Winter training snow problem so far.
The winter weather that arrived in the UK over the weekend brought misery to the majority of the country’s population. Apart from the kids not too many people were happy to see the icy blast from Siberia arrive on these shores.
For us at St.Georges park it was perfectly timed as we step up the testing of the under soil heating systems. With all the five systems now running we are working with the heating engineers to establish what our optimum running temperatures will finally be.
Under soil heating is like any other tool we use to maintain the pitches. Used well and wisely it can be invaluable but used incorrectly can create many other problems.
In the early days of under soil heating many systems were run at too high a temperature. This caused some root zones to be baked to the stage where they started to form hard pans. With the root zone composition of our pitches mostly comprising of sand we have to be aware how much quicker the heat travels from the pipes up to the surface. We also have to be aware that if we run the heating and have to use the pitches then they have to be watered in order to stabilise them.
To help us understand the pitches and find the balance we are using feedback from the players and staff of Burton Albion to help us. Burton have trained at ‘St.George’s’ park for several years now and I am all for them staying with us. Following a short change of scenery for the players at Repton School while the renovation work was carried out the team are back now and are providing us with a valuable insight as to how our pitches are performing.Part of the business plan for the park is that we will be able to provide training facilities all year round. It’s a big challenge when you consider how bad our winters can get.
Finding the optimum running temperature will also help us be cost effective as the cost of fuel is not cheap. It is also essential we do not trigger parasitic activity in the root zone as this can seriously damage the pitches stability.
The plan for the next 4 weeks is find the answers to all the questions being asked of us while the winter weather is with us before the milder spring temperatures return.
