Earning his Spurs - Pitchcare

Seaclose Park prior to the festival ... and another.
on the market had the same spec as the
Charterhouse Verti-Drain 7626, the
biggest Verti-Drain they manufacture.” A
trip to Saltex followed, and a chat with
Nick Darking secured a demo at the
Arsenal training ground to see their
7626, with the ultimate sale being
managed by New Forest Machinery.
They start preparing the ground in the
middle of April, with intense aeration, as
they believe it’s important to plan in
advance to tackle the problems that the
festival will cause. Andrew’s contractor
aerates with 25mm tines set to a depth of
about 14/15 inches, which the 7626
makes short work of because of its size.
After that, they follow on with an
overseeding programme, using a
Charterhouse 1.5m Overseeder. Andrew
fully expects people to say ‘why the hell
is he doing that when 65,000 people are
about to jump up and down on it?’
“The reason I do this is to aid recovery
after the festival has finished,” he
reasons, “April and May are ideal months
to seed because we have a bit of moisture
in the ground. Even if all of the seeds
Who are you? Andrew Earley, Contracts
Inspector (Parks and Countryside Division at
Isle of Wight Council).
Family status? Married to wife Susan. Have
two boys - Matthew, 11 and Nicholas, 7.
Who’s your hero and why? I don’t believe
in having heroes!
What is your dream holiday? Going to the
Rockies in Canada. I love the train journey
around the mountains. It’s beautiful and a
very peaceful place.
What annoys you the most? Unruly
children!
What would you change about yourself?
I’m happy being me.
Who wouldn’t you like to be? Gordon
Brown directly after his ‘Bigotgate’ foul up on
the Jeremy Vine Radio Show before the
elections.
Favourite record, and why? Anything by
Queen.
Who would you choose to spend a
don’t germinate, we still get a head start
in the recovery process after the festival
has moved on. I like to use a 100%
perennial ryegrass mix that is made up
of various different cultivars, it’s hard
wearing and recovers quickly making it
ideal.”
At the end of May, just before the site
is handed over to the event organisers,
Solo, they do their final mow with a
Kesmac five gang mower. They leave a
little bit of time before the production
team arrive at the site for two reasons,
firstly, it gives the grass time to grow and
thicken up again and, secondly, it is a
hard task to mow once equipment and
staging arrives on the site.
The site is handed over to Solo’s
control from 1st June for three weeks,
after a pre festival meeting and walk
round with Andrew and his Parks Officer.
They assess the general state of Seaclose
Park during this initial inspection, and
list down what damage is already there,
so that Solo are aware of how the site is
to be left when the festival is finished.
Seaclose Park isn’t the only place that
TWENTYQuestions
Andrew Earley - placid, happy and easy going, except
when free tickets are not on offer!
romantic evening with? My wife.
If you won the lottery, what is the first
thing you would do? Well, firstly I would
pay off all my family’s mortgages (mine first,
of course). I would then take my family on a
dream holiday and treat my boys.
If you were to describe yourself as a
musical instrument, what would you be
and why? A drum - because I like beating
things!
What’s the best advice you have ever
been given? Only buy it if you can afford it.
What’s your favourite smell? Freshly cut
grass.
What do you do in your spare time? Spare
time - what’s that? I love spending any free
time with my boys.
What’s the daftest work related question
you have ever been asked? The public are
always asking ridiculous things.
What’s your favourite piece of kit? My
Charterhouse Verti-Drain 7626
sees a transformation during the festival.
“It’s unbelievable,” Andrew reminisces,
“Newport (the capital of the island), sees
a massive influx of people in and out of
the bars. It’s brilliant, you have a sea of
festival goers walking through the town
centre in colourful costumes of all shapes
and sizes, and generally enjoying the
weather!”
But, the £10 million that the festival
brings to the island each year doesn’t
please everybody, he goes on to say. “If
you ask the younger generation, then
they will tell you how much they love it.
On the other hand, if you ask the older
people in the community, especially
those who live in the area that backs on
to the park, they will give you a totally
different answer! I suppose to
summarise, it really is a case of mixed
feelings.”
Paul McCartney finishes off the festival
late on Sunday 13th June and, the
morning after, the park reveals its true
state. “The morning after the night
What three words would you use to
describe yourself? Placid, happy, easygoing
What talent would you like to have? I
would love to be able to play the electric
guitar.
What makes you angry? Not getting free
Isle of Wight Festival tickets!
What law/legislation would you like to
see introduced? I would like to see tougher
punishment for anti-social behaviour and
fixed penalties introduced for littering.