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John Deere fleet at St George’s Park

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John Deere fleet at St George’s Park: For the grounds team at St George’s Park, the home of England football, maintaining a world-class venue is a 365-days-a-year, 24-hours-a-day passion.

Located six miles from Burton in Staffordshire, the park is home to 14 pitches and sprawls across 330 acres with 150 acres actively maintained by a 15-strong team.

John Deere fleet at St George’s Park

John Deere fleet at St George’s Park

 

Andy Gray, Head of Grounds and Estates, is in charge while 10 take care of the pitches and four work on the wider estate.

“The sheer size of the estate is the biggest challenge,” says Andy, who joined The FA from Southampton FC.

A key part of his job is to foresee issues that will crop up in the future and putting a strategic plan in place to meet these potential challenges.

“I’m also responsible for making sure my team has all the tools they require to do their job effectively,” he adds.

To help them in their quest to continue delivering world-class excellence, the centre has invested in a brand new fleet of John Deere mowers, gators and tractors to maintain the England teams’ pitches and the wider estate.

The pitches

“It’s a high-pressure environment because you’re constantly trying to meet everyone’s expectations and when you have a small team on both sides it is hard,” says Dan Oliver, Assistant Head of Grounds.

Adaptability and responding to the UK’s unpredictable weather patterns is key. “The weather is the biggest thing,” adds Dan. “There are peaks and troughs, depending on how wet or warm it has been.”

With major Premier League and European teams plus sides from further afield making the journey to train at St George’s, Dan and the team feel the pressure to deliver a world-class experience.

“We constantly compare ourselves to other venues. A lot of the players will be coming from excellent facilities, so we do our best to mirror what they’re used to, and hopefully deliver more. This should be a step up.”

The estate

Management of the wider estate covers a range of tasks from woodland management to protecting and enhancing biodiversity.

Matt’s estates team is made up of him and three other people. This equates to an approximate ratio of one person per 25 acres to actively maintain daily.

The team’s existing equipment lease deal expired in January 2020, leading to a re-evaluation of what was required.

“That fleet was the same one that was set up in 2011,” Matt says.

“The ride-on mowing equipment we had didn’t suit our estate’s undulating terrain. The nature of the site means that you’re never sure what you’re going to come across and because of the soil makeup the ground is often wet.”

After an extensive demonstration process of the machines available to them, the team decided to go with John Deere because of the extra support the brand can provide.

“One thing that really impressed me from the start was the support John Deere gave us during the transition when the old fleet was going out and the new kit was still being built,” Matt says. “As it was transferred in we still had access to whatever equipment we needed.

“For us, one of the most important things was what would happen if something broke down. Our arrangement with John Deere means we can get answers quickly and get equipment back up and running.”

The team’s new John Deere fleet comprises three compact tractors in the form of a 2036R and two 4066R models, two TE and three HPX Gators, three 2750 E-Cut triplex mowers, two X950R riding mowers, one 7400A TerrainCut and a 8000A mower, one Progator and a HD200 sprayer.

All the equipment was supplied by John Deere dealer Farol through Area Sales Managers Jacob Shellis and Tom Spencer. With their support, full training was given to the workforce on how to set up the machines to operate with maximum accuracy and performance.

The fleet is fully connected and all machines are remotely monitored by Farol under Deere’s PowerGard protection plan. A maintenance agreement means work is carried out at scheduled times according to the service manual. This ensures performance is maximised and reduces the risk of breakdowns. The deal is in place for five years.

Nathan Page, one of the operators at St George’s, said: “A big difference is the 2036R and 4066R tractors. They are all-weather, comfortable and capable of pulling everything we need them to.”

His colleague Michael Bristow added: “The main thing for me was the training when the new kit arrived. We have been shown the right way to operate it all. The ride quality is also really good, which is important when you’re working on these machines all day.”

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Spurs trust STAR EV with player welfare

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Spurs trust STAR EV with player welfare: Tottenham Hotspur Football Club is placing its trust in STAR EV and Reesink e-Vehicles when it comes to its football players’ welfare at its Training Centre in North London with three all-electric ambulance vehicles.

It is absolutely vital for all the footballers’ welfare that strict medical requirements are in place at all times and as well as having a fully trained medical team, Tottenham now has two new ambulance vehicles for the men’s team and one for the women’s. These vehicles are kept on site, fully equipped and ready to support the medical team at a moment’s notice.

