Fixing Divots (and, "No, MSU isn't responsible for all the soccer fields")

The track and field events started on Friday, Aug. 15. When the turf was tested during a practice run in May (the Good Luck Beijing Games), the divots from the from the shot put were quite significant -- certainly big enough to disrupt a gold medal soccer match.

So the Chinese turf staff members will be busy at night repairing and replacing the divots. Since each divot will probably be only 2 to 4 inches wide, swapping out a module isn't necessary. (That would be like changing your golf shoes if you lost one spike.) Instead, the technicians will use a tool similar to the hole-cutter used to make a cup or hole in a putting green. The damaged area and 4 to 6 inches of soil will be removed and replaced with a fresh piece of a turf -- a "plug." No surprise to know that this is called "plugging" in turf lingo.

Trey Rogers (left) and Alec Kowalewski in front of the National Stadium (the Bird's Nest). The turf inside the Bird's Nest is the only field MSU is overseeing.

The removal of soil is key, as the turf is damaged, not dead, and the root system transfer is critical. If just the top is removed, there will have to be root regrowth, which is impossible in such a short time. The beauty of the plugging procedure with a modular field is that we can bring in just a few extra modules from outside and take plugs from them, moving the modules we we go.

The turf modules being moved into National Stadium. To patch divots from the shot put, workers will cut plugs from extra modules.

I have had people from back home contact me about the Olympic soccer matches they're seeing on TV. They're concerned because they see the turf in varied states and are worried that it's the turf MSU has been overseeing. (I see the games too and worry for the athletes in some cases.) Rest assured, the less than perfect turf you are seeing is not our turf. We are responsible only for one field -- the field in the National Stadium (the Bird's Nest). Grass is grass, and being a living entity, anything can happen over the next two weeks, but the National Stadium turf is our only field and right now it's beautiful.

-- Trey Rogers

Moving the Modules into National Stadium (More Detail)

Sunday morning, Aug. 10, the modules began their journey from the module nursery to the National Stadium (Bird's Nest). The first modules were placed in the stadium at 8 a.m.

Placing the modules on the floor of the stadium. Each module was carefully positioned and fixed into place.

Work was initially slow going because stadium workers were still breaking down the opening ceremony platform and setting up an unidentified structure that will be hidden under the field during the events. It's likely that the structure will be used in the closing ceremonies. Dr. Rogers, his daughter Rebecca, Dr. Zhao and Chris Scott, of GreenTech (the manufacturer of the modules), arrived Sunday morning to watch the move and make some final recommendations.

MSU turf researcher Trey Rogers (left) and Chris Scott, of GreenTech, inspect the field.

Work went on until about 6 p.m. that night and then started again at 8 a.m. on Monday morning. The pace got much faster on Monday because the stadium crew made way for the module movers. There were about 60 to 100 workers, 10 forklifts and countless trucks delivering, moving and placing modules -- the stadium looked like an ant colony crawling with activity.

Workers fixed the module seams with pitch forks and by hand, making the surface level by using tamps. The edges between the modules and the track were filled first with stone, then with sand and then covered with sod.

A worker fixes a seam in between modules by hand.

The edges between the turf and the track were filled in with stone and sand and then covered with sod.

Work continued into the night until the final modules were put in place at 4 a.m. on Tuesday morning (Aug. 12).

The grass looks good and is ready for play. Bring on the Olympians! The field will be used for track and field competition from Aug. 15-24 and wil be the site of the men's football (soccer to Americans) finals on Aug. 24.

After about 30 hours of work, the field is in and beautiful!

To celebrate the successful move-in, Dr. Rogers, Rebecca, Dr. Zhao, Heidi (my wife) and I went to watch softball at the Wukesong Cultural and Sports Center. We saw Canada beat Chinese Taipei 6 to 1, then saw the United States beat Venezuela by mercy ruling in the fifth inning.

-- Alec Kowalewski

The Field Moves and Is in Great Shape

The turf modules were moved into the National Stadium in about 30 hours -- 12 hours on Monday and 18 hours on Tuesday. Everyone was in a very good mood on Tuesday night, even after working 18 hours.

The workers were very well organized and it was a very smooth transaction. The field is in good shape and is in good condition, which is excellent considering the weather.

Now we can really say "job well done." Everyone here is very happy!

-- Weijun Zhao and Trey Rogers

Alec Kowalewski took the photos below of the crew installing the modules in National Stadium at 2 a.m. on Aug. 12.

