Competition Terrains, What do we want?

[Rager]

Hi,

There have been a few passing comments on TB about how "easy" a lot of UK terrains are compared to more difficult terrains found in France - and how UK players struggle to play on the more difficult terrains that they're not used to.

My personal experience is that a lot of UK "club" players do seem to think that petanque is played on a "billiard table", i.e. as flat and smooth as possible and devoid of any stones or obstacles - if there are any they will be removed and there's often an obsession with raking terrains flat.

In contrast, I've always been struck by how irregular and full of stones and obstacles more French terrains are, *especially* competition terrains.

For example, the tarmac at Brean is given a fairly uniform covering of fairly fine gravel - how about having a covering of larger stones?

Do players generally think that Brean is:
- too easy
- too difficult
- about right

Regards,

Ray

[TalkingBoules]

Easy to scoot shoot, those people should face a firing squad lol
Easy to point unless you land on a hidden painted line. Its petanque not marboules

[herve]

Does anyone know how good is the Bury piste now? I understand from speaking to Sofiane several weeks ago that they had made some positive changes?

[Brian Stote]

We only used the top terrains during the C of C's last weekend but I had the impression that there was much less top dressing on than there used to be.

It's either worked its way into the surface through use and weather or it has been skimmed.

The curving track for low boules was much more pronounced than previously and there was less bite for high lobs.