Description:
Welcome to Episode 115 of the Reel Turf Techs Podcast! Meet Brian Knoche, the Equipment Manager at Lost Rail Golf Club in Gretna, NE. Lost Rail, a private 18-hole par 71 designed by Scott Hoffman, sets the stage for Brian’s unique journey in turf management. Leaving behind his parents’ vision of him becoming an electrician, Brian found his true calling in mechanics, driven by his admiration for the precision work on a reel mower.
As the lone tech in the shop, Brian, originally a Connecticut native, shares his transition from bunker raking and mowing greens to becoming a pivotal part of the shop’s weekend respite for the mechanic. After a stint on the OEM side, Brian returned to the shop, and he hasn’t looked back since.
Discover the impact of assisting the crew during winter, providing Brian with a close-up look at the fine details that make up agronomy practices, enhancing his skills as an EM. Brian, a rare EM who golfs in his free time, offers a valuable perspective on the quality of cut from the golfer’s point of view. Tune in to hear about the tight-knit community of technicians in Nebraska and the profound impact of a patient mentor on Brian’s love for the job.
Join Trent and Brian as they explore what makes Lost Rail Golf Club special – from its rolling terrain and beautiful vistas to the pride of ownership and that indescribable magic that some properties just possess. Learn what it was like for Brian to join the Lost Rail team during the grow-in stage without a completed shop or even a parking lot.
It’s a fun episode filled with insights, stories, and the unique charm of Lost Rail Golf Club.
Transcript:
Trent Manning: 0:05
welcome to the reel turf techs podcast for the technician that wants to get reel follow along. As we talk to industry professionals and address hot topics that we all face along the way we’ll learn tips and tricks. I’m your host, Trent. Manning let’s have some this episode are real turf techs on golf course industries Superintendent radio network is presented by Foley county a strong supporter of equipment technicians and golf course maintenance departments everywhere Foley county offers a proven solution for above and below the turf for turf professionals To learn more about Foley company’s line of real grinders bed knife grinders and the air to G2 family of products or to find a distributor visit www dot Foley C o.com Foley Ready for play Welcome to the real turf text podcast, episode one 15. Today, we’re talking to Brian Knocky. Equipment manager at loss, real golf club in Gretna. Nebraska lost rail is a private 18 hole par 71 designed by Scott Hoffman. Brian is the loan tech in the shop. Let’s talk to brown. Welcome Brian to the real turf techs podcast. Thanks for coming on.
Brian Knoche: 1:31
Thanks for having me. Appreciate it.
Trent Manning: 1:33
Absolutely. We’re going to have a blast like we always do.
Brian Knoche: 1:36
Perfect.
Trent Manning: 1:37
Tell us how you got into the, turf industry.
Brian Knoche: 1:39
Oh, mine was actually, I kind of stumbled into it. I, uh, moved out to Nebraska from Connecticut in the winter of 2010. And I just wanted a part time job for some fun money, keep bills in the house and just have a little fun money. And I saw on a website. The superintendent at Indian Creek Golf Course in Elkhorn, Nebraska. He had a blog page and it had a link to employment. So I clicked on it and next thing you know that March I’m out raking bunkers with a bunch of high school kids at the age of 35 or yeah at the age of 33. And uh, did it for one season and asked me at the end of the year if I was willing to come back the following year and I said absolutely. That following spring he trained me to mow greens. I did that for two more seasons and I asked him if his equipment manager needed an assistant on the weekends if he wanted some time off because I knew how many hours he worked throughout the week, working seven days and about four months that he, uh, trained me how he wanted things done. And then that last two months of the season, I, I worked a Saturday and Sunday by myself and gave him some time off and that just stuck. And that was what I did for another, I think three seasons there. And then went into, went in, uh, worked for John Deere OEM dealer as a mechanic, and then went into sales and didn’t like the OEM side. So I, uh, had a buddy of mine. I took a job as a superintendent at a private club in Omaha and Shadow Ridge Country Club and needed a mechanic and worked for him for a couple of years. And then this brand new golf course opened up. So I said, let’s try a grow in. And I went to low and by the, by the field, it’d probably be where I retire from. I, uh, Fell in love with the property and really liked it. Just the flow and how laid back things are. And the, there is a demand on me for high cut quality, but I enjoy it. And if I don’t set high expectations for myself, I’ll never have high expectations. So it’s all self induced and I have a great relationship with my super. And the rest is, it’s been history. I’ve been there. March would be the start of my third year there. I look forward to it. So, I started there March 21. We opened September. 1st of 22 for 60 days, closed that October, did a bunch of tee box renovations because some of the par three tee boxes weren’t big enough for the amount of play that we had and then opened up again in April and just closed down, uh, first week of November this season. Will be closed probably until April again,
Trent Manning: 4:23
What all do you do over the winter time?
