DUPLIN COUNTY, N.C. (WITN) -The time invested into keeping Thell B. Overman Field looking incredible for the Wallace Rose-Hill Bulldogs under the Friday Night Lights at Legion Stadium, is unmatched.
“It’s just something that if you don’t enjoy it, you won’t do it for long,” said Pete Blanton, Wallace Rose-Hill Field Maintenance Crew Member. “It’s been 42 years and I’ve enjoyed every second.”
“This is just as nice as some college fields,” said David Morgan, Wallace Rose-Hill Field Maintenance Crew Member. “When it comes to the detail, color, and to what’s put on this field.”
A lot has to be done to the field ahead of each home game before the boys can go to battle.
Lines, numbers, and hashmarks all have to be painted. That’s now easier than ever before, thanks to Turf Tank Robots.
“We just kept the field up for years,” Blanton said. “In the past three years we’ve let technology take over. It’s been nice to still be involved and not have to do as much.”
The autonomous GPS-guided robots are designed to paint athletic fields, but in less time than it’s taken volunteers like Morgan for over a decade.
“It took me 22 hours,” Morgan said. “It took Turf Tank about two hours.”
Morgan says he’s painted the Bulldog logo and field by hand since the 1990s. However, the torch was passed down from Blanton and the late Ivy Jones, who started in 1982.
Morgan and Blanton say they’re grateful for Turf Tank because painting by hand was physically tasking.
“It’s cool to have stuff done by hand but you can’t ignore what technology gives us,” Morgan said.
“We can only do things for so long,” Blanton said.
The Turf Tank Robot paints and outlines every inch of the field. However, Morgan, Blanton, and a few coaches from the Bulldogs coaching staff have to fill in the logo by hand.
From now on when you step into Legion Stadium and are mesmerized at the field, remember that while Turf Tank has made things easier, we can never forget those who laid the groundwork before technology came into the picture.
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