Hedgehogs...

[Imurg]

At my course, hedgehog attachments are required on trolleys during the Winter. They are -allegedly - proven to cause less damage to grass than ordinary trolley wheels - fair enough. Protect the course and all that.
There's a notice just gone up on the board - As from Nov 1st until March 31st only trolleys with hedgehogs atached will be allowed on the course.

That's 2 weeks away. There's no real significant rain forecast down here for the forseeable so why are they going over to "Winter Trolley Rules" when the fairways are dry, running and fast..?
I wouldn't mind if the ground was soft but sometimes it's hard getting a tee in at the moment. With no real rain to come, nothing's going to change by the end of the month.
Didn't get a chance to query it today but I will, unless the heavens open for a few days between now and then.

Anyone else in the same situation.?

 

[CliveW]

I had never heard of Hedgehogs, never mind seen any, before reading about them on here last year. Perhaps it is another southern phenomenen, like having to wear umpteen layers of clothing, mittens, wooly hats and base layers as soon as September is out.

 

[StrangelyBrown]

They've never been mandatory at my gaff before and P'field can be very wet at times.

 

[palindromicbob]

Maybe it is due to the fact that despite the conditions being alright the grass is slower to recover in winter months and they are taking a "prevention is better than cure" approach.

To be honest though if you have hedgehogs why ever take them off? I have tried a pull trolley with them and it defiantly reduced the effort required to pull it. If at the same time it cause less damage to the ground then to me it's win win. If I had the money spare I'd get a set of Gokart hedgehog wheels.

 

[patricks148]

Maybe its just a cost cutting way of spiking the fairways?

 

[chrisd]

The usual over reaction from green keepers and committees. The feeling at our place is that the trolley ban comes on as a blanket ban on 2 arbitary dates which are not normally the same as the bad weather and that hedgehogs are really not better, given the dimples they leave near to greens. Many a player has complained about their lies in and around the dimpled areas in winter league matches and the effect they can have on results as there often is no relief from the damn things!

It is, after all said and done, a field, and the grass will recover in the spring and usually all that is needed is some rope to alter the walk off areas from tees/greens from time to time


Chris

 

[pokerjoke]

Our club makes us use Hedghogs,absolute crap,just a money making scam.
Ok for a quarter ton grass cutter to run up and down the fairway though.

 

[oakey22]

we have to carry when the weather starts to turn

 

[thecraw]

They do make a difference and are proven to reduce wear and tear of the grass. I see no issue in them being enforced by clubs up and down the country. Then again I'd take you off big greens from the end of October till mid March.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

There was a greenkeeper on the old forum and I'm pretty sure he had said that in his opinion they didn't make a real difference and if the ground was wet anyway the only thing to really help is impose a trolly ban. However I guess there must be some justification in them and on the plus side they do allow a lot of senior golfers who can't really carry to enjoy winter golf on a more regular basis and I'm all for that

 

[thecraw]

I believe that they reduce contact with the grass by something crazy like 85%, reduce the skidding effect of the wheels and in general help reduce the wear and tear of the grass.

 

[CliveW]

How do they reduce the wear and tear on the grass? If they reduce the area of contact, then the pressure of the contact must increase as the same weight is distributed over a smaller area.

 

[thecraw]

It reduces the skidding effect that is why, trolly wheels have a habbit of churning up the grass when they spin in the wet soft ground, the hedgehog keeps moving through. Just like a snowchain will improve the traction and grip the hedgehog works in the same way but on a much lesser scale and no they don't rip up the ground and no they don't cause more damage than a conventional trolley wheel. They do work well and they do reduce wear and tear. Mayby try a set out instead of poo-pooing them, you will notice that they do work.

Crawford.

 

[CliveW]

Thanks for the explanation. I am not poo-pooing them, I am just curious as I have never come across them before reading about them on here. I have a Powacaddy and have'nt had any issues with spinning wheels, perhaps I am lucky that my course drains well and I tend to play a lot of links golf in the winter.

 

[HickoryShaft]

I remember these on Dragon's Den a couple of years back.

Last year they were brought in as a trial at our club and the feedback was that they really do help reduce damage in the wet season.

There is now a 3rd category on the board for this year - trollys allowed/not, trollys with hedgehog wheels allowed / not , and course closed.

If it avoids the latter I am up for it but personally speaking I will be carrying when November hits - helps keep me warm

 

[Matty]

I can see a reason for introducing on a set date and putting notices up - it makes everyone aware and hopefully gets everyone on board from that date going forwards. Surely that's better than rolling up one day to find you aren't allowed to play with your trolley as it's been raining heavily over night and you don't have the hedgehogs fitted.

Being forewarned by the club I think is pretty good as it'll avoid issues down the line with people saying - "well I didn't know". I guess they can be pretty relaxed about enforcing it if the weather stays good too, so pack your hedgehog wheels until March and use them if you are asked to and job done.

 

[sev112]

Anyone know wher eyou can get them - i have only ever seen them advertised for Powakaddies ?

 

[thecraw]

Most manufacturers do them. Powerbug do them and I'm sure that Motocaddy also do them.

 

[CliveW]

As a matter of coincidence, guess what is wandering about the garden right now?

Just need another two and I'll be sorted!

 

[welshjim22]

The only probelms with hedgehogs are the initial cost and trying to find one that fits.