Bristol Croquet Club: Club Guide
For a gentle, thorough, introduction to croquet and the club, read all sections left to right, top to bottom - others might want to jump to the section of interest. Key: Club Life, Playing, Competition.
Club Guide: Our rules, customs and conventions
Whether you are new to croquet, or a more experienced player moving to Bristol Croquet Club, joining a club involves a lot of learning - not just about the game but about the rules, customs and conventions of the club.
The Committee has created this Guide for you. It covers the safety and security of our members, visitors, contractors, and physical assets; it facilitates efficient, equitable and harmonious sharing of the Club's facilities.
These are combined from a range of sources and cover the rules, values, guidance, good advice, customs and etiquette relevant to enjoying croquet at our Club.
It is important that the section Club Etiquette: Conventions, Customs and Good Manners is understood from the outset. You may find some of these quaint but all should be duly noted.
Your coach or any Committee member will be happy to explain any of these points. Members who fail to observe them, whether through ignorance or thoughtlessness, might expect a word of encouragement in their ear from a Committee member!
Club Life
The Club is a social enterprise. We want everyone to feel part of it all - so please behave with courtesy and consideration towards all members, visitors and guests.
And we couldn't operate without our member-volunteers. There are masses of activities to get involved with. Some tasks use contractors (lawn seeding and mowing, hedge trimming, clubhouse cleaning) but everything else is undertaken by member volunteers.
These are just some of the ways you can get involved:
- helping with catering at competitions and tournaments
- taking the re-cycling home
- topping up the stocks of soft drinks and snacks
- tending the plants
- helping with lawn and equipment care and maintenance
- white lining
- hoop setting
- leaf clearance
- helping with our fun social events such as BBQ and American Supper (details in the programme)
- joining in our winter social activities: Scrabble, table tennis - suggest your own ideas
- as your play progresses, think about captaining a team, becoming a coach, learning how to manage competitions and tournaments
- joining the Committee
Do make the most of what we have to offer: join in and do offer to help - any Committee member will be more than happy to point you in the right direction.
Why not share your enthusiasm and super-powers with us?
The Clubhouse
Arial View of the club
We enjoy a purpose-built clubhouse with three full-size lawns and associated out-buildings.
Please note that smoking is not permitted in any of the buildings, on the courts nor the clubhouse terrace. If you must smoke, please do so with consideration for other members and spectators and move away graciously if asked to do so.
Our clubhouse has a clubroom, changing rooms, toilets and kitchen facilities with supplies of soft drinks, ices, etc. but no bar. Prices are displayed on the kitchen noticeboard and members are asked to use the tally system to pay.
You are welcome to bring in your own drinks and other refreshments, but please take all empty bottles, cans and other containers back home with you when you leave.
Plan of the Clubhouse
Please use our facilities with consideration for others:
- Please wash up and put away any kitchen equipment that you use - and please lend a hand when larger scale catering is being undertaken
- We recycle waste where possible. Please wash out items before putting them in the recycling bin
- Do not take glass items out of the clubhouse. Stray broken glass can injure people and ruin lawnmowers
- Accidents should be recorded in the Accidents Book in the clubhouse. This is checked regularly by the club Secretary
- In the event of serious injury or incident, the Secretary should be informed once the emergency has been dealt with
- The First Aid Box is kept on a low shelf in front of the kitchen units and is visible from the door
- The clubhouse noticeboard is maintained by the Secretary. Please ask if you wish to put up a notice
Security
Personal equipment (e.g. your mallet) may be stored in the respective clubhouse changing rooms at your own risk but must be labelled with your name. Unlabelled clothing and equipment will occasionally be gathered into a lost property box and then disposed of.
The first person to arrive should:
- unlock the gate and secure the lock, scrambling the code
- when larger numbers are expected, (club sessions, tournaments and competitions), it is helpful to switch on the water heater so that later washers-up have a ready supply of hot water (switch above and left of the main kitchen sink)
The last person to leave the clubhouse must:
- ensure space heaters and water heaters are switched off
- lock the door
The last person to leave the grounds must:
- ensure that the sheds are secured and the clubhouse is locked
- check the garage is locked - if not, report it to any Committee member as soon as is practicable
- lock the gate - even if someone else is expected soon
Put the padlock so it is easily accessible
The gates are secured with a combination padlock whose four-digit code is changed from time to time and members notified. Phone another member if you have forgotten it. Please do not divulge the code to anyone you don't know to be a member.
Members may obtain a key to open the clubhouse upon payment of a refundable deposit. It is very important that the last member to leave checks that the clubhouse is secure and the gate is locked.
To Unlock the Gates:
- Set the 4-digit code on the centre line of the padlock (all zeros in the photos) with the first digit being nearest to the hasp, then press the button on the bottom of the padlock to release the hasp
- Open the gate and fit the padlock back in a hole on the sliding bar, close the padlock and scramble the code - do not leave the padlock open or the tumblers unscrambled!
- Secure both gates into the fully open position
To Lock the Gates:
- Unlock and remove the padlock (as above)
- Close the gates (side furthest from the school first) - drop the ground bolt only on the LH gate
- Shoot the sliding bar, refit the padlock as shown in the photos and scramble the tumblers
Parking
Our members are many but our parking spaces are few.
