Toadvine Blog

FISHERVILLE, KY - Toadvine Enterprises, a family owned sports equipment and stadium seating distributor, has hired sales and sporting goods professional David Hedge to manage its clients in the state of Tennessee.

Hedge holds a Master Degree in Sport Management from the University of Tennessee and was hired to manage sales and service of gymnasium equipment and seating needs in the state. He works with schools of all sizes, from elementary up to the collegiate level.

Hedge takes his responsibilities seriously, stating, "I represent Toadvine Enterprises in Tennessee and I work directly with owners and contractors on a daily basis. My end goal is to provide options and answers for all of their gymnasium needs, no matter what budget they have."

Having been in the gymnasium services industry for 10 years, Hedge understands the industry well. That, coupled with Toadvine's reputation in the business, meant an opportunity Hedge couldn't pass up. "When the opportunity came open to work for a business that focuses on customer service and quality products from top notch manufacturers, I was immediately drawn to partnering with Toadvine," he said. 

Bleacher and stadium seating liability continues to be an issue due to the rise in lawsuits from bleacher accidents brought against schools. Keeping spectators safe by having regular bleacher maintenance and inspection performed is a first step in preventing accidents and liability issues. 

The checklist below lists action items you can do to ensure your seating is safe in between scheduled maintenance. Please contact Toadvine Enterprises if you need your bleachers or stadium seating inspected and maintained. 

• Make sure stairs, ramps, and aisles are dry, clean, and free of debris.
• All stairs should be equipped with handrails and tread to prevent falls.
• Loose flooring should be fixed to prevent tripping hazards.
• Seats should be free from splintering wood and loose screws and hardware.
• Safety rails should be installed on the back of bleachers to prevent falls.

Toadvine Enterprises is here to help your school provide a safe environment for fans and players. Contact us today if you need a seating quote of if you have questions about the safety of your school's bleachers. 

Cleveland has the Dawg Pound. It is the place the die hard fans cheer their beloved team across the goal line. The NFL is notorious for entertaining touchdown celebrations. Some of the most dramatic football finishes have not been touchdowns, but instead were field goals from 63 yards with 2 seconds on the clock, like Jack Dempsey's famous game winning kick. These dramatic field goals would be impossible without one crucial piece of equipment; the goal post.

The goal post has gone through several transformations throughout the years. All of these improvements and new features are available for you and your football facility, and Toadvine Enterprises gives you the highest quality and affordability. So while your program is concentrating on the roster and recruiting, don't forget to check off your end-zone equipment needs.

• Goal Posts
• End-Zone Pylons
• Football Stopper Set (netting system)
• Goal Post Padding (with your team name and colors)

We carry an assortment of goals that will meet your specific needs and budget. We have many H-style goal posts, combination football/soccer goal posts, and gooseneck single pole base goal posts that come in aluminum or steel construction. We also carry the Revolution goal post that rotates 180 degrees so it does not interfere with other sports needs on the same field. 

If you need a new ground sleeve or plated system we can walk you through the products that will best meet your needs. Give us a call today at (502) 241-6010 and knock out your end-zone checklist so you can focus on things that really matter, like winning!

FISHERVILLE, KY - Toadvine Enterprises, a family owned sports equipment and stadium seating distributer, has hired sales professional Vince Pellegrino to manage its Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio territories.

Pellegrino, a University of Cincinnati graduate, has more than 28 years in the sports equipment industry, previously working as a sales rep for sports equipment leader Porter, as well as for communication products giant Ghent Manufacturing. He holds a degree in Civil, Construction, and Architectural Engineering Technologies.

Long gone for most sports facilities are the days of creeky wooden bleachers and the flip score board manned by rotating students. The basic requirements of most facilities have not changed much since the days of Roman amphitheaters and arenas; easy and safe access to the facility, a comfortable place to sit, and a good view of the game. Sports arenas of today need to offer these basic benefits but now have more options than ever to appease, entertain, and entice fans back to their facility.  

Gymnasium seating options are numerous. Classic wood is still an option for those seeking the traditional look. For a look that adds a huge visual boost to your facility, telescopic seating can utilize the bleacher system with bleachers opening in the forward direction and the option to display school lettering or team colors. Sculpture seat modules feature solid color seating which is high strength and fade resistant. These seats are available in 15 standard colors to sport team spirit. When seeking a way to honor special boosters or sponsors, consider the VIP wide deck platform with platform chairs when you need a highly functional system with comfortable chairs and wide rows to move around in. For the ultra modern arena cupholders, cushioned seats, and even the ability to order food from an electronic device right from your seat, are the newest in innovations for sports fanatics.

