Cool....Originally Posted by GabrielHurl
A Wembly fall change over does not compare to this time of the year here.
Cool....
A Wembly fall change over does not compare to this time of the year here.
Acceptable
Then we'll discuss it. That's what we do.
What I'm suggesting, as has been suggested by others, is that based on past TFC experience, and the experience of supporting other teams, it would be wise for those who actually remain with the team for years/decades (i.e. the supporters) to remain vigilant in watching how the pitch reacts to circumstances.
As we have seen, it is up to us to keep management honest. Wish it was different, but so be it.
They wanted to allow a horse inside the stadium and gallop along the sidelines during the Grey Cup game lol apparently it's a Calgary thing at their games in Calgary and it seems CFL fans are up in arms that BMO Field is not allowing that lol.
sightlines from these seats aren't as bad as i imagined ... still would pay $ to sit up there on a cold november night
They may not let people in the 300's mingle with the top of the south stand. Looks like a totally independent section with temporary concession stands and portable toilets set up.
Yup no room for the galloping horse, nor for the Ottawa log cutting (which they like to do after a touchdown). We all knew a CFL field could barely get shoehorned into BMO field, makes sense there's no room for that. But many CFL fans (and band waggoners who don't seem to know much about the whole thing) are losing their shit about it.
Some are even saying, well then BMO Field shouldn't get any more Grey Cups. Well if you really twist my arm, I might agree to that LOL. I wonder if banning the horse also has a bit to do with not tearing up the pitch, but they're afraid to say that...?
Last edited by Auzzy; 11-26-2016 at 06:06 PM.
This is exactly where I am. we have been fortunate with the weather this year and it looks like that good fortune will continue. The grounds crew have done an excellent job. But when we get normal weather, there is a real risk the CFL will tear the pitch up. In the past, those incidents have resulted in artificial turf being installed at CFL fields. We must be vigilant, to maintain A) that it is a soccer first facility, B) standards and conditions - no slippage on the various commitments and C) to prevent disastrous decisions - like letting a horse in or a push for turf.Then we'll discuss it. That's what we do.
What I'm suggesting, as has been suggested by others, is that based on past TFC experience, and the experience of supporting other teams, it would be wise for those who actually remain with the team for years/decades (i.e. the supporters) to remain vigilant in watching how the pitch reacts to circumstances.
As we have seen, it is up to us to keep management honest. Wish it was different, but so be it.
In the meantime, cant wait for wednesday
Please tell me there will be porta-potties
Yes there are, a row of them at the back of the stand.
Remember The Man, The Legend, The Goal 5-12-07 and All That #9 Left On The Pitch, Thanks For The Memories !!!
BMO Field's grass whisperer silences skeptics. http://google.com/newsstand/s/CBIw7d6nozI
Yeah I read that article yesterday, very interesting. We shall see I guess -- on Wednesday, and next year if the weather is a bit more normal than this year. (I.e., more rain, especially on CFL & TFC game days. Perhaps also some CONCACAF or national team games squeezed into a tight schedule with bad weather. Dear Robert Heggie, you won't shut up the skeptics until after that.)
On thing that really surprised me in this article -- that the grass needs to be replaced after the outdoor hockey game? Outdoor NHL has been played on plenty of grass fields, do they always have to be replaced? I thought that they would let the grass go dormant beforehand, and that a few days of being covered wouldn't matter. It's really too bad that the grass needs to be replaced. The existing pitch wasn't great in the beginning of this season, and really improved with time (except for some obvious damage in spots).
Another thing that interests me in the Laura Armstrong article about the pitch: "Peter Church (stadium general manager) estimates Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment has spent more than $7 million in total on grow lights, Supaturf, the cover and tools for maintaining the pitch. That’s money well spent, he adds."
This leads me to something I've long been concerned about wrt. the stadium share: many of these investments in grass technology, as well as the backup pitch growing near Hamilton and extra staff expenses (both not included in the above total) are being done to make Argos at BMO possible. MLSE does not own the Argos, so why are they covering the full $7 million? MLSE expects a certain return long-term from TFC. Are we (TFC fans) subsidizing the Argos long-term, via higher ticket prices and/or lower expenses on players, to avoid or repair field damage caused by the Argos & CFL?
What if we have a bad year weather-wise, and the pitch needs to be replaced once or twice with sod trucked up from Hamilton after the Argos destroy it: does our subsidy increase? And/or will Toronto tax payers subsidize the Argos, due to higher stadium expenses cutting into the return the city earns on BMO Field?
Last edited by Auzzy; 11-27-2016 at 10:02 AM.
We needed those investments even without the Argos. Anyone remember the pitch for Defoe's first home game in 2014? It was an embarrassment. MLS season starts in March, after a harsh winter it is very difficult to have a decent pitch ready in time.
Now I don't know if MLSE would've invested in grow lights, a cover, etc if the Argos weren't coming, but I'm glad we now have the same tools as the top clubs in the world.
