Sports floors have a set of fundamental requirements:
- Flatness
- Hardness
- Uniformity
- Plus a Number of Specific requirements, depending on the sport.
While rubber is an ideal surface for many different sports, it is not suitable for those such as:
- Basketball
- Netball
- Where players need to make swift, sudden changes in direction
- Curling
- Beach volleyball
Rubber flooring is:
- Exceptionally tough
- Hard-wearing
- Has great tear and abrasion resistance.
- High coefficient of friction, giving it excellent anti-slip properties
Sports floors have a minimum standard for allowable slippage which rubber flooring not only meets, but even exceeds by 80 percent. Combine these properties with rubber’s exceptional sound and shock absorbance and you get a surface that is a perfect base for many different sports, from running to weightlifting and more.
Nearly all weightlifting gyms are fitted with rubber flooring, why?
- It's Dense and sturdy
- It won’t bend, dent or break
- It Provides support for exercise machines
- It bounces back even under the heaviest of dropped weights.
- Jogging tracks perform best when made from heavy-duty rubber, which can withstand the extreme wear from running spikes without being torn or punctured.
Interestingly, rubber flooring is the number one choice for aerobic centres. Aerobics exercises involve fast, powerful, explosive movements, and floors need to compensate for hard impacts. With greater shock absorption, cushioning and dimensional stability than rigid floors, rubber also provides the necessary grip for quick changes in direction.
However, aerobics routines are programmed, their motions predictable. Sports like basketball, netball and even badminton involve sudden, unpredictable movements taken at force. Here rubber flooring can actually cause such injuries. These sports require a playing surface that allows a reasonable degree of slippage or slide, rather than arresting the body suddenly mid-movement.
For multi-use sports facilities where games like basketball will be played, Advance Flooring recommends a PVC flooring solution, such as Taraflex.
Specifically designed for sports floors, Taraflex provides nearly all of the same advantages as rubber flooring, while actively preventing injury; with a smaller coefficient of friction, its surface gives players the necessary slide when suddenly stopping or changing direction.
All flooring surfaces should be tailored to their specific uses – and even more so for sports floors. With its strength, resilience and grip, rubber provides an ideal floor for many sports and exercise activities. For facilities not dedicated to one specific sport, PVC flooring such as Taraflex offers great all-round performance no matter the variety of games that will be played upon it.