Spurs trust STAR EV with player welfare

Spurs trust STAR EV with player welfare

For the club that holds the title of the Premier League’s greenest club, it was a given that the vehicles would be battery-powered, but the decision of which brand to put his trust in when it comes to supporting the medical teams with the safety of the players came down to Darren Baldwin, Head of Playing Surfaces and Estates at Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, who explains: “What makes these ambulance vehicles stand out are their logical design and innovative features that combine to make the job of the medical team easier.

“The gurney in particular is applauded for how it slides on and off and locks in securely with just two clicks of the handle, while the auto lift and load feature mean it stands up securely. The medical boxes and good storage capacity make sure the team has everything they need logically stored and conveniently to hand so they can be efficient under pressure.”

It’s not just the ease of use the medical team has commented on though, Darren reports positive feedback on the quality of the product too. He continues: “We’ve all been blown away by the quality of these vehicles, they are far in advance of the competition. The little things have been accounted for, like the windshields, for example, they aren’t plastic, and they have windscreen wipers. That’s a fantastic feature to come as standard.”

The grounds of Tottenham Hotspur are extensive – 18 acres – and these machines are required for the academy, training grounds and pitches so how have they performed on such a large site? Darren says: “There is a lot of trust in the batteries! Obviously, it’s a big consideration choosing electric for such vital vehicles – we need to be able to rely on them 100 percent of the time. But charging is easy and there are clear controls to show what charge is left.”

Dave French, sales manager of Reesink e-Vehicles, the UK distributor of STAR EV, says: “There’s no reason to doubt battery power these days, especially with STAR EV, it brings to the UK battery power built to last. There’s on-board charging, meaning no expensive infrastructure. And with the Lithium option, you don’t need to worry power drifting away either, you get a constant amount delivered throughout the discharge. Both the AK and Capella ambulance vehicles are nimble and compact vehicles, designed from the ground up to manage the carriage of a casualty, whilst offering excellent support from other passengers.”

Dave concludes: “It’s a real honour to not only have equipped Tottenham Hotspur with such a key equipment purchase to keep its players safe, but that the club, which is voted as one of the greenest in the premiership chose STAR EV to continue on its journey to carbon neutrality.”

To find out more about STAR EV call 01480 226800 or go online at reesink-evehicles.co.uk

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Progressive key to consistent cutting

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Progressive key to consistent cutting: When it comes to optimum heights of cut for fairways, there isn’t a ‘one-height-fits-all’ approach – but one thing all Turf Managers will be aiming for is consistency, which can be easier said than done when dealing with potentially uneven or undulating ground.

The Progressive range of multi-deck mowers have been carefully designed with this in mind, offering unrivalled contour-following ability for an accurate quality of cut.

Progressive key to consistent cutting

Progressive key to consistent cutting

While a multi-deck mower may not be required in every situation, it can offer a broader scope of use with its ability to accommodate both flat and undulating turf equally. This flexibility delivers a quality cut without the risk of scalping or shredding the plant, helping to retain plant health and reducing potential entry points for pathogens and turf diseases to take hold. Their versatility sees them suited to operation around the golf course, alongside other applications such as sports fields, turf farms and mowing tasks undertaken by local authorities.

The latest addition to the Progressive range is the TDR-X – featuring three independently floating decks which provide a combined cutting width of 3.2m. It all begins with an adaptive swivel hitch at the front, making the TDR-X more agile and ensuring it works with the tractor to follow undulating ground. The cutting height range of 9.5mm to 84.5mm is easy to adjust, with their industry-leading rotary blade overlap ensuring a precise and even cut. Full width rollers on both the front and rear of each deck completes the specification, leaving a professional finish for both golf and sports surfaces.

The TDR-X sits in the portfolio of ‘finishing mowers’ alongside the ProFlex 120 – the most widely used trailed contour mower. The ProFlex features a 3m cutting width across five decks, each of which can be quickly and easily adjusted to give the operator complete flexibility to make a stepped or transitioned first-cut in a single pass.

Along with other machines in the Progressive range, both the TDR-X and ProFlex 120 take advantage of Progressive’s Pro Lift-N-Turn™ technology, allowing the operator to temporarily raise the decks, with the PTO still engaged, making turning and transportation easier to increase overall productivity.

