What started as just one hand mower purchased close to 30 years ago has blossomed into a full fleet of mowing equipment from Baroness for the team at Ilkley Golf Club.
Today, the 18-hole parkland course is mown from tee to green with 11 machines from the Baroness precision fine turf range, bringing not just cut quality but outstanding reliability to operations at the third oldest club in Yorkshire.
It isn’t only the Baroness brand that has been a stalwart to proceedings, Head Greenkeeper Duncan Campbell has chalked up over 43 years of loyal service – today supported by a team of six.
“Our approach has always favoured hand mowing the greens most mornings which was why we purchased our first Baroness (formally Saxon) back in the mid 1990’s” explains Duncan.
“From the off, the build quality of these machines was evident and the team enjoyed using them so one quickly became two, before becoming five which is what we continue to run today on a turnover programme.”
Alongside the five Baroness LM56 pedestrian greens mowers are an LM66 hand mower for tees, an LM315 greens mower, an LM331 for surrounds and approaches, an LM2700 and LM551B for the fairways and a GM2810A semi-rough mower - the latest purchases delivered by local dealers GGM in early April.
“There’s a lot to like about the Baroness machines starting with the build quality and simplicity of operation.” He emphasises, “We have a highly skilled team that don’t need to rely on fancy gadgets or a computer to do an incredibly good job. Then there’s the cut quality which is consistent throughout the range, both rotary and cylinder. With fewer chemical controls we get a lot of worms and wormcasts here at Ilkley which is, unfortunately, another thing to bear in mind with mowing equipment. The Baroness cylinders deal with this incredibly well, retaining sharpness for a quality cut.”
Duncan goes on to further note the support from GGM and Baroness’ own Andrew Darley. “While we’ve barely had any issues over the years, the back up support and advice we’ve had from Andy and the team at GGM has been brilliant. It helps to make Baroness the ‘complete package’.”
The recent delivery of the GM2810 five-deck rotary mower, together with Duncan’s LM551B are also equipped with the optional Baroness weather cabs. Providing a cost-effective alternative to a full cab, the windscreen and wiper utilise the existing roof, while the soft back and sides provide protection from the elements when needed or can be simply rolled up to optimise airflow in the warmer weather.