Yes I realize that TFC needed some of the investments anyway, and we can be happy about those. I still don't think MLSE should be paying for all of them. For example, w/o Argos we definitely wouldn't need Supaturf (special paint & paint removal system). We wouldn't need a backup pitch in Hamilton, pre-paid and at the ready to be deep-cut & installed within a few days. (Very different from the stuff which was temporarily installed for Real Madrid, or the stuff that is usually used for spot repairs.)
I'm sure there are other pitch-related staff or equipment costs which are Argos-specific. And everything else that benefits both teams, should be paid by both teams.
There's lots of room for messy financial issues, especially when one team (the Argos) is doing so much worse at the gate than expected, and has been a financial basket case for years.
Last edited by Auzzy; 11-27-2016 at 12:34 PM.
The Argos have no money. That's why they freeloaded for many years at the Dome. The Jays made money off of the concessions, not what minimal rent was paid.
I still believe these changes were made to make BMO a regular on the outdoor NHL circuit. The other potential revenue streams for the primary tenant are secondary to those cash cows. And as we have seen in that discussion by the grounds keeper, the outdoor game kills the grass.
I would also note this bit from the interview in the Star.
i.e. If the powers that be schedule things too tight and the Argos succeed (have an Eastern playoff for example), they might have to bring in new sod, in early November. That's why its really important to keep watching just to see. They do a great job, cool. It rains or snows at inopportune times and things still hold up, cool.Heggie had a backup plan in place this season, using turf that grows in the Hamilton area, but has never needed it.
“If there was CFL playoffs here and other things happening and the timeline was a little tighter, something might have happened,” he said.
But, its not just the turf wizards we are discussing here. Its also the schedulers. MLS bent over backwards to accommodate TFC this season. If we hadn't made the Eastern final, people would be wondering why this game was played on a weeknight. That's great. But, at some point in the foreseeable future of TFC at BMO (20 years), if this ground share sticks, there is going to be a misstep by somebody schedule wise. Does anybody fully expect that 20 years from now that anybody currently in their position with TFC is still going to be around? To go 20 years without such a move would be unusual. And, when that happens, its up to the supporters to go - 'Hey, hang on a minute here.'
That's why the grass wizards may say "We'll silence the skeptics." and I'll still watch to see.
The winter classic games seem like a bit of a fad to me - not likely to sustain the appeal. I wouldn't worry about that even if it lasted. The Argos IMO aren't going to last long term at BMO...Toronto wants an NFL franchise and Argos will either fold or move in with wherever the new team plays. The longterm issue for BMO is that it's not big enough to host a world cup match. A MLS cup win and sustained competitiveness could see TFC crowds grow to 40-50k per game. We'll need a big north stand and expansion of the south stand and corners to get there.
The grey cup has only been on 10 mins and you can already see all the divits being ripped out of the pitch.
Fwiw, there were divots during Argo games as well. The issue will be the amount and the recovery time.
i dont care if we play on a farm field weds.jus win the game
Fucking barbarians... get your own field.
It really does sound like they've done everything humanly possible – in terms of money and manpower – to make the situation work. Given how well this season has played out, I think we owe them the benefit of the doubt that they know what they've doing.
That being said, this 3-day turnaround between the Grey Cup and the Eastern Final is going to be their biggest test so far. If the pitch is fine on Wed, I really think they will have proven themselves 100% and we should sort of let his issue die (providing they keep doing things with the same high level of resources and commitment).
If they can recover that pitch by Wednesday they will have earned their paycheck. Those CFLers are tearing it up something rotten.
At least it's not raining or snowing. That would have really messed it up.
That's been on my mind the whole game, extraordinarily lucky.
This game pretty conclusively shows why there should not be a field share. Near perfect conditions and the field is still being damaged extensively. Not beyond repair, but extensively. Now imagine a wet summer.
there is a nice little stadium down the road at Lamport argos should really consider it!!
Nah for sure we won't let the issue die until we see how the field holds up & is repaired after a couple of rainy CFL games. Do you remember how often we had rain during TFC games in previous seasons? This year was very unusual weather-wise. Also we'll see how scheduling goes in future years. A ton of TFC games early in the season, when the weather generally sucks, to leave more schedule room for CFL (and possible CONCACAF etc.) during the summer & early fall when the weather is much better? Any difficulties fitting CONCACAF & the like into the schedule on short notice? We shall see.
Some of the ads on the field look pretty awful tonight, all chewed up.
Also, I'm seeing lots of grass torn up as others have mentioned. With only 3 days to recover, I think we will have lots of green sand & green paint on the field, to have things at least look good on Wednesday.
The paint is being scraped off of the logos. Its not like its whole swaths of grass coming up like in that game back in March 2014, but there are bits being brought up by cuts and turns. The south end zone looks the most ugly.
The grass is significantly longer then it will be on Wednesday.
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