In business, a rainmaker is an entrepreneur who innovates and drives,

winning accounts almost by magic. In native American lore, a

rainmaker is an early prognosticator who had rudimentary grasp of

weather patterns and could appear to "conjure" a rainstorm with a word

or a spell.

Over at Camden's Springdale Racecourse, Toby Edwards is proving to be both.

Learn how the new irrigation system at the historic central South

Carolina track aims to highlight the Carolina Cup and Colonial Cup as championship meets bookending the National Steeplechase Association season. The Colonial Cup comes back this fall after seven years away from the condition book.

By Betsy Burke Parker

As lovely as she’s been to central South Carolina – what with three-and-a-half seasons of soft, southern weather along with the giving and forgiving native sandy loam upon which thoroughbred horses have thrived for centuries, Mother Nature is at times an uncooperative partner. 

Too much rain, not enough rain, rain at the wrong time, all the rain all at once, achingly long stretches of drought with no rain at all -- these are the issues that used to keep Carolina Cup Racing Association executive director Toby Edwards obsessively checking the weather app on his phone. 

All the time. 

Moisture matters, Edwards (pictured, right) explains, with turf growth key to producing a safe, level racing surface at the Springdale Racecourse for their spring Carolina Cup meet and their newly-returning this November Colonial Cup meet. 

A newly installed irrigation system promises – and delivers – exactly the right amount of moisture at exactly the right time in just the right places. Edwards tells it what to do and when. 

“We used to have to count on rain from the sky,” Edwards said. Now they’ve traded for “rain” from the ground. “This new irrigation system takes it to a whole new level.”

Imagine a small black knob emerging from the turf -- Edwards punches in a special code. A misty but strong spray of water shoots out of the sprinkler head, watering hundreds of square feet as it rotates. The Rainmaker controls all of it, from the timing to the amount measured in gallons per minute. 

With that kind of power, in ancient times Edwards probably would have been elected tribe chief.

This week's weather forecast for Camden. Which Edwards no longer even bothers looking at.

The timing was exquisite – last year, CCRA made a proposal to the South Carolina state legislature, “to invest in Springdale,” requesting a grant to fund the irrigation system that would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. “We want to offer truly championship racing, and for that, you have to offer a truly championship course,” Edwards said. “The only way to do that is to irrigate.

“Overseeding, weed control and fertilizers, they’re all water-activated,” translation: there has to be rain immediately following application, Edwards said. “We played a guessing game all the time, pretending we were weather forecasters.

“You were spending time, money and effort wishing and hoping the weatherman was right. 

“With irrigation, you’re in complete control of the amount of moisture delivered to your course. I can even tell it which heads to run in what order and how much water put out. 

“It has been a learning curve, but this system has been fully operational since October. It guarantees we’ll get good summer growth, which ensures good turf for the (returning, Colonial Cup) fall meet, and it helped the perennial rye back in winter, so we’ve got great turf for next week” at the March 30 Carolina Cup.

Custom-designed for Springdale by Smith Turf and Irrigation – they also designed irrigation for Churchill Downs’ turf course, Camden’s irrigation system covers 2 ¼ miles with 130 in-ground, pop-up sprinkler heads. The longer outer course isn’t yet irrigated, but Edwards says the system allows for expansion when more state funds become available. 

“Jeff (Teter, former champion jump rider and longtime Springdale course manager) reports that the course has an excellent stand of rye,” overseeded then well-watered since October by the new system, echoed former CCRA director, and four-time champion jock John Cushman. “Camden’s sandy soil drains unbelievable, and adding this irrigation to the course really makes it sure they’ll get good grass, every meet, every year.” 

Edwards notes that Springdale’s summer cover, Bermuda grass, is already starting to green up, too.

“The course looks great.”

Cushman (left, with Toby Edwards, ©Tod Marks) was Springdale director 1990 to 2000; he returned in 2018 to help Edwards transition into his position.  

“The best thing about Camden is the footing,” sandy loam, Cushman explained. “It never really gets hard, there’s no clay. 

“But the issue anywhere in the Carolinas is how good is your summer grass. Rye looks good in the winter, but your turf is built in the summer. 

“If we get no rain at just the wrong time, it affects everything.

“The irrigation system takes the guesswork out of it.”

NSA president Al Griffin says the improvements are timely. “Toby Edwards and the Carolina Cup folks have really upped the game at Springdale,” Griffin said. “The focus on turf quality is much appreciated by the horsemen. (Bringing back) the Colonial Cup this fall creates two opportunities to run on the irrigated course,” a win-win situation for the facility and the sport.

Find entry and nomination details at nationalsteeplechase.com.

Find more history on the Carolina Cup and Springdale Racecourse at carolinacup.org. 

Read more about Jeff Teter in this TGSF feature, by Don Clippinger.

Read more about John Cushman in this TGSF feature by Betsy Burke Parker.

The Carolina Cup is a South Carolina tradition that has achieved premier social event status in the state. This annual ‘rite of spring’ draws over 30,000 fans from across the world to enjoy the riveting sport of steeplechase horse racing. For additional information and tickets, visit CarolinaCup.org.