Tag Archive for: Whisper

Whisper Twister on twice daily school run

Whisper Twister on twice daily school run: Since taking delivery of a Wiedenmann Whisper Twister in October last year, Chris Lynch, Grounds Manager at John Lyon School, Harrow-on the-Hill and his team have coined their own twice daily school run.

Their site, at Sudbury Fields in North West London, has five full size football pitches, three junior size pitches, 4 training zones and three cricket squares. On any given afternoon up to 150 pupils and PE staff from the independent day school, as well as outside lettings, make full use of the playing facilities.

Whisper Twister on  twice daily school run

Whisper Twister on twice daily school run

Every morning, with clean tractor tyres, one of the team takes their new blower over their Olympic-sized sand dressed hockey pitch, clearing debris and leaves. Then, switching to the natural turf of the football pitches and cricket outfields, they then take on the 2500m tree lined surroundings of the playing fields, to clear more debris and leaves.

“Most people assume that Autumn is the only time we suffer with excess debris, but you’d be surprised at the volumes we still need to clear over the whole year” said Chris Lynch. “We’re an exposed site and on occasion, where there’s abnormal amounts of wind, like the storms in mid-March with gusts to 60mph, we could easily spend nearly two days clearing up, but the whisper twister saves a significant amount of time in the process.”

“Clean tyres are essential when working on the MUGA, so you don’t bring anything from the fields onto the carpet to contaminate the infill.” continued Chris. “The work the blower does on the hockey pitch keeps it free of debris which is the key factor in keeping the drainage of the pitch working to a high standard and making the carpet as presentable as possible.”

“The work to the natural turf is also an essential part of the overall maintenance and care of the pitches. Where possible, you should always avoid leaving leaves or any other kind of debris on the surface. This will cause the soil to retain more moisture, causing extra movement of worms which prefer moving through wet soil trying to feed on the leaves leading to increased casting. By clearing a pitch, you will also help keep as much natural light going to the grass plant as possible and help the overall drainage and presentation.”

“From a Health & Safety standpoint, the Whisper Twister and its capacity to swivel 180° means the machine works for us and not the other way around.  Take our longest tree stretch at over 400m. Our previous blower in a fixed position meant that to operator often had to twist their body to see where they were going but with the hydraulic swivel feature of the Whisper Twister, this means the driver can operate the machine in a natural position most of the time. The blower is also excellent for working into those hard to reach areas we used to have to do by hand.”

Chris and his team are however using their Whisper Twister for lots of other maintenance tasks including car parks, school lawns and helping to blow off dead grass after raking the natural pitches working perfectly alongside the Wiedenmann Super 500 to present their pitches tidily ahead of fixtures.

Area Sales Manager, Grant Buckingham, from Wiedenmann UK dealer, Ernest Doe & Sons, at Esher, who supplied the machine, said: “The Whisper Twister has 200 m³ per minute of blow.  All that puff makes a significant impact to collecting and efficient work management. Chris chose the optional goose neck spout, so the wind nozzles can be set parallel to the floor. Tractors with just one double-spool valve can operate the “left to right” swivel action hydraulically and the “up and down” motion via an electric ram, thus not requiring a second hydraulic service which is not always standard. Chris and the team can also direct the outlet spout to a variety of angles depending on the conditions.”

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.

Whisper Twister Perfect For Coxmoor

Whisper Twister Perfect For Coxmoor: Coxmoor Golf Club, an accredited England Golf Championship venue, is in its fourth year of a major ten year redevelopment, working closely with architects, Creative Golf Design. The progressive Nottinghamshire club has an innovative programme of bunker and tee improvements to future proof the course which are already elevating its stature. 

Running alongside is a ten year woodlands plan in partnership with The Sherwood Forest Trust and the Forestry Commission.  The goal is to restore the Sutton-in-Ashfield club to its natural heathland habitat with a better understanding of woodland management.  Over 1500 trees have been thinned out making way for the best indigenous species, the focus on selecting trees across a spectrum of life cycle stages. By necessity, Course Manager, Ben Cumberland and his greenkeeping team of seven, adopt very effective solutions for removing leaf debris.

Whisper Twister Perfect For Coxmoor

Central to their operation is a previously under-used John Deere 3730 tractor, which now supports a Wiedenmann Whisper Twister blower on the front and a variety of equipment on the back.

“When I joined Coxmoor, the 3730 tractor was a couple of years old with its three point front linkage kit untouched and no obvious plans to put it to use. With front linkage in place it made sense to attach a blower which could stay on for two to three months at a time,” explained Ben Cumberland.  “James Robson from dealer Henton and Chatell got on the case and brought the Whisper Twister for demo and we kept it.

“It’s fortunate the John Deere has low ground pressure and Galaxy flotation tyres so it can be over the greens for most of the year, leaving no imprint whatsoever. The Whisper Twister balances on a low pressure wheel so together they are perfect for fine turf. When it’s dry, the blower goes round the greens that need it in the morning to tidy them. We drive right up to a bunker, point the nozzle, rotate if required and the leaves are taken out easily. Because the driver’s view is to the front, you see everything; no awkward neck twisting trying to look behind,” continued Ben Cumberland.

Whisper Twister Perfect For Coxmoor

“Only in the depths of winter will we go over the greens and blow leaves by hand. But for other parts of the course when it is damp and the leaves are dormant and bedded into the grass, we will pair the blower with the Wiedenmann Terra Rake.  The scarifying tines on the rake go through the longer grass, teasing the leaves out from the bottom; the leaves are blown out and then we rake them up.

“Having the blower to the front is so versatile; the set up gives scope to do more and more. We will put another machine on the back and tidy as we go, especially with aeration work on the greens, or with the slitter, the sorrel roller, the brush… even down to blowing tees before we spray them with the sprayer attached. We often do two jobs in one. Kill two birds with the one stone if you like.”

For more information, visit: www.wiedenmann.com

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.