Sports administrators are closely watching a revolutionary\nproject which if takes off has potential to be rolled out country wide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An innovative pilot scheme offering sports clubs access to\naffordable quality pitch maintenance advice, labour and machinery is up and\nrunning in North Yorkshire. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The \u2018machinery bank\u2019 with eight pieces of maintenance\nequipment will potentially assist hundreds of eligible sports clubs in a 20-mile\nradius of Thirsk. Qualified greens staff will carry out the work at affordable\nrates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The joint project between the IOG and Sport England has been co-ordinated\nby Ian Powell, Grounds & Natural Turf Improvement Plan (GaNTIP) regional\npitch advisor for Yorkshire & North East.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEssentially it\u2019s a mechanism to help least resourced club teams\nplay on a better surface for more of the playing season. But it\u2019s not just for\ngolf; football, rugby and\ncricket can all get a boost,\u201d confirmed Ian Powell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“It\u2019s radical because conventional thinking has been\nturned on its head. It\u2019s not one contractor or a club that\u2019s behind it. Guided\nby consultants, Sporting Assets<\/em>, who\nhave considerable expertise in the area of community sports funding, they advised a company limited\nby guarantee was set up to run the scheme separately from the golf course. The\nnew company is called Hambleton Sports Improvements<\/em><\/strong> after the district\nwhere it operates. The solution is a win-win for everyone playing on\nnatural turf locally.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Purchased equipment concentrates on essential processes which\ncoincide with the tried and tested GaNTIP programme reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDecompaction, over seeding, spraying, scarification and\nfertiliser applications are what\u2019s most required to rejuvenate an existing\nsurface, \u201ccontinued Ian Powell. \u201cIt\u2019s about getting versatile kit, suitable for\nroutine maintenance at different levels of sports clubs which also withstands the\nrigours of golf course duties.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWith this in mind the equipment purchased includes a John Deere\n4066R, a Charterhouse Verti Quake, a Star Green sprayer from Vale Engineering\nand from Wiedenmann a GXi8 HD Terra Spike, a 2.1m Terra Rake, a Super 500 towed\nflail mower\/collector, Terra Float over seeder and a double sized Terra Brush\nwith folding wings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAt the heart of the scheme is the greenkeeping team of Thirsk\nand Northallerton Golf Club led by Course Manager, Roger Mackerell and his\ndeputy, Simon Todd. They are the the project champions if you like. A formal\nservice level agreement is in place which will be reviewed regularly to enable the club to use the\nequipment on its own course. Initially from October through to March when grass\ngrowth slows down, their focus shifts to general maintenance and renovations with\nan element of down time compared to the hectic golf season. So initially in\nAutumn the roles and skill set of a small group of their team is being expanded\nto also work on winter pitches and become the labour force for the machinery\nbank, with potentially more staff added.\u201d \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n Machines are stored and maintained at the golf club<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019re very happy to play our role,\u201d said Roger Mackerell.\n\u201cThis has brought an amazing opportunity for our greenkeepers. Not only do they access a wider fleet of\nmachines year round but their turf knowledge and experience will be\nsignificantly enhanced. Tending different types of turf stressed by team sport\njust broadens their skill set. I\u2019m\nhopeful that as more work is commissioned then we\u2019ll be able to offer\nadditional greenkeeper apprenticeships It would be really good for the area and\nthe club.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The scheme has been designed for maximum take up.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019ve put a competitive pricing structure in place based on\nsquare meterage. If a club has funds to\nonly do the 18-yard box, or the centre circle that\u2019s good enough for us. Same\ngoes for rugby or cricket. We won\u2019t\ninsist they do low traffic areas just for the sake of it as well. Importantly\nthe essential areas are treated and that\u2019s where improvements will come,\u201d continued\nIan Powell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe first few pilots undertaken to test the system have been\nso successful that the clubs in question have asked for additional works to\ninclude de-compacting of the junior football pitches, spraying and over seeding\nof their cricket outfield later in the year. \nWe are actively taking bookings. Over the summer we will identify, plan\nand commit to end of and pre-season work. Any interested party just needs to go\non to the Hambleton machinery bank website and fill out an enquiry form, send\nit back and we will do the rest.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n With links through the National Governing bodies, as well as\nSport England, a complete data base of hours, type of work as well as costs\nwill be kept and submitted on a quarterly basis for all to monitor and follow\nfor future projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n