Dennis PRO 34R delivers at Beaumont

By Alistair May 16, 2019 06:37 Updated

Cameron Flitten, head groundsman at De Montfort University at Beaumont Park in Leicester, says that the new Dennis PRO 34R rotary mower is significantly improving the vast array of pitches at the impressive sports facility.

Beaumont Park in Leicester has recently benefitted from a multi-million pound investment and has been transformed into an outstanding venue which boasts first-class sports facilities.

In 2015 De Montfort University agreed a 25-year lease on the council-owned Beaumont Park and has been home to the university’s men’s and women’s football teams for past three years. The facilities are also widely used by the local community.

Cameron, who has been the head groundsman throughout this time, revealed that his interest in the Dennis PRO 34R was first ignited when he received a glimpse of the prototype model.

“One day their area manager was dropping some equipment off to me and on the back of the trailer there was a machine that I had never seen before. I asked him what it was and it was then that he told me it was the Dennis PRO 34R prototype.

“I had previously used Dennis Mowers in my former job at Loughborough University and I knew that they were reliable and renowned for giving a first-class presentation, so after asking a few questions, I was adamant that I wanted one.

“At the time it was winter and an incredibly wet winter at that. I was struggling to get on the pitches at certain times and ideally, I like to keep weight off the natural pitches so I was looking for an option where I didn’t have to take the tractor on. The PRO 34R seemed to be just what I needed.”

The prototype which Cameron saw that day was launched at SALTEX 2017 with the sole purpose of gathering feedback from potential end users. Over the course of the next twelve months, the mower was refined and developed based on the input from the groundsmen who would eventually be using it. With no stone left unturned, the all new PRO 34R was unveiled at SALTEX 2018.

The Dennis PRO 34R is a 34” (860mm) rotary mower which has been designed to help groundsmen achieve an aesthetically pleasing appearance and desired playing surface.

It is ideal for sports pitches and lawns producing the enviable ‘Dennis Stripes’ while a powerful vacuum flow collects debris quickly and efficiently.

The angle of the cutting deck and twin blades can be easily adjusted using a single ‘click adjuster’ ensuring the mower is suitable for changing conditions and meeting groundsmen’s requirements.

“At this time of year, you are not really cutting; instead you are using it more as a vacuum cleaner,” said Cameron. “Ideally you just want to remove any loose fragments of grass, debris and soil which sits on the top of the pitches after use because the more organic matter you remove, the less disease you get. In this respect, the PRO 34R is superb and it has certainly helped to keep the pitches cleaner, which will also no doubt make my job easier when it comes to the renovations in spring.

“It also gives us brilliant presentation which is thanks to the roller on the back. I like the fact that it has the brush on the front, so it stands the grass up, the blades go over and then it hoovers it all up.

“The PRO 34R really is a fantastic piece of kit and it is doing a brilliant job. All the staff love using it – especially my assistant groundsman because I can never get it back off him.”