . In the hydro outage some buildings had ALL their water shut-down and wouldn't revive the water until inside temp was 5 to 10 degrees (inside).(cold pipes). Hopefully there won't be a forecast of real cold following the opener, either . That said, it's all about this drastic winter , and who knows when we actually feel the heat . We'll all be peeing in a cup.

[Abou Sky]

Someone who knows more than me:

How hard is it to heat/insulate pipes?

[Abou Sky]

what a total disappointment IF any games are held in skydome ! There are reasons it is a horrible sporting venue . Anyone who actually likes the place is an apologist or wealthy enough to drink through the complete game . My seasons are strongly because of BMO and our environment there........and while on topic IF we had to spend a season there for construction of a new stadium, (anyone thinking about that?), I'd prob miss many games or simply walk the concourse.......call me crazy...

I wouldn't spend a season there, but if I had to choose between -10 and windy with snow or Skydome, I would pick Skydome

I REALLY don't get why they don't have the teams in colder climates play their first few games away and have them by-week heavy. It wouldn't be impossible to organize by any means, hopefully with Orlando coming in they will be able to make it happen.

[Initial B]

Someone who knows more than me:

How hard is it to heat/insulate pipes?

The treatment plant I used to work at used heat tracing on the pipes to keep the liquid from freezing. Think of it like resistance heating for pipes.

[james]

You know, when we're at home playing teams like Houston, Dallas, or LA and going through a local cold snap, that usually gives us a bit of a leg-up against the competition who normally train and play in much warmer climates (or at least milder compared to Toronto).

This year, though, we've got DC United and Colorado visiting in the months of March and April when our weather is usually at it's most extreme during the MLS regular season. Unfortunately, I doubt that's going to have much of a positive impact for Toronto as both teams experience similar climates and weather systems.

As for the readiness of the pitch and facilities at BMO Field, I'm confident we won't have any issues, but if they do arise I'm pretty sure there is an agreement with Rogers Centre to host an emergency match or two if it's needed.

Well Washington DC being much further south is actually quite a bit warmer in the winter months then Toronto, on average about 10 degrees warmer. But that said Washington can still get cold days and bad snow storms. Usually by middle and end march our temperatures are usually really warming up compared to beginning of March anyways. But this winter who knows, its been a bad one. Most likely I don't think anything to crazy tho.

Month of March
Washington Average high- +13
Average Low- +3

Denver Average High - +12
Average Low - -3

Toronto Average High- +5
Average Low- -4

[Cashcleaner]

^ Well now don't I look like a proper asshole.

To be honest, I'm really surprised with Denver having an average high of +12 in March. I mean, that city is sitting at a mile above sea-level!

As an aside, I believe we were playing Dallas in April 2013 and were going through a bit of a cold and wet spell here in Toronto. Dallas on the other hand was going through a warm and dry period, and had played four out of their five previous games either home or in an even warmer location. We ended up getting a draw from that match from an opponent who had 4 wins out of 5 up until that point and I wouldn't be surprised if weather played a noticeable role in that match.