ASHEBORO — The Asheboro City Council has unanimously approved the installation of a synthetic infield surface at McCrary Park, home of the Asheboro Copperheads.

The project was approved by the seven-member council on March 4 nd work is scheduled to begin at the history-rich 62-year old facility on March 8.

Felix Ward, director of Asheboro’s cultural and recreation services department, said the installation process will take approximately eight weeks and the projected date of completion is May 3. The Copperheads are set to open the 2010 season at home on May 26 against the Wilmington Sharks. It will be the first artificial surface in the Coastal Plain League.

“We’re obviously very pleased and excited that the City has decided to move forward with the project this spring and we’re proud to be the first team in the CPL to have such a playing surface,” said David Camp, Copperheads general manager. “It is not only going to benefit the Copperheads, but it’s going to be something that’s going to have a long-term positive impact for the City of Asheboro and Randolph County. It should help open a lot of doors in our efforts to bring high-profile baseball events to Asheboro in the future.”

McCrary Park is already scheduled to host this year’s N.C. State American Legion Tournament to be held July 24 through July 28.

Ward explained to the council that the initial phase of the approximately $250,000 project will involve excavation of the current natural surface and installment of a drainage system and base for the turf. Once that is complete the surface itself will be installed. Each phase of the project is expected to take about four weeks, according to Ward.

The new surface is being bought from and installed by FieldTurf Tarkett, a company based in Georgia but with an office located in the Charlotte area. Over the past decade, the company has emerged as the leader in the synthetic athletic playing field industry, not only in the United States but worldwide.

FieldTurf is a relatively new brand of artificial turf with a design intended to replicate real grass. It is now used by many professional football and baseball teams in the United States, as well as by a large number of colleges and universities. Appalachian State University in Boone has FieldTurf on both its football and baseball facilities, which were visited by a group of Asheboro City officials last fall when they first began to consider the McCrary Park improvement project.

“I think everyone will be blown away by how much this turf looks and feels like a natural surface,” said Camp. “It’s going to be a real treat for players to play on. The days of bad infield hops at McCrary Park are over.”

The surface is composed of monofilament polyethylene blend fibers tufted into a polypropylene backing.

The infill is composed of a bottom layer of silica sand, a middle layer which is a mixture of sand and cryogenic rubber and a top layer of only rubber. The fibers are meant to replicate blades of grass, while the infill acts as a cushion.

This cushion improves safety when compared to earlier artificial surfaces and allows players to plant and pivot as if they were playing on a grass field.

Proponents of the surface also cite its low-cost maintenance and durability, points made by Ward during his bid recommendation to the Asheboro council on March 4.

The park’s outfield surface will remain natural grass, but the synthetic surface will be installed from the infield in through the dugout areas.

The pitcher’s mound will remain natural. All field markings, including the foul lines and batter’s box, will be inlaid in the turf.

The traditional dirt portion of the infield will be synthetic, but will be colored a brownish red, taking on the appearance of a dirt surface.

McCrary Park is owned by the Acme-McCrary Corporation, a nationally-prominent hosiery manufacturer headquartered in Asheboro.

The city leases the park, which is not only the home field for the Asheboro Copperheads, but also for Asheboro High School and the Randolph County Post 45 American Legion teams.

While the City is shouldering the largest percentage of the total cost, it is getting help from other sources, with the Copperheads being the largest contributor.

Ward told council members that the city has already received formal pledges totaling $70,000, the largest amount coming from the Copperheads, but also sizeable ones from both Acme-McCrary and the Asheboro Kiwanis Club, which sponsors the local American Legion program. Asheboro City Schools has also agreed to make a contribution toward the project.

Ward said that the turf “basically pays for itself in five or six years,” when one figures the cost of annual upkeep on the infield and the cost of upgrades that would have been required without the new turf.

The turf has an eight-year warranty and life expectancy of 12-15 years.