Stadium seating has evolved in the outdoor arena also, with ergonomically-designed flip up seats and lumbar support now available. Wide selections of colors can be alternated and interspersed to visually sport team pride. Sponsorship can now also be secured on stadium seating to honor special donors and designate specific seating areas. 

To find out what seating options are available for your sports facility, fill out the contact us spot on the website and a member of our team will get back with you to discuss your seating options.

Baseball season is in full swing this spring. The Cincinnati Reds kicked off their season by hosting the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on April 1, while the Louisville Bats started their 14th season on Louisville Slugger field on April 4 with a home game against the Toledo Mud Hens. 

At the beginning of the 2013 local baseball season, Louisville's own St. Xavier high school tops the rankings in the number one spot among local and state high schools. 

As your school team gears up for baseball season, take time to make a check list of all the baseball essentials that may be missing from your team's equipment roster. Toadvine Industries has all the equipment your team needs to score this season. 

We carry bases, batting cage essentials, foul poles, balasted plate and mound covers, and a variety of other sporting equipment that can complete your equipment line up. Contact Toadvine to supply your baseball equipment needs and lock in a winning season. 

Lacey Township High School officials in New Jersey never imagined the dilemma they would face on the evening of September 17, 2011 as a routine high school football game turned quickly into an investigation and the closing of a portion of the stadium. A game spectator broke through one of the stadium bleacher seats and although no injuries were reported, the stability of the stadium was in question and turned the future of Lacey Township High School upside down.

A thorough investigation followed and structural engineers were called in to evaluate the future of the stadium seating. With the stadium closed for investigation, school officials were left scrambling wondering how to remedy this situation. As with most small athletic programs, funds were very tight and extent of the pending repair work could be more than their small budget could accommodate. 

This scenario in New Jersey is not uncommon. Athletic departments and school districts choose where their limited dollars will be spent and often routine stadium maintenance is either overlooked or eliminated and most schools take their chances on the structural stability of their facility and opt out of spending money on routine bleacher maintenance. As with the officials in Lacey Township, this can be a very risky and costly decision.

Toadvine Enterprises offers guaranteed safety and peace of mind with our maintenace and safety inspection program for all indoor and outdoor seating and equipment. Certified and trained manufacturer technicians perform visual inspections of your facility and/or school equipment which includes a detailed report of any findings or actions that need to be taken. Toadvine can perform your annually-required maintenance inspection and can provide yearly contracts that work around your needs.  

To secure the safety of your school families and patrons, let Toadvine perform the maintenance necessary to keep your school free from physical injuries or accidents. Fill out our Maintenance and Safety Interest Form to get started. 

Everyone loves to see their name in lights and your sporting facility may be just the place for them to do that. Advertisers and sponsors deserve a special spot of prominence at your facility and Toadvine Enterprises can help you honor those important people and businesses. 

You can give dedicated sponsors and important donors that guaranteed exposure by offering them their choice of advertising opportunities around your school sporting facility. Ad space is available on signs, stadium seating, score boards, and numerous spots throughout your school and will help generate opportunities for schools to offset the cost of new equipment and installation. Not only will the aesthetic appeal of the banners and signs generate visual appeal, they will also generate revenue for schools looking to boost their athletic dollars. Most of the time, the space used for the advertisement is space that would go unused without the dedicated sponsorship. 

Here are the top 10 places within a school sports facility that a school can utilize visually appealing advertising to generate funds for their athletic department.

1. Colosseum Chairs – Instead of a number on the seat, place the donor name on the seat for special recognition.
2. VIP Seating – Select a special section to be recognized for special donors or groups and increase their game day comfort with unique additions like arm rests and special seat backs.
3. Banner Rail – Utilize unused space on your colosseum with the touch of a remote and roll up or down the special message of your sponsor.
4. AdMesh Banners – Vinyl coated, weather resistant banners are perfect for capturing the attention of outdoor sports fans.
5. Concourse Banners – Capture the attention of pedestrians with concourse banners as they walk around the perimeter of your facility. 
6. Grandstand Banners – Take advantage of any unused space with banners that honor and promote your advertisers.
7. Vertical Banners – As patrons walk to and from the concession stand and the restrooms, these vertical banners will catch their attention.
8. Field Level Ads – As the most visible position on a field, utilize the sidelines, fences and walls at eye level to become the focal point of your grandstand, field or arena. 
9. Loge Boxes – Give advertisers a special place to pamper guests in a place specially designated and enhanced for their game viewing pleasure.  
10. Aisle and Stair Risers – Every person attending a game must ascend a set of stairs to get to their seat, capitalize on this fact by placing your sponsors name in bold colors for everyone to see.

