Painting Vinyl Mesh Top Pad

[Darth Vaulter]

The high School wehre I coach got a new Elite pit several years ago and the top pad came without a coaches box on either side. I want to paint one on that also has the school's logo in the middle if it. The pad is royal blue in color and I will be painting with either white or grey. Has anyone done this and, if so, are there any tips or tricks that I should keep in mind. Spray paint vs. brush? Type of paint? I plan to put a drop cloth inside the cover so that no paint gets on the foam and will experiment with a piece of vinyl mesh fabric before going for it. The alternative is to have a single-layer mesh cover made to sit on top of the top pad, but I'm thinking that that will be much more expensive. Thanks.

As long as I have your attention, I have another question about the pit. Some people complain that new pits don't last as long as they should. I have the opposite problem. Our pit is 3 or 4 years old and it is still quite firm (the kids would say hard). Is there something that I can do to soften it up without ruining it. We have the whole team jump up and down on it from time-to-time as part of their conditioning but that doesn't seem to have any effect. Any thoughts?