“I’ve never thought about how hot a stadium can be if it’s [synthetic] turf. [The heat] just sits there and bounces up into you,” Mailata said. “[The union] have got to bring it up. This is why we want all grass fields, to create a standard of play in the league where we’re not putting players in dangerous positions if we don’t have to.”
True, but remember that these cleats aren’t “most shoes” and include some comparatively exotic materials. They’ll stop holding their shape well before 350°F or literal melting into liquid. Having worked with similar materials in the past and having just refreshed my memory with some spec sheets because you piqued my curiosity, I buy it.
Otherwise, 157°F is one reading of the turf surface (I’m assuming, at least — haven’t seen documentation of how this was measured). Contact points, dark spots, a foot grinding in all have a shot at being even hotter.
Agree. My experience with Santoprene TPR material is fairly dated. Although the processing point or glass transition temperature of that material is 320-350F, I could see how even moderate temperatures could make shoes feel softer. Especially with the weight and power of a professional footbal player on top of them. But originally I was reacting to the sensationalist headline stating the shoes were melting. Today Ai headlines can basically state anything to get clicks and rarely get called out. We are just desensitized to that garbage. I’ll get off my old man chair now.