Mother Nature had been poised Sunday to turn up the heat on the Sounders-Timbers rivalry to an entirely different and dangerous level.
But with high temperatures of 100 degrees expected in Portland, officials last week wisely moved the initial 1 p.m. start time back to 7:30 p.m. for player safety reasons. The 100-degree temps would have been uncomfortable enough for players and fans, but another issue was the impact it would have had on Providence Park’s crushed rubber infill synthetic field, which at least one expert says could have heated up to 150 degrees.
“It’s two things, really,’’ said Buzz Splittgerber, whose Idaho-based company Buzz Turf has gained national recognition for specializing in heat testing and other work on such fields.