these Open Championship Clubs choose to relief grind - Pitchcare

WELCOME TO
pitchcare
2012 - and all
it might bring
- or not!
IS it just me, or will the Olympics come
and go, creating nothing more than a
few ripples in the annual calendar of
sport? I don’t want to rubbish the
event, but I just can’t get excited about
its imminent arrival. I know that I
should, and I’m sure I will tune in to
see the highlights of a close run 1500m
final or a new world record javelin
throw, but you can, by and large, keep
the rest.
I’ve tried to put my finger on the lack
of enthusiasm; not just my own, but so
many others. In the last couple of
weeks on various radio channels and
TV, I’ve heard presenters say as much
about the lack of excitement. I think,
for me, the football has never been
taken seriously and I just switch off
from the whole event. I must admit to
enjoying Winter Olympics so much
more. Let’s hope, despite my
reservations, that the event proves to
be a huge success, leaving a legacy of
great sporting facilities for generations
to come.
As the country falls into a ‘double-dip’
recession, you could have been
forgiven for thinking that, actually, the
economy was reasonably buoyant,
judging by this year’s BTME at
Harrogate. The general feeling was
positive and, certainly, two of the three
days seemed to be reminiscent of days
gone by as you slowly edged along the
walkways due to the sheer weight of
people in front of you. It was good to
see and, at face value, appeared to be a
step in the right direction.
In perspective, the numbers were up,
certainly on the previous two years, but
probably still fall far short of the
numbers three or more years ago. The
condensed nature of the halls made
the show look busier but, a key talking
point was the decision to put John
Deere, Ransomes Jacobsen and Toro
under the same hall roof.
For the discerning customer, the
opportunity to view ‘the big 3s’
equipment side by side was great, but
for creating a better flow of well
distributed footfall through the halls,
perhaps that decision may be reviewed
next time?
The arguments surrounding the
installations of synthetic turf into
stadium sport continue. The money
men (Chairmen) think they are making
the right decision, usually based on the
salesmen’s spin of low, ongoing
maintenance cost and vastly increased
income from many more hours of
sport. It’s unfortunate, at the moment,
that they don’t get the balanced
argument of high replacement costs,
particularly if little maintenance is
being carried out, as well as the
difficulty of attracting sufficient extra
sport and corporate events in any way,
shape or form to make it pay in the
first place.
The first professional Rugby League
game was played a few weeks ago on a
new synthetic surface, Widnes played
Wakefield. There was much discussion
after the game on the TV, and in the
papers, focused on the damage to the
players’ knees.
It seems there are interesting times
ahead then, and the future will very
much depend on there being a resolute
and strong argument coming from the
natural turf lobby.
At Harrogate, someone likened me to
King Canute, trying to turn the tide of
inevitability. The fact is that in
America, where synthetics have been at
the forefront of mainstream sport,
many stadiums are reverting back to a
natural surface. Why, because of the
many documented cases and published
papers on injuries, diseases and the
safety of children using artificial
surfaces?
The current tide is incoming, and will
peak. Yet, with a united voice, it will
recede to a point where we see natural
grass remain as the preferred choice in
stadiums.
Cheers
Dave Saltman
Say that again!
“Even though I still detest slow
greens, if they are true and firm
they are still preferable to quick,
bumpy ones”
Greg Evans, Ealing Golf Club
“There is no point designing a
good course if it isn’t well built,
and there is no point building a
good course if it isn’t well
maintained”
Donald Steel, GTC
“It’s about the money to be
made, at the expense of
whatever happens to get in the
way of that”
Matt Frost, Football Pitch Consultant
“It is important to check that
you have sufficient cover within
your insurance policy should an
accident take place on your
artificial pitch”
Nick Harris, Technical Surfaces
“It is no good just moaning
about the lack of respect and
understanding our industry
seems to suffer from, we have to
try and do as much as possible
to change this”
Barry Glynn, East Molesey Cricket Club
“The words ‘gas oil’ or ‘red
diesel’ in themselves are generic
terms that mean nothing and
everything at the same time”
Neil Ryding, FAST
“It is only the untrained who
think they are good interviewers.
The trained ones know their
limitations!”
Frank Newberry, Training Consultant
“I got very close to walking out
of the industry because I was
very disillusioned with it.
Instead of getting involved, I
became marginalised and
disillusioned”
Eddie Seaward, All England Club