| Report (surface)s about fix for UC track | By: By KENNETH COKER, Messenger Sports Reporter
| Posted: Monday, June 14, 2010 5:05 pm
| On the “surface,” it appears that the Rotary Relays could be back on “track” soon.
Union City Director of Schools Gary Houston told The Messenger on Sunday that a bid to repair the track at War Memorial Stadium has been submitted and that the wheels to fix the surface would be put in motion, pending a favorable vote on the consent agenda, at tonight’s school board meeting.
The ultimate result for area track and field fans and participants would be the revival of the Rotary Relays, the longest running track meet of its kind in West Tennessee — which would celebrate its 35th anniversary on the new surface.
This past spring, the Rotary Relays were taken off the schedule due to the deterioration of the track at War Memorial Stadium.
Houston said he expects the $62,630 bid by Pro Court in Huntsville, Ala., (the only submitted bid) to be accepted at tonight’s school board meeting, which is slated to begin at 6.
Houston went on to say that he expects the refurbishing of the track to be complete by the Twisters’ home football opener on Sept. 17 against Obion Central.
The Pro Court group is responsible for the tracks at Dyersburg, University School of Jackson and Tullahoma.
“We got good use out of the old track for 13 years, but we’re looking forward to a new surface,” Houston said. “For the purposes of running track, I think it will be one of the best in the area and it will complement the football field, allowing us to be a school system that can brag about the top football field in the state and one of the better tracks anywhere around.”
The new polysynthetic rubber-based track, which is slated to be mixed with salvageable materials from the old surface on the same asphalt base, will be gold. The plan calls for the current surface at War Memorial Stadium to be patched first. Then, the new gold layer will be put on top.
“I’m excited to see the track getting repairs,” UCHS principal and athletic director Wes Kennedy said. “Mr. Houston has been great to work for and how he goes about getting projects like this done shows how much he cares about the community and kids.
“There are a lot of folks that drive by the main strip up here at the school and we want the track and football stadium to stick out as a shining example of the facilities that our school system has.”
Kennedy also said that the repairs to the track will be a big relief when they are finished due to liability concerns.
The Union City Middle School track team hosted a couple of small meets — with restricted lane access — at the track, but the high school team elected not to due to worries over liability issues if all the lanes were to be used.
“I’m happy to see it being addressed,” UC track and football coach Darren Bowling said. “We really enjoy hosting the Rotary Relays each year and having a home meet, so we’re glad that will be an option for us again in the very near future.
“I know a lot of other schools in the this part of Tennessee and western Kentucky look forward to it because it’s one of the few meets that you don’t have to go to Jackson for.”
Sports reporter Kenneth Coker can be contacted by e-mail at kcoker@ucmessenger.com. | | | | |
