2026 Northern Park Maintenance Workshop & Skills Challenge

If you prefer to register using a paper registration form please e-mail blaire@frpa.org

The Annual North Florida Park Maintenance Workshop and Skill Challenge (the Turf Rodeo) is a hands-on skills competition for parks maintenance professionals, featuring equipment operation challenges, turf management tasks, and timed precision events. This relaxed event also features a relevant education session for participants and includes lunch. It’s a celebration of the expertise, safety, and teamwork that keep our parks in top condition. 

Thursday, March 19, 2026 | 8:30 am  - 2:30 pm |  Clay Co’s Paul E. Reinhold Agricultural Fairgrounds  

2463 State Road 16 West, Green Cove Springs, Florida, 32043

8:30- 9:00am Check-in and light breakfast

9:30-11:30am Education Sessions

Session #1 - Working With Waterways
Dr. Wayne Hobbs - Environmental Horticulture Agent II, UF/IFAS Extension Clay County
Learn about best practices for maintain and protecting waterways on the properties you manage. Includes information on buffer zones, maintenance strategies, and plants that can thrive in these areas.

Session #2 - Managing Major Turfgrass Stressors
George Richardson - Commercial Horticulture Agent, UF/IFAS Extension Duval County
A lecture covering identification and management of major turfgrass battles the turfgrass industry faces with the spread of the mosaic disease of St. Augustinegrass, chinch bug pesticide resistance and Take-All Root Rot.

11:30am-12:30pm- Lunch 

12:45-2:00 pm- Rec Activities 

 2:30- 3:00pm Wrap-up and Awards 

Team Events                 Individual Events
  Mower Relay                     Skid Steer Slam-dunk 
                                            Ping Pong Pick Up
                                            Blower Soccer Ball Slalom
                                            Irrigation Valve Assembly 
                                            Zero-turn Barrel Racing
                                            Hurricane Prep
                                            Plant Identification
                                            Memory Momentum
                                            Excavator Egg Drop