STEPHENVILLE – Tarleton track and field is set to receive a permanent home ahead of the 2022-23 athletics season. Austin-based Hellas Construction is creating a facility that will give the university a legitimate claim to having the best intercollegiate track surface in Texas.
Construction is underway at Harbin and Frey streets. The finished product will feature eight lanes and be outfitted with Hellas’ epIQ Tracks Z5000, one of only four systems certified by World Athletics, the international governing body for track and field.
The facility also will receive WA certification, making the university eligible to set world records and host professional and international meets sanctioned by World Athletics. Tarleton will join Texas A&M and UTSA as one of only three universities so certified in Texas and one of 10 in the U.S. to have WA Class I or Class II outdoor facilities.
The other programs are Arkansas, Auburn, Indiana, Kansas, North Florida, Oregon and South Alabama.
A WA-certified surface must meet Track Synthetic Surface Testing Specifications for evenness, thickness, force reduction, vertical deformation, friction, tensile properties and color. The epIQ Tracks Z5000 features a full 13-millimeter pour system utilizing high-grade polyurethane and rubber for ideal shock absorption, firmness (vertical deformation), friction and strength.
The project’s multi-use WA-certified infield, which will serve as the new home for Tarleton Rec Sports. The field features LED stadium lighting and will use FusionH XP2 synthetic turf system with an Ecotherm fill and a SoteriaMAX shock pad.
Tarleton track and field is the fourth Tarleton athletics program to add Hellas Matrix turf, after baseball, softball and soccer. The new facility will sit behind Memorial Stadium on the north side of campus, adjacent to the Tarleton Soccer Complex.
Construction began in March in conjunction with the stadium expansion and will increase capacity and transform the stadium into a single-sport facility.
Tarleton track and field has planted itself firmly among the elite in the Western Athletic Conference and NCAA South Central Region since ascending to Division I. The Texans have produced five individual conference champions and garnered 55 sets of All-WAC first or second team accolades over the last two years.
During the 2022 season Tarleton broke nine combined indoor and outdoor school records and produced 112 new marks on the program’s all-time Top 10 record book.
About epIQ Tracks Z5000 System
With epiQ Tracks running tracks, athletes can maximize the characteristics of the surface, improving speed and control while experiencing high-energy return on their strides, reduced roll time on impact, solid support, increased comfort and fewer injuries during practice and competition. Surfaces are guaranteed to provide years of performance in any weather, which eliminates downtime for practices and scheduled events. With seven running tracks and four WA-certified sports tracks, epiQ Tracks can deliver for every need, from professional indoor surfaces and Olympic-caliber running to recreational sports track and field.
About FusionH XP2 Synthetic Turf
FusionH XP2 incorporates helix-shaped monofilament fibers and dual colored slit film fibers for durability, athletic performance and aesthetics, while Ecotherm provides temperature relief. The fill is comprised of recycled material and uses cellulose fibers to absorb water, which dramatically reduces the temperature by evaporative cooling. SoteriaMAX molded, expanded polypropylene shock pad, installed under the turf, holds water on the pad surface, boosting the Ecotherm infill’s ability to cool.
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