What it takes to raise the roof at Safeco Field

Mariners fans can thank a guy sitting in a little booth way out above center field for keeping them dry at Safeco Field.

When Vance Akres was working as a journeyman iron worker during the construction of Safeco Field, he’d often look up in awe at the spiderweb of steel being built above him.

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Little did he know when the stadium opened in 1999, he’d be the guy running it.

The Mariners hired Vance to oversee roof maintenance and operations, and 17 years later, he’s still there, perched in the command post high above center field.

It’s his job to open and close it – a 15-minute process that still causes Vance to hold his breath every time he does it.

“When it’s raining or sprinkling out there while the game is being played, it’s an hour for me,” he laughed. “But it really takes 15 minutes.”

The roof was the brainchild of Mariners management, who wanted an open air stadium but knew the risk of rain was always an issue.

Rainouts were simply not an option.

“Over 60 percent of our fans come from over an hour away. And to have a rain delay, or potential of a rain delay – which is even worse … we’ve completely eliminated that,”
said Joe Myhra, the vice president of Ballpark Operations.

The roof is really an amazing engineering accomplishment. Its three steel panels span nearly nine acres, nesting on top of each other over the railroad tracks when its retracted.

Its 11,000 tons contain enough steel to build a 55-story skyscraper.

And then there are the massive wheels that move it.

“Thirty-six inches in diameter, we’ve got like 128 wheels, 96 motors, and brakes,” Vance said.

Not to mention all the other parts Vance and his team maintain 24/7, 365 days a year.

Myhra likens it to a cross between a bridge and a crane – and there’s no other one exactly like it anywhere else in the world.

“Our guys are out here every day maintaining the system, checking the system. The mechanical components, hydraulics, electrical components, structural issues, control issues. All these things that take replacement, upkeep, maintenance, that sort of thing,” Myhra said.

It’s a big job, and an even bigger responsibility of ensuring the game goes on, or a corporate dinner, or a Billy Joel concert.

And Vance admits that responsibility brings more than its fair share of stress – enough to even occasionally cause bad dreams.

“I had a dream one time that I started up the system … pushed the button … the roof took off 100 miles per hour. It jumped off the edge of the west side of the runway and went off into the Sound,” he laughed. “And then I woke up.”

When it’s go time, it’s actually a relatively simple procedure. Head groundskeeper Bob Christofferson constantly keeps a close eye on the doppler radar, then makes the call if the roof needs to be opened or closed.

Up in the command center, a computer screen displays all Vance turns a special key and pushes a button, and the roof makes its move.

Thanks to the constant maintenance, the roof has only malfunctioned once during a game – when an electrical storm screwed up the system. And all it took was one other malfunction to give Vance every bit of motivation he needs to make sure the roof never fails.

“One time I had to help with the tarp out there on the field because the roof didn’t move. And what I did was I was shaking the tarp and started pulling but I started catching cramps. And I said to Bob then, I wasn’t going to do that again,” he laughed.

Whatever the motivation, it means Vance can virtually guarantee the rest of us Safeco Field will always be dry, no matter the weather outside.

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