Don't Touch That Dial

       When you are having issues with a reel mower, what is the first step you take? One of the best things I have learned over the years from working with Jim Nedin is having a process. The first thing Jim always suggests is to take a step back and check all your adjustments. The key is starting with everything set up the same. It may sound obvious but you would be surprised how often something as simple as reel speed is where the trouble is. It seems like many of the operators think they are helping by messing with the dials!
       With heights of cut going lower and lower, the impact is quickly seen when just one thing is out of specification. So the next time you have a mower that is acting up, take a step back and take a few minutes getting the unit back to the having everything the same. It  may not solve all issues but it gives you an excellent baseline when trouble shooting.


                         Hopefully you don't get to this point!

WJC

Assume

       When anyone uses the word assume, I cannot help but think right away of the old saying" You know what happens when you assume....You make an a** out of you and me!" The reason I am on the assume train is some recent transactions in my own territory and my 12 year old daughters new business.
       My daughter, Sydney, at 12 has her heart already set on buying my brothers old Jeep when she turns 16. So last year she put out a flyer to our neighbors offering to do anything from walking dogs, taking care of cats, collecting mail and watering plants. What is great to see is she is getting referrals and she is now getting calls from her customers friends and neighbors. Now as her business grows so does some of the growing pains. She had not set a fee in the past and would tell neighbors to pay me what you think is fair. Well after one person gave her some syrup as payment, she is now rethinking the pay as you feel as a fair plan.
        As I talked with her about giving the new people who she is dealing with some type of sheet with her charges or an invoice, I started to think about how I often conduct business and make  assumptions. This past year, I have had a few occasions where if I had it do over I would have gone in to more detail before coming to an agreement. For me, sometimes it is just because of a comfort zone with a longtime customer that I have let some things go unsaid. In reality, when both sides have a clear expectation what they are agreeing to and there are no surprises, everybody wins.
       And no, there are not any plans for a syrup special for greens mowers in the near future....


WJC

Vollie

       There are a few names you can say in the golf business and the majority of people know who you are talking about right away. One of those names since I started has been Vollie Carr. I had only met Vollie a few times over the years but I have heard so many stories involving him. Sadly Vollie Carr pasted away this week. When someone is spoken about so highly by so many, that shows what a special a person they were. I never had the chance to work on the same team as Vollie but was always amazed by his reputation for taking care of the customers needs.
RIP to a Legend.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/courierpress/obituary.aspx?pid=166291510#fbLoggedOut

Can Wait To Aerate

       As we enter the first week in August and the count down clock to aeration is ticking!
High temps/soaking rains/high humidity/soil temps over 75 degrees for 30 plus days all created turf struggles. For many this is why people talk about this being one of the tougher areas to grow turf. While the long range forecast looks a little better as some good weather would help on many fronts. For most the damage has been done and the reality is that this has been a tough summer. Even with all the preventative actions sometimes Mother Nature just wins. Hopefully the rain switch is turned off and we have a nice dry fall.
       I do know one thing, there will be lots of additional plans for drainage and fan purchases for next years budgets...but if that is anything like buying a snow thrower we will have a dry 2014!
      

WJC

Frost On The Window

       When we get into the summer heat waves here in Philly, I cannot help but think back to one of my first lessons of what never to do in sales. During the summers, while I was working for Dick Bator at Merion GC, I saw many a salesman with bad timing. Dick was notorious for being very hard on salesmen. If you did not know what you were walking into it could be ugly. One day during a streak of super hot days and lots of hand watering, one sales rep pulled his truck right up into the court yard in front of the shop. Now pulling right up to the shop was not the best idea but then sitting in his diesel truck with it running and the windows frosting up from the A/C, might have been the match that lit the fuse! As I watched Dick's anger build and his pacing back and forth get faster, you could not help but hope the guy never got out of his truck. Luckily or unluckily, depending on how you see it, I was back out hand watering and did not see the final explosion.

       Almost everyone I have spoken with this past week has said the same thing, we are in survival mode. Guys are skipping a mow or just rolling. It is still amazing to hear stories of members questioning green speeds or cart paths only after some of the multi-inch rains to some Superintendents!

Just remember only 23 more weeks until Christmas....

WJC
      

Do I look Puffy In This Outfit?

       Puffy seems to be the word of the month in the Mid-Atlantic region. If you have not vented your greens, you are in the minority. With the ridiculous amounts of rain and how many days where it rains period, everybody keeps saying the same thing. " I need to get some air into the turf!'. To me what is interesting is the high humidity seems to be affecting the new varieties of bent grass even more than in the past from humidity. Obviously, the saturated soil is having an impact.
       Many have said they have been able to keep green speeds up to reasonable expectations but a few are at the point where if the rain doesn't stop soon it won't be pretty. I have spoken to a few Superintendents who said the already had some "boiled" turf from standing water followed by some high temps. Ugh!
       So what can you do? As I said, many are using needle tines as often as possible. If you have not tried a bayonet tine, I would suggest giving that a shot. Many have raised the HOC and what seems to be helping the most is going to a full roller to stop any digging in on soft turf.
I spoke to a turf manager the other day and he said he was using a pitch fork to try and dry out some areas. At this point, whatever works!


WJC

Product-People-Price

       I had a really interesting conversation with a customer this past week about why people buy a particular piece of turf equipment over the other choices. My feeling on why people buy comes down to 3 simple things Product, People and Price. While all three play a part in the decision process, what is the percentage breakdown is the interesting question. Sure this is a simplistic view of a complicated process, but I think it is the basis of what a purchase consists of. When you have the opportunity to buy, what makes you choose one piece of equipment over the other?
       Now I hate to share such a big turf industry secret, but they all cut grass or spray chemicals or pull plugs! Yes, some units are just better than everything else available, but the reality is basically all reel and rough units cut grass, aerators pull plugs and sprayers spray. And of course, I feel strongly about Toro products from my years of selling red iron. Obviously, some units have better features and just like all cars are not the same design, they all do the same thing.
       To me that is where the other two parts of the equation come into play. When I reference people, I am not just talking about your sales rep either. It is the support from the salesman, service department, parts department and training provided that are the difference maker. Again just as it all cuts grass....It all breaks at some point! I just want to be the rep from the company that can get you up and going faster than anyone else.
       And the final variable is price. Now the funny part about price to me is it is not the same as cost. If something is cheap up front, I can almost guarantee that over the life of the unit it will cost you more with down time and parts. I am talking about an apples to apples purchase, not any special pricing because of  multiple units or special deals.

       So the next time you have the chance to spend some capital dollars, I would ask you to think about what is the percentage break down in importance of             
Product-People-Price of your purchase.


WJC