Think you can't afford stadium seating? Consider the amount of advertising dollars you could generate from donors and sponsors that will actually see their name in lights at every game they attend. Most of these themes can be incorporated into existing facilities, but if you would like to explore the opportunity of generating more advertising dollars in conjunction with installing stadium seating, contact us for more ideas on how we can assist you.

After six-year-old Toby Lee fell between a 13-inch gap between the footboard and the seat of a bleacher set at a community sports area in Minnesota and died of his injuries, legislators decided to pursue greater scrutiny in the area of bleacher safety. 

In 1999, after the the tragic death of Toby Lee, Congress petitioned the Consumer Product Safety Commission to issue national safety standards for bleacher and grandstand facilities due to numerous injuries to children at basketball and hockey arenas resulting from falls between the gaps of bleacher seats and guardrails.

Congress stated in a letter to the CPSC that uniform national standards were needed to help efforts at the state level to prevent injuries and deaths due to poorly designed or out of date bleacher facilities. The recommended national standards to be implemented were to include:

• Minimum spacing requirements for gaps between bleacher guardrails and between seats and footboards for new construction

• Side and back safety features

• Guidelines for retro-fitting older facilities

Although Congress emphasized the importance of watchful parents during sporting events, they also stated the responsibility venues have to insure that their facilities are safe. The desire for safer facilities not only locally, but nationwide, created the desire to press for strengthening safety standards legislatively in order to quickly inact the establishment of safe bleacher standards.   

House Bill H.R. 836 was created in 1999 and entitled, “The Bleacher Safety Act” proclaiming that new and safer standards would be adopted within six months. Minnesota was the first state that required the issuing of this federal standard.

To help your school meet those required safety standards, Toadvine Enterprises has created Vine & Branch, a maintenance and safety inspection program for all your indoor and outdoor seating equipment. Our maintenance and safety program can help you maintain your required annual inspections and can also help you with any upgrades or written records. For more information on keeping your school bleachers safe, fill out our Maintenance and Safety form and a member of our staff will get back to you. Let Toadvine help you keep safety the name of the game.

Although soccer is undeniably touted as the most popular sport for women in the NCAA, soccer had not gained the popularity at the college or youth level, until recently. With the growing popularity of the World Cup championship, the sport of soccer is sparking massive growth and interest in spectators, media, and corporate sponsors while promoting greater cultural awareness.

Ticket purchases to the 2012 World Cup soccer game were made overwhelmingly by US patrons than any other country, other than the host nation. ABC and parent company ESPN have spent a combined $425 million to secure the US rights to broadcast the World Cup games, the most spent by any single country.

As these national trends emerge, locally, those same trends are also being mirrored. Youth soccer leagues including Upward, YMCA, and more competitve leagues like Mockingbird and Javanon have seen an explosion of interest and participants within the last several years. Multiple leagues abound within the area that provide opportunities for children to play on a competitive level up to high school age. Rec leagues have also seen heightened interest and talent emerge as a result of continual play at a more competitve level.

The Kentucky Youth Soccer Association, an organization with more than 50,000 players, coaches and administrators, feels so strongly about the rise in soccer interest, that they are taking that message on the road this month with a first of its kind mobile soccer marketing tour entitled, “the Kentucky Youth Soccer Experience.” This soccer informational tour has plans to visit 60 soccer communities and events throughout the area to promote soccer and healthy living, while also bringing awareness to the battle against childhood cancer, in honor of a young local soccer player, Lane Goodwin, who lost his battle with cancer last year.

Investment in soccer at the collegiate level also saw a huge boost recently, when the University of Louisville announced that it would build a 5300 seat, $16 million soccer complex which would become home to the UL men's and women's soccer team and attract Big East Championship Games. This complex is slated for a September 2014 open. 

Players who thrive at the collegiate level still don't have to leave Louisville to further their playing career. The River City Rovers, a Premier Development League with more than 73 teams, is considered a “shop window for major league soccer players” ages 17-30. 

Opportunity abounds at all ages in our community as the soccer boom continues to magnify. From pee wee to grown up, players who love the game of soccer can stay involved at every level and score many years of playing right here in the Louisville area.