Return To ... "It is Happening ...... The Work
has Started ...... September 2009" ... Index Page
and this page includes twenty-four photos
and one video
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Rebuilding
of Diamond One
PAGE
#01
- How the field has progressed - CLICK
HERE
Sunday 4th October
2009 to Wednesday 27th January 2010
grass is starting to grow ... picking up rocks and sticks ...
first mowing ... spreading gypsum
pulling out sensitive weed ... top dressing the infield ... changing
the soil mixture in the running
tracks and skinned infield ... the bauxite has been delivered
... sensitive weed
PAGE
#02
- How the field has progressed - CLICK
HERE
Sunday 21st
February 2010 to Sunday 21st March 2010
marking the dirt to grass edges ... mound position and height
... the bags of bauxite have been
dragged on to the diamond ... unfired clay bricks being put in
the catcher and batter's boxes
chipping the dirt to grass edges ... spreading and levelling the
bauxite
mowing the infield ... aerial and panoramic photos
PAGE
#03
- How the field has progressed - CLICK
HERE
Wednesday 24th
March 2010 to Friday 2nd April 2010
inground supports for first, second and third base ... aerial
and panoramic photos
collecting ant bed for the mound from the Tablelands
PAGE
#04
- How the field has progressed - BELOW
Wednesday
7th April 2010 to Sunday 11th April 2010
marking out and building the mound ... buried 'secrets'
shaping the top and front of the mound with ant bed ... crusher
dust for the outside slopes
PAGE
#05
- How the field has progressed - CLICK
HERE
Monday 12th
April 2010 to Friday 16th April 2010
final touches to the mound ... unfired clay bricks added to the
foot mark / hole
the mound is finished ... marking the field for the first time
and it's ready
the first game and the first home run ... the highly qualified
grounds crew
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this page includes
32
photos and 0 videos and, yes, I know that's a lot
however, it's the best way to look at how the field has progressed
and the ongoing improvements
so just be patient while it downloads completely ... will not
take long !!
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Wednesday
7th April 2010
The Pitcher's Mound
The eighteen foot circle has been marked,
along with the position of the pitcher's plate ... ready to start
!!
The edge has been cut and the surface
grass is being dug out
x
x
The three shots below show the mound
is starting to take shape
Carting in the ant bed that was collected
from the Tablelands ... see "Page Three" above
Levels have been marked and some of
the ant bed is ready for compacting
==============================================================
Friday
9th April 2010
Shaping the Pitcher's Mound
On Thursday following the above photos,
another large hole was dug which was filled with pavers (not bodies)
and the soil was just heaped on top of the plate as shown in the
two photos below
Below can be seen that as much as possible
of the ant nest material has been separated from the clay
Levelling of the clay has also been started ... and, yes, there
is a baseball there on the plate ready for the pitcher !!
The Major League Baseball Official
Rules state that the mound should have
a flat area of 60 inches x 34 inches at the top and the
battens in the photos below mark out this area
It can be seen that at the moment there is not enough soil available
to complete the slopes to the edges of the eighteen foot circle
and also, as the whacker-packer broke down, this "mound"
has not yet been compacted
NOTE - unfortunately the pitcher's plate was put
in the wrong spot ... it should be on the other side on the marker
... will fix it !!
Firstly a look from the front ...
... and from first base ...
... and from second base ...
... and from over at third base
Finally a look while standing on home
plate
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Sunday
11th April 2010
Working Bee
...... The Pitcher's Mound
As mentioned above, the pitcher's plate
was in the wrong spot ... that has now been altered and the whacker-packer
has been fixed
All the ant nest soil has been moved to the front of the mound
and is being compacted ... with Brett using the machine
The front fall / slope has now been
graded
The large block of timber in the bottom
right of the photos is going to be buried in front of the pitcher's
plate
and this should stop holes being dug when the pitchers use the
'set' position
(it has not been done yet as the peg presently in front of the
plate has the all-important mound height marked on it)
The photo below shows the 'completed'
top and front of the new mound
The Queensland Schoolboys State Championships
are being held on this field ... with three days left before the
umpire called "Play Ball" !!
There was not enough time to collect more ant nest material so
crusher dust was used ... as can be seen in the photos below
NOTE - during the four day Championships, there
were fifteen games played on this field and the crusher dust performed
very well
In the shot below, the mound is almost
finished
Unfortunately the whacker-packer broke down again ... the right
side has been compacted but the left side is yet to be done
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and now CLICK
HERE to go to PAGE #05
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