AirHogs' New Turf Attracts More Events

Grand Prairie AirHogs' home stadium now open for events year-round

QuikTrip Park in Grand Prairie has a new look.

The home of the Grand Prairie AirHogs now features weather-resistant turf that allows the venue to host events throughout the year.

The $1.1 million project allows sporting events to continue just minutes after a storm. It can drain four inches of rainfall per hour, meaning the field can be playable in just about half an hour after it stops raining, Shinogle said.

"In the past, we would've been canceled or out of commission for probably two or three days," AirHogs President Scott Berry said.

Tim Shinogle, the city's park and planning development manager, said the park now can have events such as this weekend's college baseball games outside of the traditional nine-month period.

It also means up to $100,000 in savings.

"We don't have to overseed," Berry said. "We don't have to fertilize. We don't have to have as many groundskeepers during the year. We don't have to use as much water."

But the turf does have some drawbacks.

"It's going to be a little hotter to play on, and you are going to get, in the outfield, with some of the looping fly balls, you will get a higher bounce," Berry said.

Kansas will travel to QuikTrip Park this weekend for a four-game series against Eastern Michigan. The Jayhawks added the series after they had to cancel this weekend's Millard Management Jayhawk Classic in Lawrence, Kan., because of weather.

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