- When parking within the grounds:
- Do your best not to distract players on Lawn 1
- Avoid taking up two potential spaces
- Park at an angle to accommodate more cars
- Do not block the turning space outside the garage
- On exit, be aware of the school and that you cross a footpath - therefore, do not reverse out, turn at the top of the drive
- There is plenty of on-street parking nearby:
- Note the proximity of the school and be prepared for traffic congestion at key times
- Please park with consideration for school visitors and neighbours
- Follow the guidelines described in our Risk Assessment
Lawns and Equipment
The condition of our lawns is an essential factor in the enjoyment of the game. We spend a great deal of money and volunteer effort cutting and maintaining our lawns. Members must take great care not to damage the lawn surface in any way, either with their feet or their mallet, although we accept that occasionally accidents do happen.
A Newly Set Hoop
If hoops are hit in too far, our Hoop Group have to move them, which leaves lawn damage in its wake. Please do not tap hoops further than is necessary to make them firm (it only needs a tap, not a thump) using the black-rubber headed mallet kept in the white lining shed, where you will also find the swish sticks needed after rain to clear worm casts before play. Please stop other people hitting hoops in too far, or playing without clearing worm casts.
The Hoop Group regularly reset the hoops, to move away from worn patches and rabbit runs, and set hoop widths appropriate to upcoming tournaments and our Hoop Setting Coordinator would be grateful for more volunteers to spread the workload. Full training given!
In rare situations, an AC player might find that the projecting carrots prevent them from making a fair stroke - in that case only can the hoop be hammered down to the ground. See Law 5.
Please also read Preparing to Play in the etiquette section.
See the Our Grounds Secretary looks after the lawns and surrounding areas. Our Playing Equipment Coordinator lays out the lawns for play, positioning boundary lines and hoops as required.
Please contact them to report damage or with any queries relating to these topics.
See also Booking a Court.Mallets
There are a number of club mallets, which beginners may borrow in their first year of play, and perhaps longer by prior arrangement with the Playing Equipment Coordinator. They are kept in the equipment cupboard when not in use. They must not be removed from the club premises.
Coaches will help you to select a suitable club mallet. Several people may use the same mallet at different times so it is important to return it promptly when you have finished playing.
In your second year of play, you should buy your own mallet. Coaches and the Playing Equipment Coordinator will be pleased to advise you how to choose and buy a mallet. Do not buy a "Garden Mallet", a good starter mallet will typically cost about £200 new. Refer also to Mallets (Oxford Croquet).
From time to time, members will wish to sell used mallets. This is a good chance to get a decent mallet at a bargain price. If you wish to sell a mallet, contact the Playing Equipment Coordinator who will circulate details to other club members.
Risk Assessment and Safety
Croquet is not a dangerous sport, but playing croquet at Bristol carries more risk than staying at home on the sofa. We will not enumerate here the many obvious and universal risks (e.g. 'the kitchen knives are sharp'), but there are risks specific to croquet, and there are risks specific to Bristol Croquet Club; let's take those separately:
- Risks associated with croquet:
- The most common injury amongst croquet players is a sprained or broken wrist, caused by tripping over the hoops, balls, boundary boards, fox holes or your own mallet, and often while walking backwards
- Keep aware of the lawn furniture and conditions
- Every spot on the lawn can be reached by walking forwards. Eschew other gaits and directions
- Croquet balls are hard and can be propelled at speed
- When double-banking (particularly) or playing GC, you may be on the lawn when someone else is striking the ball
- Remain aware while on the lawn. Retire behind a boundary board when not required on the lawn
- Do not try to stop a speeding ball with your foot
- Lawn treatments we use include weed killers and fertilizers that are harmful if ingested
- Wash your hands before putting anything to your mouth
- The most common injury amongst croquet players is a sprained or broken wrist, caused by tripping over the hoops, balls, boundary boards, fox holes or your own mallet, and often while walking backwards
- Risks associated with Bristol Croquet Club particularly:
- Not every boundary is protected by a boundary board. See above
- Some lawn boundaries are grassy slopes, which may appear to be a handy shortcut
- Don't. Slippery slopes are not just metaphorical
- The handrails on the concrete steps up to the clubhouse are for your safety, not decoration
- The car parking arrangements cannot provide full separation between cars and pedestrians using the drive
- Extra care is needed, by both drivers and pedestrians
- When driving out through the gate, be aware that the neighbouring primary school exit is a few metres away, and primary-school children do not have the circumspection customary amongst croquet players, so exit slowly
- The Club, and The Highway Code, both advise exiting forwards, so either reverse in, or turn at the top of the drive
- On club workdays, and at other times, volunteers may use hedge trimmers to cut back bushes, ladders to reach guttering, barrows and shovels to spread grit, mallets and chisels to move hoops
- Do not volunteer for a task in which you are not completely confident. There are plenty of other things that need doing
Any accident that occurs must be reported to a Committee member as soon as is practicable and recorded in the Accident Book (kept in the clubhouse or equipment hut while closed) including all relevant details of when, what, how, why and to whom.
Please also refer to the General Risk Assessment.