Ronnie Pascale Joins Brock International as Eastern Regional Vice President

Source: Brock International

Richmond, Virginia - (March 24, 2014) – Ronnie Pascale has joined Brock International as Eastern Regional Vice President. Drawing upon his unique perspective as a former coach and professional soccer player, Pascale will advance Brock's mission to educate coaches, athletic directors, landscape architects and park administrators about preventing concussions and other sports injuries from the ground up. Brock PowerBase, the company's innovative shock pad and drainage layer used underneath synthetic turf fields, has helped NFL teams, major universities, schools and community parks nationwide maximize player safety and field performance.

"A seasoned professional in the synthetic turf business, Ronnie truly understands what our clients need and value the most in terms of building state-of-the-art athletic fields that help prevent injuries during play and practice," notes Dan Sawyer, CEO of Brock International. "We are excited to expand our presence on the East Coast with such a dynamic, talented individual." 

Player safety has been a strong focus for Pascale throughout his 15 year career. Prior to joining Brock, he handled project management, business development and relationship building in the region for Shaw Sports Turf and Hellas Construction, Inc., often overseeing athletic fields from the sale through the life of the surface.  During his tenure as the Assistant Soccer Coach for men's and women's programs for Virginia Commonwealth University, he led teams to eight Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) championships and five NCAA Tournaments, finishing 2004 with a national ranking of 7th in the nation.

Soccer has been a lifelong passion for Pascale. For 13 years, he served as a professional player and goalkeeper for the Richmond Kickers Professional Soccer Team, guiding the team to the A-League Final in 2002, USL-1 Final in 2005, USL-2 Championship in 2006 and 2009, and USL-2 Final in 2007 and 2010. Pascale also assumed the leadership role for numerous youth teams as a youth coach for the Richmond Kickers Youth Soccer Club. The Furman University graduate, a four-year starter and captain of their men’s soccer team for the 1998 season, was named Furman University Male Athlete of the Year in 1999. Pascale resides in Moseley, Virginia with his wife Stacy, and two children, Tabatha and Brayden.

"My values are centered around what the customer wants, and I look forward to serving as an educational resource in order for them to achieve their goals," says Pascale. "Because of my 'feet on' experience on all types of quality surfaces, I can help owners and designers understand how to get the most value and the best, safest sports surface for their project."

An estimated 10% of concussions and brain injuries incurred during sports are caused by playing surface impacts. Brock PowerBase has been proven to reduce G-max, the peak force of impact, which may decrease the risk and severity of concussions and other injuries. Brock, an Accredited ASLA (American Society of Landscape Architects) Education Provider, announced the industry's first and only Field G-Max Guarantee in January 2014 to ensure safer sports surfaces for the life of the playing field. 

Brock PowerBase is currently installed underneath stadium and practice fields for the San Francisco 49ers, at the Gillette Stadium practice field, home of the NFL’s New England Patriots, the Houston Texans, Arizona Cardinals, the University of Maryland, University of Oregon, Boston College, Boise State, UCLA, Georgia Tech, Stanford and hundreds of high schools and middle schools nationwide. In 2012,  the company launched Brock PowerBase Youth Safety Research (YSR),  the first synthetic turf shock pad engineered specifically to the ideal footing requirements and safety of high school and middle school athletes.

Research firm BioMechanica, LLC studied the estimated risk of head injury on synthetic turf surfaces with Brock underlayment and found the product reduces G-max, which the lab tests indicated should reduce the risk and severity of concussion; provides the same playability as a pristine natural grass field and mitigates field hardening over time. In evaluating Head Injury Criteria (HIC), also known as critical fall height, Sports Labs LLC found that Brock PowerBase offered significant improvement in HIC when compared to a turf field that featured a stone base.

About Brock International:

Brock International is the leader in performance base systems for synthetic turf.  With over 28 million square feet of Brock Performance Base in play underneath athletic fields worldwide, the company engineers the best, safest and most sustainable playing surfaces in the world for athletes at all levels. Brock is an Official Education Partner of The Sports Legacy Institute, a Boston-based non-profit organization founded to advance the study, treatment, and prevention of brain trauma in athletes and other at-risk groups.  In October 2011, Brock became the first company in the industry to have a Cradle to Cradle Certification CM for its combined drainage and shock pad product. Visit www.brock-international.com to learn more.