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Ventrac – versatility that works

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Ventrac – versatility that works: This is Price Turfcare’s first venture at SAGE and they will be demonstrating the new Ventrac 4520 all-terrain compact tractor which has over 30 dedicated attachments designed specifically for the turf manager.

On Stand 7 their demonstration vehicle, equipped with 20- and 30-degree ramps, will be there so the team can put the machine through its paces on slopes that no other ride-on machine in the UK can tackle. Rupert Price, the company’s managing director, invites you to come and view this remarkably versatile machine and see for yourself why Ventrac has become the ‘Swiss Army Knife’ for the turfcare industry. Versatility that works, every day.

Ventrac – versatility that works

Ventrac – versatility that works

www.priceturfcare.com

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Timbersports Women’s Championship

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Timbersports Women’s Championship: STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® will host its first ever British Women’s Championship in June, where the best female lumberjill athletes in Great Britain will put their axe, saw and chainsaw skills to the ultimate test to become the inaugural female STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® British champion. 

The landmark event will take place at Royal Three Counties Show in Malvern on Friday 17 June and will see the top eight female logger sports athletes battle against each other in three challenging disciplines; Stock Saw, Single Buck and Underhand Chop.

Timbersports Women's Championship

Timbersports Women’s Championship

Each discipline will see the athletes slice and chop their way through large logs in seconds using a combination of axes, two-metre crosscut saws and high-powered chainsaws, all requiring high levels of power, precision and endurance to succeed. Competitors are awarded maximum points for the fastest time, with the athlete accumulating the most points crowned the best female TIMBERSPORTS® athlete in Great Britain.

Competing in this ground-breaking event will be Beth Parker from Southport, Catherine Eccles from Scotland, Dee Hardwick from Redditch, with the remaining five athletes in Justine Narusa, Kristy Bray, Martine Arrowsmith, Sarah Cox and Zoe Penlington all hailing from Wales. The athletes have been sharpening their logger skills at STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® training camps throughout the year and are ready to put on a high octane performance in front of a live audience.

The 2022 STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® British Championship and British Rookie Championship crown will also be fought for at the Royal Three Counties Show on Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 June respectively. In the British Championship, the top male athletes from around the country will compete against each other across six TIMBERSPORTS® disciplines. The rookies, who are under 25, will take part in four events, accumulating points in each round based on their placing in each discipline. The overall winner in each competition is the athlete with the most points once all rounds have taken place.

Simon Hewitt, Head of Marketing at STIHL GB, said: “After several behind closed door events, not only are we thrilled to be bringing TIMBERSPORTS® back to a live audience, but we are also very excited to introduce the first British Women’s Championship.

“All of the competitors want the chance to be the champion in the first Women’s Championship, so all eight athletes have been working hard, but even the smallest slip-up on the day can have a huge effect, so anyone can win it! We can’t wait to see the best-of-the-best female athletes compete for the ultimate logger prize.”

Jane Edwards, Shows Manager at Three Counties, said: “We are incredibly excited to welcome STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® to Royal Three Counties Show and wish all the athletes luck in their Championships. The STIHL Arena is a fantastic, high octane, entertainment area and a great addition to the Show. We’re especially pleased to be hosting the first STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® British Women’s Championship on the Friday and love the fact one of the athletes hails from Worcestershire!”

The Royal Three Counties Show (17 – 19 June) is the Heart of England’s premier celebration of the countryside and rural life. To buy tickets and see the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® action live, please visit https://www.threecounties.co.uk/buy-tickets/.

To find out more about the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® Series please visit https://blog.stihl.co.uk/timbersports/

STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® British Championship – the six disciplines:

Springboard – athletes slot two springboards into a vertical tree trunk then chop through a block of wood at the top of the tree, nearly 3m above the ground

Stock Saw – athletes race to cut two timber “cookies” with a chainsaw from a horizontally set log. The cookie must be complete and within a defined thickness

Standing Block Chop – simulating the felling of a tree, athletes race to chop through a 30cm wood block as quickly as possible from the side

Single Buck – athletes race to cut through a 46cm diameter log using a two-metre long single man crosscut saw

Underhand Chop – athletes stand on a horizontal log and cleave it in two with an axe, chopping from both sides

Hot Saw – athletes race to cut three cookies of a specified thickness from a horizontal trunk using an extremely powerful chainsaw weighing nearly 30kg and with a chain speed of around 250 km/h

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