Equestrian
“
I live on site and, if there is a bit too much growth, I might pop out and give it a third cut at the weekend when the other staff are off. It’s one of the perils of having a house on the course!
A chase fence that had seen an unusual number of fallers has been resited ...
sometimes bottomless going, but an ongoing programme of drainage and sand-slitting - at a cost of £20,000-£30,000 a year - using contractors Souters - has made a significant difference. “Each year, we identify areas needing
attention the following spring,” Thomas explains. "As you improve one area, it makes another one look worse!” New furlong poles are also a precaution
against the elements - held in place by one bolt, they can be easily removed when high winds are forecast to prevent damage. Thomas and his team have also created
two girthing up areas, from land inside the new hurdle track, for final pre-race adjustments to the horses’ tack to save wear on the track itself. One area was also drained this year by Souters. Major renovation work is usually carried out in the four week gap between the end of the national hunt and the start of the new flat season, although it also takes place in other quiet periods. The racecourse has had its own
Wiedenmann Terra Spike for eight years which, Thomas points out, gives the
The oldest tractor in the fleet is a 57 plate, and we use local dealer Johnsons to do all the servicing as none of us are mechanics
”
... with Aintree head groundsman Mark Aynsley and his team digging out, draining and returfing the site of the fence
102 I PC DECEMBER/JANUARY 2015
flexibility to decompact areas of the track as and when required. “We tend to use it post- season for each track, plus the whole course in spring if the conditions are right. It’s also useful to alleviate compaction on jump landings if they get a bit firm, and to allow horses to get their toe in on the flat course bends should there be showers during or just prior to racing after a dry spell. In addition we have a Sisis slitter that comes in useful.” Overseeding of the national hunt track in the spring freshens up the sward, but Thomas admits that dry conditions caught them out this year when busy with the flat course and it needed another application. The bend and home straight on the flat course get some seed at the end of their season.
The new hurdle track is still becoming
established, and it came in for criticism initially, but as Thomas says; “It is fresher ground, but improves every year.” A rapid germination seed is needed in spring and summer, whilst BAR 50 SOS grows well in the cold winter conditions. A new fertiliser programme has been
introduced in consultation with Andrew Tulloch and Mark Aynsley. After starting the season with a Quickstart
six to eight week release application over all three courses, slow release products are used throughout the summer as needed, before Headland Xtend 15:2:20 is applied in September to harden as well as feed the sward. Liquid Grow Green is also used in September to green up the national hunt courses before the start of the season. A pair of Trimax Stealth front mounted
rotary mowers are used to keep the flat course at 85mm and the jumps tracks at 105mm cut heights. “We cut the flat course twice a week and
the national hunt course once a week in summer but, when we are watering a lot, there is strong growth, even though we are using slow release fertilisers,” Thomas comments. “I live on site and, if there is a bit too much growth, I might pop out and give it a third cut at the weekend when the other staff are off. It’s one of the perils of having a house on the course!” He adds that he prefers tractor-mounted mowers to self-propelled machines as he
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