Also, Shane, the reason why the penetrometer readings are made public. The track rating is an average, but the penetrometer readings are give for set sections of the track. The reason why the jockeys etc walk the track is because of the variation as you say, not only along the track, but more importantly, from the rail to the middle of the track. This does not take away from the fact that the penetrometer is a reliable and consistent measure of the firmness of the ground.
Morgan, the penetrometer was around before TG's gimmicky, made for TV, "key test". How long have those CH9 pitch reports been made a joke of?
The penetrometer reading does actually give trainers an indication of how their horses will handle the going, the reason why turf clubs use them and publish the results.
Post 91:
What I was trying to get across was a penetrometer was effectively TG's key test (albeit the key test didn't really measure the soil below). I'm just not sure it is a good measure for determining what it is like to running on the top of the grass.
Post #74
Have they figured out a better way to measure firmness of the ground? Last time I checked they were still using a penetrometer, which is basically Tony Grieg’s key test of the grass without any consideration of the soil below.
Again, which post are you running with???