March Update

As the temperatures are starting to warm up and the forecast is beginning to look a little better the 2014 golf season will now finally be creeping into everyone's mind. This winter has been a successful one for myself. I was involved in the hiring process of our new Food and Beverage and Proshop Managers in the beginning of December. I am very excited to now have Jim Lowey and Jim Ambrose joining us for this season. They are definitely going to do a great job at our club in 2014. 

Throughout December and January the grinding and maintenance of the turf equipment reels took place. During this process the reels are completely disassembled and then put onto the grinder to be ground and to restore the spin and relief grind edges on the blades. A new bedknife is installed on the reels and it is ground to what is considered "true." We then grease and lubricate all moving parts, pivot points, and bolts before the reels are reassembled. Once they are reassembled the reels are tested for quality of cut using paper. It is the action of the blades of the reel moving against the bedknife that actually performs the cutting. This is basically the same type of action as a pair of scissors. The reels are then reinstalled on the mowers and ready for another year of quality cutting.

A reel being ground

Freshly ground reels reassembled

Reel mower cutting action

After reels are completed, the usual equipment servicing and repairs take place. This includes fluid changing, greasing, broken or worn part repair or replacement, painting, leak repairs, and many other preventative maintenance measures. I am just in the process of wrapping all of this up for the winter. 

This winter I also moved my office down onto the main floor of our maintenance facility. I transformed one of the less used rooms into my new office. Being on the main floor allows me to be closer to my staff and work area and will allow my staff or the public to access me easier.

My new office

This past February I also attended the 2014 Canadian International Turfgrass Conference hosted by the Canadian Golf Superintendents Association in Vancouver. I picked up new information, tricks and theories at the conference that will definitely be very valuable to our club this season and down the road. I attended sessions that included topics such as disease, turf varieities, green speed, soils and new theories to the industry. It also provided me the opportunity the meet and network with many superintendents that I had never met before and a few that I had already known. 

Education session at the conference

We are on track with everything that needed to be done this winter and are ready for the spring weather to come. We are very excited for the new golf season and can not wait to get out onto the course and continue to improve things!

Looking across to hole 15 on March 5