Brian Knoche: 4:27
so over the winter time? I will take I will take from basically This year’s been abnormally warm through we’ve been averaging about 50 for highs Which is really rare out here through christmas, but usually what i’ll do is i’ll take from thanksgiving to christmas And if I didn’t like the way something flowed in my shop, i’ll reorganize it And then, after Christmas break, first of the year, I’ll pressure wash everything, clean it all, and then I’ll start servicing it, grinding out what needs to be ground, and start making extra lists with something, doesn’t, if, well, I’m blessed with warranty. So, and then we do A lot of tree work on the golf course. We sand our, we sand our bent grass fairways really late once we close. And then I’ll get pulled out there for, well you saw the ravines when you were out visiting. We’ll do a bunch of underbrush ravine, ravine clear up as a, there’s a six man crew that works the winter. So I do in the shop stuff that I need to do to get my side of things going as equipment manager. Then I also help the crew prep the golf course through the winter for opening up in the spring. It’s nice to have that change back and forth to be able to see the agronomy practices that are done and the cleanup stuff that’s done for fine detail work as well, not just be a wrench in the shop.
Trent Manning: 5:48
Yeah. I think it’s really important, you know, to be involved and, or I mean, you know, not if you’re just not even a hands on person out on the course, but just to understand what you know, the main goal is and is creating these playing services for the membership or whoever’s playing your golf course. at the end of the day, that’s what we’re really focused on. And I think a lot of times people, not you, but I know people, and I’ve been guilty myself of forgetting what the end goal is. You know, why am I doing all this? Why am I repairing this piece of equipment? Why am I grinding this real? Yeah. So it’ll cut grass, but you know, I mean, looking at the bigger picture, I think is important. And I think it’s important to be involved in some of those agronomy. Task that we do on the golf course to get a better understanding for it.
Brian Knoche: 6:43
Absolutely, it’s nice to be considered part of the team and not, Oh, he’s just the mechanic. Some, you know, sometimes you get busy and it’s like, Oh, he’s just the mechanic or you get introduced as he’s just, but it is nice to be able to take that and just be like, yeah, he’s just introducing me because he’s got me outside learning the agronomical practices and why we, why we spray this at this time of year because of this, we’re spraying this because we’re seeing this and the education that I get from my super on the agronomy side is really nice because I don’t have a turf degree. So everything I’ve ever yeah. Mechanic side of it. So it’s cool to learn the turf science as well.
Trent Manning: 7:23
what I think is really important too, cause it builds that relationship. You know, you can share knowledge with him on equipment. He can share knowledge with you on agronomy practices on the course, and you just build that rapport and have a better relationship with all that going on. I So you got to lost rail, but what kind of, how did you know you wanted to turn wrenches and be a mechanic? Okay.
Brian Knoche: 7:56
Uh,
Trent Manning: 7:56
working at that golf course, you really enjoyed the work, but did you have any kind of mechanical background?
Brian Knoche: 8:02
so I went to I went to a trade school for high school back in Connecticut, uh, Henry Abbott tech. And I had two family members in the electrical business and my parents pushed me to be an electrician. So as a young kid, I did what my parents asked of me and I went to school to be an electrician and. Actually, it’s funny because the alternator went out on my pickup one day driving to school. So I got to work and took a volt meter from the electrical shop and started diagnosing charging and all this, you know, kind of like what I did diagnose in electrical work in house. And I’m like, this is way more fun. And I kind of got a taste of it my freshman year in high school. When we went through every single shop, we did an exploratory program. So I went through culinary arts, learned how to cook a little bit, learned how to do hairdressing and cosmopolitan. And when I got to the auto shop, I just saw what some of those kids were doing. And I was like, this is really cool. And. Took it with that one repair on my pickup started fixing my truck and I said to my parents when I graduated I’m like this ain’t what I want to do and they’re like, well, you’re old enough now to make your own decisions So I went to work for a construction a landscaping company as a machine operator and a mechanic dual role and then I went to work for a Jeep dealership and I really liked the Jeep dealership and Gotten some trouble as a kid young dumb kid Had to leave the Jeep dealership for reasons of not being able to drive. And, uh, I went back to work for the construction company. Kind of the same thing. it just stuck. I’m like, I want to be a mechanic. And When I moved out here, when I moved out here and started at Indian Creek, that was what really intrigued me was the reels, like how much precision goes into cutting grass with a real machine. And like, this is what I want to do for a career. And 10 years later, I’m running my own shop at the golf course that I’m at and have a good relationship with the superintendent, learn how to do budgeting and equipment purchasing. And it’s really grown on me and I like it and I can see myself.
Trent Manning: 10:15
awesome.
