In The News - Moyock Elementary School

VINYL GYM FLOOR SMOOTHS P.E. CLASSES

By DARREN FREEMAN,
The Virginian-Pilot
May 15, 2004

MOYOCK - Physical education teacher Paul Bossi has been breathing easier this year since Moyock Elementary School replaced the gym's carpet flooring, which absorbed dust, pollen and tiny particles that made Bossi and other allergy sufferers sneeze and wheeze.

The smooth vinyl floor, which was installed in December, shines with strips of alternating wood tones.

"This is beautiful," Bossi said during a P .E. class this week. "It's a world of a difference."

The school likes the floor so much that the district plans to use similar vinyl surfaces in other elementary school gyms, said Willis Simmons, the district's executivedirector of buildings and grounds. Knotts Island Elementary School is the next in line for a new gym floor, he said.

Gyms in the district's two middle schools and high school, however, probably will always have wooden surfaces because basketball coaches prefer the tradition and performance of wooden floors, Simmons said.

But Bossi said the vinyl floor is perfect for elementary school P.E.

The surface has good traction, and basketballs bounce on the floor as well as they do on wood, he said.

Furthermore, the floor is easy to clean and never needs to be polished or shellacked.

"You go up and back with a broom and you're good to go," Bossi said.

While the carpet floor gave children rug bums, the quarter-inch-thick vinyl surface is designed to offer a cushion when students fall.

"These guys fall down a lot and trip a lot," Bossi said. "They are growing so rapidly they don't have the coordination the older kids have."

The vinyl floor was also cheaper than a wooden one: cost the district $58,000.

The material and installation

By comparison, River Road Middle School's wooden floor, which was replaced last year after a water leak warped the floorboards, cost about $80,000, according to the state Public School Insurance Fund, which paid for the replacement.

And installation of Moyock Elementary's floor took only about a week, during which s- foot-wide strips were rolled along the length of the gym and heat-welded to each other, said James Cotman, project coordinator for Warthan Associates, which sold the floor to the district.

The only potential drawback is noise. Despite all the rug burns and dust, Moyock Elementary's carpet floor was quiet. But Bossi said he doesn't mind the sound of children's voices echoing in the gym.

"People shouldn't come to the gym if they want a quiet place," he said. "The kids come in here and release energy and enjoy themselves."

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