Final Preparation

The environment here is relentless. The temperatures and humidity are still very high and the hazy atmosphere keeps the turfgrass damp. The conditions are quite poor for managing grass. We're applying a number of liquid fertilizers and fungicides to nurse the grass along. China Sports Installation (CSI), the company I'm working with, is working around the clock at the stadium and at the turfgrass nursery. Yesterday we made our final fertilizer and fungicide applications and did a final mowing before the modules are moved.

The final mowing of the turf modules.

CSI is prepping the field for the move, which means that the spare modules were moved to the side and flags were placed into the corner of each module. The flags and the numbers written on the sides of the modules will ensure they're placed in the stadium in the same order and orientation.

Marking the turf modules to get them ready to move into the stadium.

Tomorrow we begin moving the modules early in the morning and plan to work late into the night. Dr. Rogers and Chris Scott, from GreenTech, the company that designed and manufactured the modules, are arriving today to help with the moving process.

-- Alec Kowalewski

Transforming Beijing

It's amazing how fast the scenery changed here. Our neighborhood has undergone an immense transformation since May.

The Beijing city center after being spruced up.
(Photo by Heidi Kowalewski)

The slums that weren't demolished have been masked by tall and decorative metal walls, most with the signature Olympic characters and other images and figures in celebration of the games. I suppose they couldn’t get rid of all the shantytowns; the massive migrant population needs somewhere to live while working. The migrants have been the key labor force building up the city in preparation for China's moment in the sun.

New brick sidewalks have been laid down by hand on almost every street. All sorts of foliage and flowers have been hung and planted on and over every patch of earth. Every park has received a facelift. Also, countless businesses have opened and many are still being built. I was most excited about the new Pizza Hut and the new coffee and doughnut shop that opened near our apartment.

The coffee and doughnut shop is awesome. American music plays inside. The coffee is very high quality -- delicious! -- and the doughnuts are even better. The owner really wants our business; she's always forcing free doughnuts on us. Though I initially say no thanks, of course I can never resist. I hope her business is successful. We never see very many other customers. Drinking coffee is a costly luxury that only the more affluent Chinese citizens can afford. But the prices are equivalent to what we'd pay in a nice shop in the States. One coffee costs about 30 yuan, which is a lot of money to a Chinese person. We definitely come out winners with the exchange rate. One U.S. dollar equals about 7 yuan.

All of the Western style restaurants in the city are too expensive for the average native, with the exception of McDonald's and KFC. I have paid 7 to 50 yuan for a single meal in traditional Chinese restaurants; in the Western-style restaurants I've paid 120 to 250 yuan for my meal. The pleasure of eating something comfortingly familiar is definitely worth the extra cash. By word of mouth and some exploring, we've discovered Italian, German, TexMex, Irish, Australian, and good old traditional American cuisine scattered around the city. Now we have Pizza Hut a few blocks away.

Alec in Beijing in front of a new Olympic mural.
(Photo by Heidi Kowalewski)

In Beijing, Pizza Hut is considered a touch classier than how it's viewed back home. I would say it's more like eating at the Olive Garden. The pizzas themselves are a little disappointing though. They don’t put enough sauce on them and offer non-traditional toppings such as shrimp, crab, tuna and shredded beef. I stick to the vegetarian, but even that's covered with corn and pineapple. Of course if I could speak Chinese I would customize my pizza, but alas, I can't.

I don’t know if I’m getting used to people staring, or if Chinese people are getting used to seeing foreigners and are not staring as much. I think it’s the latter. My wife and I both have noticed a surge of foreign faces, even in our neighborhood. The city is filled with officials, professionals and athletes here for the games. And there are also the fancy folk who, unlike us, could actually afford tickets to the events. All of the extra people make it a little difficult to travel around the city now. It's hard to get a taxi and the subway cars are a claustrophobic nightmare. I’m not claustrophobic, but I do get uncomfortable being packed so tightly together with other people. And sometimes people don’t smell so good after a 96-degree day.

I was very excited about this trip when I first arrived in the city. I was looking forward to having an exotic experience with my wife. However, after we had visited every tourist location within traveling distance, had eaten Chinese food every day for weeks on end, and had no friends to socialize with, my excitement waned. But, I am happy to say that I have regained that initial enthusiasm this past week. My wife and I have been visiting the busy city center to share in the exhilaration and enjoy the celebratory atmosphere. People are waving flags and donning patriotic clothing. Everyone is so happy and every face has a smile. I'm very privileged to have had the chance to be a part of this great event.

