For almost 10 years I was that old fart who took care of the fields, and if I do say so myself, they were the best in the area. Then came the day when one of the dads decided he knew better than I and we had a push comes to shove moment. Not needing the drama, I quit and never looked back.
Until I quit, the original infield hybrid Bermuda grass was still there and looked as good as the day it was laid. Within 2 years the infield had to be ripped out and replaced, and 3 years later it’s being replaced again. This time the superintendent in charge of all the maintenance for the HOA approached me and asked what it would take for me to start doing it again.
When we talked about it, most of the problem was the users although well intentioned, didn’t grasp the fact that when you drag a field and get too close to the grass, it’s inevitable that the dirt will build up along the edges and eventually build up a “lip”. What I would do at least once every day was using a high pressure hose, rinse off any dirt getting on the IF grass, and once a month or so use it to get rid of any buildup everywhere else the dirt and grass met.
The other big problem was the grass in front of the mound getting destroyed. It’s inevitable that there will be damage from normal game use, but even though the maintenance supervisor supplied mats for when someone would be pitching in front of the mound, the lazy *!#@&s wouldn’t take the couple minutes necessary to put it down and pick it up when they were done.
So, since at almost 70 I’ve got little else to occupy my idle time, I’ve taken on the job again to give me something to do when I’m not scoring games. Hopefully the jackasses will be kept away from me and I’ll keep them from screwing the fields up again. 