September 2, 2010 – This season the Vikings’ Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome will feature a new Shaw Sportexe field. The new surface, called Momentum 51, is the latest generation of artificial turf designed to maximize player performance, speed and comfort.
The new field covers approximately 122,000 square feet. Designed to replicate natural grass, the Momentum 51 field consists of over a billion fibers that are 2.5 inches deep and a two-inch infill that is made up of a mixture of both sand and rubber.
“Momentum is a proven technology that is durable and will hold up under heavy usage. It also has the playability and performance characteristics of natural grass,” explained Bob Suvada, Shaw Sportexe’s sales representative.
After testing the field in a pre-season workout, Vikings Running Back Adrian Peterson commented, “It’s easier to run through it. Like I say, it feels pretty good, I like it a lot. He later added, “It’s a lot better to land on. The other surface was more firm, so this feels pretty good.”
Head coach Brad Childress also commented saying, “The masses liked it. That’s kind of why I wanted to talk to them beforehand. Just if anybody had [concerns about it being] too soft, too hard, too fast. Those kind of things. We were able to work through our normal Friday type of practice with the red zone and then kind of redo our short-yardage, goal line that type of thing. So it was good coming over here before we get back here on Saturday night. …They did a nice job installing it and it will be interesting to play on. I’m sure we’ll learn more as we get going full speed.”
The Vikings officially unveiled their new field in their preseason opener against the Seattle Seahawks on August 28th. The next scheduled regular season home game is set for September 19th against the Dolphins.
In commenting on the partnership, Tom Enright, Vice President of Shaw Sportexe, said, “We are thrilled to add the Vikings to our roster. They are a great organization and we can’t wait to see them play on our surface this season.”
All yard lines, numbers, hash marks and logos, including the Vikings’ mark, will be “painted” on the field for specific events.
“The Metrodome is a multi tenant facility. Momentum 51 provides the versatility we need for our varied events. We paint specific markings as required for each event.” – Steve Maki
Shaw Sportexe has also provided practice and stadium fields for other NFL teams, including the Ravens, Saints, Jets, Bills, 49ers and Steelers, as well as for colleges like Alabama, LSU, Arkansas, California and Georgia Tech.
Shaw Sportexe is a division of Shaw Industries Group, Inc, A Berkshire Hathaway Company.
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