TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- The base’s softball diamonds are getting a ton of work done – as in 75 tons of sand for one field alone.
The approximately $16,000 project will improve all four softball fields north of the dorms, fitness coordinator Ira Anderson said. They include the most used fields, Champ and Field 1, along with Fields 2 and 3 to the east of them.
“Each infield is going to have one and a half tons of debris-free dirt mixed with Turface, which is the stuff that soaks up the water,” Anderson said. “The field crew will come out here and level it off where it’s nice and even.”
Player safety is a big factor in the work, he said. Outfield divots will be filled in and the soil leveled. The plan also calls for leveling the fields’ lips where the borders of the infield dirt and outfield grass meets. Evening them up will reduce trip hazards, he said.
Infield work will also include tilling and laser grading to maximize drainage.
Due to funding delays, the improvements will begin in late August or early September after the softball season ends.
“Better late than never, but we’ll have all the infields and the outfields looking sharp,” Anderson said. “We’ll have it all squared up so that when the spring rolls back around we’ll be ready to rock ‘n’ roll.”