Holt Field suffers abuse from a multitude of sports, as seen in the many dirt patches and potholes. Photo courtesy of junior Jackson Sullivan.

  San Luis Obispo High School is getting ready for big changes at Holt Stadium with a new turf field and facility upgrades in the works. The turf field will replace the school’s current grass field for a more durable and safe alternative for soccer, football, and other athletics. Although the construction hasn’t officially begun, on October 29, a bid was posted, showing the project is getting closer to becoming a reality. 

  “I’m honestly pretty excited about the new field. It’s hard for all the sports to be using it year-round and the grass doesn’t really have time to grow back,” said junior Grady Garrison.

  The grass hasn’t been able to fully recover for years, as many SLOHS teams, such as football and girls soccer, have made CIF or even state to extend their season.

  “It’s awesome that our school is finally getting an upgrade like this. Playing and practicing soccer is going to be so much better during rain because we won’t have to worry about tearing up the field,” said junior Miles Blackwell.

  Wet grass has a higher rate of season-ending injuries compared to wet turf in a study done by the National Institutes of Health in 2022.

  “Even though some injuries like turf burns and turf toe are increased by having turf, I would rather play on something consistent rather than not,” said junior Finnegan Egan.

  With the bid officially posted, students and staff are getting excited. The new turf will give SLOHS athletes a consistent, safe, and high-quality home field that they can be proud of for years to come.

Source: pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov