Equestrian
Everything that can be green is green - Jockey Club Racecourses has a preferred supplier agreement with John Deere
that can be green is green.” Mark explains that Aintree has a wide range of equipment to cover the needs of the racecourse and the golf course, and that machines can be swapped around, such as deploying the fairway mowers to stripe the track before the Grand National or using ride-on flails to cut rough areas. The fleet also includes a healthy selection of tractors up to 80hp. “What makes a huge difference to me is the parts back up. If I need something, I can simply go to JD Parts online and it’s a 24 hour service. We don’t have a dedicated fitter, so we all look after the machines as part of our job, and it needs to be efficient.”
Other useful pieces of kit include a
Wiedenmann XF8 aerator but, rather than being used to dry out the course as is the chore for many groundsmen, Mark finds it invaluable to help get irrigation water into the soil. “With our relatively few racedays and good soil, it may seem easy, but we do whatever is necessary to repair the course and get it looking right for such high profile racing,” he comments. This can include applying fertiliser with a pedestrian spreader or sowing seed by hand if bends are showing wear. And, getting the turf in pristine condition for the world’s television cameras in early April brings its own challenge. Mark, with assistance from his supplier, has devised a nutrient
The Mildmay Course and Grand National finish
programme. “I usually put on 42kg/ha of N in March, and then don’t use any more fertiliser until October, as the grass growth would be too much; 110kg/ha of N per year is enough. At 20g/sqm that’s 140 bags, or three tonnes, as it is such a huge area to cover.” Surfactants such as Tricure AD are also used on areas that are hard to re-wet but, again, given the area, this can be an expensive process and Mark comments that it is hard to gauge its effectiveness. Seed mixtures have been extensively evaluated, with the high viability of Barenbrug products getting the nod. “Bar 7 RPR gives impressive repopulation, whilst the cool weather regermination of Bar 50 makes it ideal for winter. We have also trialed Rhizomatous Tall Fescue (RTF) on take- offs to increase stability and reduce sinking in by horses hooves.” Germination covers have been used, but don’t always work around fences, whilst costly hydroseeding has got results, but Mark questions whether patience might have been a better approach! “This winter, the grass has just carried
on growing as it has been so warm. Divots filled in December showed impressive recovery by mid- January!”
“On Grand National day, the Aintree grounds team numbers 225 people - on a normal raceday there are forty, of which six are full time”
FEBRUARY/MARCH 2014 PC 115
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