This year, Park High’s athletics program has a new member, a robot named Chuck. He’s an absolute machine, a big AI robot that moves across the grass and paints every line on the football and soccer fields.

Chuck is rented for the year, and it paints every line with exact precision, down to two and a half inches. The first time I watched Chuck work, I just stood there with a coffee and stared. It revs its engine quietly, while it moves across the field, laying down white paint in straight, perfect lines. Chuck does it perfectly. He just goes and gets it done. Watching it made me notice the precision and consistency of this immense machine. It doesn’t slow down, it doesn’t get tired, it doesn’t get distracted. The wheels roar, the paint comes out perfectly, and the field ends up looking exactly like it’s supposed to.

Peter Ponca, school district IT tech, helped with Chuck’s setup. After witnessing the robot work, he said, “It’s spectacular to watch it.” Coming from a guy who keeps all the school’s computers and networks running, that says a lot about how impressive the machine really is.

With Chuck on the job, the fields are game-ready faster than ever, and every line is enough to impress anyone who sees it.