Blec Multivator chosen for Charterhouse School pitches

Mike Beardallin Schools & Colleges

Dave Roberts on the Charterhouse cricket squareCharterhouse, the leading Surrey public school, has taken delivery of a new 1.5metre BLEC Multivator - the all-in-one decompacter, soil recycler and topdresser.

Grounds manager Dave Roberts says: "We were impressed with the demonstration we had last year and it seems the ideal machine for our natural turf pitch requirements. We are delighted at the way our new machine is performing.

"We have sandy soil here and the soil recycling aspect of the machine means we do not have the impact of buying in so much topdressing.

"We have started renovating the football pitches, will then do the rugby pitch and do the cricket outfields at the end of the season."

The Multivator has a unique chassis design with quick hook-up rear attachment system which turns the Multivator into a multi-use machine carrying out a wide range of tasks achieved with only one drive unit. Decompacting, soil recycling and topdressing all in one pass.

Other options available are groundbreaking - leaving a clean undamaged surface achieved by fitting the optional smooth curved blades.

There are five models available in different widths - three for mid-range tractors and two heavy duty for higher HP tractors. All units are equipped with overload cam clutch and the heavy duty models also feature long-life side gear drive with forward and reverse rotation.

The standard Multivator has rotating tines which cut grooves up to a depth of 200mm, take out the rootzone, while a following brush puts the recycled material, plus the sand, back into the grooves leaving a clean finish.

The BLEC Multivator 1.5m model in actionDave Roberts has a tough challenge at Charterhouse - one of the most famous sporting public schools in Britain. He has been grounds manager for over five years and was formerly head groundsman at Southampton FC.

"We have a wide variety of different natural turf pitches to deal with here and the Multivator is proving a very useful machine to cope with the demands of them all," he says.

Major sports at Charterhouse are football and cricket with rugby close behind - but there is a wide variety of other sports include grass hockey, athletics, golf (a nine-hole course) and racquets, tennis, squash and fives.
Lacrosse (on grass), netball, tennis and rounders are popular with the girls.

The sporting facilities are truly impressive and include the Queen's Sports Centre with its indoor swimming pool, multi-use sports hall, climbing wall and a well-equipped fitness suite.

Gary Mumby, managing director of BLEC, says: "We are delighted that Dave at Charterhouse has chosen a Multivator for his natural turf pitches.

"It is one of the machines we have developed that has a multi-use functionality across all hard-pressed sports pitches and has won a great deal of praise from sportsturf managers."

Details: 01778 346222 www.blec.co.uk

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