Lords of the blades: groundsmen use summer to renovate grass sports pitches
25.07.2017 – Closing times on the city's grass pitches are about as popular with Offenbach's athletes as torn muscle fibers. That's why the groundsmen try to keep the pitches open for as long as possible and still in good condition.
They look after grass pitches that have been played on, the maintenance of sports areas and associated buildings and ensure that the city's sports facilities can be used without any problems: The groundsmen at GBM Service GmbH from the Stadtwerke Offenbach Group's Geschäftsfeld Immobilien are responsible for ensuring that Offenbach's soccer pitches, running tracks and cabins are up to scratch. They also look after the city's football pitches and are on duty at sporting events such as rowing regattas or the city soccer championships at the ESO Sportfabrik, where they set up signs and crowd barriers, for example.
A sure instinct is often required
"It is a special feature of Offenbach that all sports facilities on which Offenbach clubs play are owned by the city or its subsidiaries and are also maintained by its subsidiary GBM on behalf of the city. Together, we try to create the best possible conditions for our athletes," says Manfred Ginder, head of the sports department at the Office for Culture and Sports Management.
Many of the groundsmen have been with us for up to 30 years. "Our people have to be able to deal with a wide variety of situations," says Wilfried Seidewitz, foreman of the groundsmen in the Geschäftsfeld Immobilien department. A sure instinct is required above all when athletes are slowed down by heavy rain. "When we close a pitch, the users sometimes don't understand." But an abrupt stop by a footballer immediately tears a hole in the wet pitch.
Regeneration time of the pitches in summer
In summer, the pitches are only available to a limited extent due to the necessary regeneration time. Because even a pitch needs to recover. "We used to close them off for six weeks, but now we can reduce that to around three weeks," says Seidewitz. So that the green does not have to slowly grow back on the pitches, the groundsmen use a sod machine to pull off strips of turf at the edge of the pitch and transplant them to the particularly damaged areas on the pitch. The goal area and the central axis are usually ready for use again in a short space of time. The training facilities are in high demand.
32 clubs need one of the scarce dates on the soccer pitches and athletics facilities. "We base the closure times on the clubs' match schedules and tournament times and try to reopen the pitches in time for preparation for the new season," says Stefan Schummer, the facility manager responsible for the sports facilities.
Rosenhöhe sports facility is one of the largest in the city
The newly laid grass is currently taking root on pitch 2 at the Rosenhöhe sports facility, among others. The groundsmen Mohammed Idrissi and Hubert Weinert have carefully cut out the holes in the grass, which could otherwise become dangerous tripping hazards, and filled them with turf. Until this has grown in two to three weeks, no more kicks can be played there. "The sports facility on Rosenhöhe is one of the largest in the city, so we always try to make three of the six pitches available so that training can continue," says Schummer.
The daily pitch maintenance routine in summer includes mowing, fertilizing, scarifying and watering the pitches. The latter is installed in almost all sports facilities, runs digitally controlled at night after the end of training times and is monitored by the groundsmen.
Groundsmen help with minor disasters
Groundsmen help with minor disasters
And then there are the small disasters that the groundsmen can often help with: If, for example, a Bambini player's new soccer boots have been left behind or a bicycle key has been lost, the groundsmen are the first point of contact and can often conjure up what they are looking for, as they are also responsible for the cabins.
In the fall and winter, the groundskeepers remove leaves from the facilities so that athletes don't slip on them when it's wet, clean the sports cabins, trim hedges, carry out winter maintenance and repair the trim trail in the city forest.
At the Schultheisweiher pond, the overgrown greenery around the beaches is trimmed and the sand on the beach is sifted by machine. The water in the nature reserve is one of the groundskeepers' favorite places to work. "The landscape is just great and it's really fun to work there when the weather is nice," says Wilfried Seidewitz.
Sports facilities that are looked after by GBM groundsmen
26.07.2017