WSA Babe Ruth Fields make progress

PLAINS - Progress continues on the Wildhorse Sports Association-sponsored baseball and soccer field complex in Plains this week as a company hired to install fencing has broken ground on the site. Work will go on throughout the summer and fall to prepare the complex to be usable next year.

Currently a company from Polson is busy setting posts and fencing for the baseball fields. Farrier Fencing has a crew on the site just outside of Plains near the airport working on laying out the infrastructure for the field, dugouts, bullpen and backstops. This stage of the work is estimated to take a few weeks to complete.

Owner/operator James Farrier of Farrier Fencing said his crew is working on drilling holes and setting posts that will support the fencing around the perimeter of the fields. Rocky Mountain Surveyors staked out the fence-lines for Farrier and the DNRC supplied a water truck to assist in cleaning out the post-holes.

“Right now we are working on the Babe Ruth fields. We are drilling holes and setting posts for the bullpens and dugouts. We think it will take somewhere around three weeks to finish,” said Farrier.

According to Kim Bergstrom of Pinnacle Research, the sports complex is in the early stages of development but will eventually include multiple amenities to facilitate sports events in Plains. Pinnacle Research is a consulting firm based in Plains that provides information and advice to public and private clients for planning and management of outdoor recreation facilities.

“Upon completion of the fencing, the two Babe Ruth fields will be seeded this fall. The WSA board hopes to sod the infields if it isn’t cost-prohibitive. If all goes well both fields will be usable by next year,” said Bergstrom.

The term “Babe Ruth Field” refers to a baseball diamond of smaller proportions as compared to a major league field and is designed for usage by younger players. Little League teams typically play on Babe Ruth fields. The name refers to the legendary player known as the “The Bambino” or “The Sultan of Swat” who played from 1914 to 1935.

Bergstrom indicated the effort to build a sports complex in Plains has garnered wide community support and financial assistance. Despite the cancellation of a spring fundraiser due to a scheduling conflict, several entities from around Sanders County have stepped up to the plate to assist in the construction project.

“In terms of funding, the house donated to us by Alvin and Grace Amundson sold and enabled us to move forward on completion of the two Babe Ruth fields this year,” said Bergstrom. “Without that sale, it would have been difficult to complete even one field.”

Bergstrom said future work at the site will include installing power, pumps for the wells dug earlier in the year by Cyclone Drilling and the scoreboard donated by the Mission Valley Mariners. The WSA will also pursue grants to construct other sports fields as well as a non-motorized access trail.

Eventually the WSA plans to build concession stands, restrooms, changing rooms and a playground. The WSA is a non-profit organization that is spearheading the effort to build the 27-acre sports facility on former airport property under lease from Sanders County. Plans for the complex include five baseball and soccer fields.