-- Alec Kowalewski

As Temperatures Rise, So Does Olympic Fever

The lowest daily temperature over the last week was 86 degrees F and the forecast calls for a high of 95 degrees F or warmer for this whole week.

A low mowing height makes for a very dense and uniform turfgrass stand, but it adds another stress to an already stressed plant, making management this time of year even more difficult.

As Mother Nature dries out the surrounding landscape, we're battling to keep the grass green and disease-free. The Olympic Games require the turf to be mowed at a very short height, which makes keeping the grass healthy and green during these extreme temperatures even more difficult. A short mowing height gives the athletes a very dense and uniform turfgrass surface. With these extreme temperatures, it's important to irrigate to keep the grass healthy, but too much water creates the ideal conditions for diseases to develop. So we have to make our irrigation light and as uniform as possible.


Frequent, light and uniform irrigation is needed to stop the grass from going into summer dormancy, but too much water increases the potential for diseases to develop.

Fungicides must be regularly applied to prevent this cool-season grass from being overtaken by disease in the hot and humid Chinese climate.


Olympic fever is sweeping across Beijing. Decorations, billboards and signs with Olympic rings, athletes and symbols are popping up everywhere -- sometimes overnight. Subway stops and street corners are now home to Olympic volunteers eager to direct tourists. Security across the city is tightening; subway gates are now equipped with x-ray equipment and metal detectors. The number of people using the subway and bus systems has gone up dramatically because of a temporary traffic law designed to improve air quality for the Olympic games. The law says that drivers with even license plate numbers can drive only on even days and drivers with odd license plate numbers can drive only on odd days. We're wondering how this will be enforced in a area with a population of 17 million people. I'm leaving these problems to the police and focusing on the grass.

-- Alec Kowalewski

July 2008 -- Keeping the Turf Disease-free

Beijing is very hot in July -- temperatures are regularly higher than 90⁰ F every day (the warmest day so far was 107⁰ F). We're also having regular thunderstorms.

The combination of high temperatures and wet soil are perfect conditions for disease to develop. The modular field is made up of Kentucky bluegrass, which does great in a cool-season environment like Michigan. Beijing's hot temperatures and the low mowing height we're using puts the grass under a lot of stress, which makes it even more susceptible to disease.

We're using an integrated disease management program to keep the turf healthy. This includes fungicides and light but regular fertilization. The root zone of the turf is sand-based, which prevents the soil from holding extra water. This also helps reduce the risk of disease.

At 6 a.m. every morning I inspect the field for disease. I've also been in contact with local golf course superintendents and several Michigan State faculty members and alumni who are pathology experts to ensure that the field is in the best possible conditions for the Olympics.

-- Alec Kowalewski

June 2008 -- A Few Small Repairs

After the Good Luck Beijing Open competition, the field required some minor repairs to get it back in shape. We did this after the field was moved back to the nursery site. We used cup cutters (tools used to make putting green holes) to replace the spots that were damaged by the shot-put, javelin and hammer-throw. We also had to use a number of cultural practices to get the field back into tip-top shape for the Olympics. We sliced the turf to disrupt the thatch layer and improve drainage, and topdressed and rolled it to smooth the playing surface. We also regularly fertilize, irrigate and mow the turf to keep the grass looking good.

-- Alec Kowalewski

May 2008 -- Modular Field Moves

On May 13, the modular field was moved into the National Stadium (aka the Bird's Nest) for about 10 days so it could be used for a trial event, the Good Luck Beijing Open. It took the construction company, as well as the Chinese Army and Navy, which provided trucks and drivers for the moving process, only 24 hours to move the entire field.

In the photo above, taken by Heidi Kowalewski, Alec stands in front of the National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest because of its unique exterior.

One army truck can hold 10 modules. It took more than 500 trips from the nursery, which is about 5 miles from the stadium, to move the entire field. The move wasn't only a practice run for the module movers and field crew, but also gave local Chinese, who may not be able to afford tickets to the Olympics, a chance to check out the National Stadium.

At the Good Luck Beijing Open, athletes from around the world competed in track and field events in the stadium. During the competition, field work, mowing, irrigation and divot repair had to be done at night. We started at 11 p.m. and worked until the job was done, sometimes until 4 a.m.

After the competition was over, the field was moved back to the site where it was constructed. It will stay there until after the opening ceremony. The move back also was completed within 24 hours.

-- Alec Kowalewski