THE FRONT ROW with MARK NELKE: A turf for all sports — and all conditions

It rained on Tuesday.

Normally, that would have been a big deal for two reasons.

One, it almost NEVER rains in August around here.

But in this case, with such poor air quality due to several wildfires in the area, every single drop of rain helps, so no one was complaining.

And two, the Coeur d’Alene Vikings had a home soccer match scheduled for Tuesday.

Two of them, actually.

On a grass field, the combination of morning rain, and a junior varsity match followed by a varsity match could have turned said grass field into a muddy bog — maybe great for pictures and fun for the players, but lousy for quality soccer play.

But not on Tuesday. Not at Coeur d’Alene High.

Thanks to the new artificial turf recently installed on the site of the football field, both soccer games went off without a hitch.

Two more soccer games are scheduled for the artificial turf field on Thursday, headlined by the Coeur d’Alene varsity boys soccer team vs. Lewiston at 6:30 p.m.

On Friday, the Coeur d’Alene High football team plays its first game on the new turf, hosting Rocky Mountain of Meridian at 7 p.m.

The schools’ JV and freshmen programs are also scheduled to meet on the new turf, with the JV game Friday at 3 p.m. and the freshman game Saturday at 3 p.m.

THAT’S A lot of games on the new field in a short period of time.

Exactly the point of the new field.

“The group that’s honestly going to use it the most is P.E. classes,” Coeur d’Alene High football coach Shawn Amos said. “Having a smooth, clean surface to do all the P.E. stuff on, and soccer’s playing on there …"

Construction of the new artificial turf field was supposed to completed by Aug. 1. But the project was delayed a bit in the spring, after the initial levy vote in March failed.

They had to wait to see if the levy passed in May. If not, no sports next school year, they were told.

“There’s no sense having a turf field if we don’t have sports,” Amos said.

Alas, the levy passed, and construction began in early June. They were supposed to break ground in May, right after the state track meet, so that put them some three weeks behind. But the project was completed in time for fall sports.

The field was paid for through private donations and corporate sponsors. Tax dollars were not used for the project, Amos said.

“None of the money from the levy was geared toward that (field),” Amos said.

FOOTBALL WISE, Amos said the Vikings will benefit by being able to practice on the artificial turf, rather than the grass field right next to the school and the gym.

“Just the ability to have a good surface all year for practice,” Amos said. “You’ve seen our practice field — it’s a mud pit by the end of October. It’s just trashed.

“But for us, practice is huge, to have a consistent surface to practice on, with all the lines and all the markings. You don’t have to be painting the practice field … ”

And for a team that, until last year, had reached the playoffs 13 straight seasons, having an artificial turf field helps late in the season, when rain (and sometimes snow) is a factor.

It hasn’t happened much, but sometimes playoff games are moved to the Kibbie Dome in Moscow because the team that is supposed to host has a field that has become the aforementioned “mud pit” — often after hosting an earlier playoff game in the elements.

“We’ve had some historic ones,” Amos said of home playoff games in the mud.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 208-664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @CdAPressSports.