Brian Knoche: 10:16
Out of 20, 25 years before I’m too old to pick anything up and need an assistant
Trent Manning: 10:21
Yeah. Yeah,
Brian Knoche: 10:22
or retire.
Trent Manning: 10:23
good. Yeah. No, that’s awesome, man. I’m
Brian Knoche: 10:25
know, it’s,
Trent Manning: 10:26
you.
Brian Knoche: 10:27
I know I won’t get rich doing it. And I always tell people when they get into the golf business, us golf guys have a little bit of crazy in us. And my crazy is the golf industry and I love it and I get up every day at the crack of dawn and sometimes I don’t go home until it gets dark, but it’s what I love to do and I’ll always do it. And it kind of keeps, kind of keeps me on a straight and narrow path. You know, you, you can’t, you can’t go out and party with the guys cause you got to be up really early and you got a responsibility in the morning and stuff like that. So it’s, it’s, it was good for me to get into the golf industry. It kind of kept me out of trouble in my early thirties when I first
Trent Manning: 11:05
Yeah, yeah, no, that’s
Brian Knoche: 11:06
Responsibility.
Trent Manning: 11:08
Mm. Yeah. And I think we, we all get there at some point or another.
Brian Knoche: 11:14
Oh, yeah. And like, like you were saying, when you were visiting, visiting me out here, it’s like, as mechanics, we always want to make things go fast.
Trent Manning: 11:22
Oh yeah.
Brian Knoche: 11:23
So once I started, I wanted to make things go fast. And that was where it really stuck in the passion and knowing I wanted to be a mechanic was, was set in my, was set in my head.
Trent Manning: 11:33
That’s cool. So cool. Well, what’s your least favorite part of the job? Is it sand? no,
Brian Knoche: 11:42
it’s funny. You know, I know guys that’ll, they’ll throw a twitter page out there with a cutting unit and a pile of sand in the sand bin. Like, oh, there go my real stop dressing time. But like we were just talking earlier when we sometimes take for granted about what it takes to get to those playing surfaces and those playing surfaces are predominantly done by a lot of sand and top dressing. So I, like my boss would come to me like, Hey, I got top dress and I’m like, go ahead. So we set a schedule where we’re right at the tail end of my grind, where I got to refresh the top dresses. I touch the grinder, touch the reels up, replace the bed knives if they need to be replaced at that time. And off we go. But he’s really good with, he’s really good with brushing it in and he’s really good with watering it in. And if we have a really heavy dew in the morning, he’ll water on top of it to get it to knock back down so the dew would lift it up. The watering sends it back down. So I don’t, I’m not afraid of sand. I would say my least favorite thing, believe it or not, is just preventative maintenance. Oil
Trent Manning: 12:49
Okay.
Brian Knoche: 12:50
I want that hard electrical problem. I want that hard hydraulic problem. I want, I want my mind to be challenged every day.
Trent Manning: 12:57
Mm hmm.
Brian Knoche: 12:57
But with that being said, I
Trent Manning: 12:59
I definitely think Right,
Brian Knoche: 13:04
plug, filter, flashlight, inspection, pry bar on some different joints to see if they’re loose or play or, but yeah, let’s say it’s just oil changes. I don’t like oil changes and they’re sloppy. They’re dirty.
Trent Manning: 13:17
right, right. No, I mean II totally, totally relate to it and I’ll be honest, that’s another good thing when you get an assistant, they can do a lot of that stuff. It works out great. And, and then you can focus on the fun stuff like hard electrical problems or hydraulics or, you know, I mean, whatever, and I do think, I mean, I’ve met so many people in this industry and I think most of us, we like a challenge of, you know, whatever it is on a piece of equipment or, you know, bring us this problem and let us try to solve it, you know, if you’re having an issue out on the course with this or that or whatever, uh, you know, can we make that easier for you? And everybody I’ve met anyway, really enjoys that part of the job. Mm hmm.
Brian Knoche: 14:07
Yeah, it’s also the team effort that’s fun to I I’m blessed with it. I’m blessed that our first assistant has a lot of, he was, uh, he was born and raised here and then he went down to Florida for a few years and did a, he was a superintendent in the Naples area. But got really handy with a wrench. So there’s times that sometimes he’ll see me, you know, racking my brain on something to come over and be like, Hey, what’s it doing? And I’ll explain to him what it’s doing. He’s like, did you try this? Did you try that? So I don’t necessarily have a true assistant, but I do have a guy that’s got knowledge and he does see me struggling. He will come over and ask me if I want a little bit of help or whatever, which is cool. And that’s what I, that’s what I like. What I mean by team is we’re not, All individuals. We don’t, we all kind of help each other if we can as we go, which is, which is fun
Trent Manning: 14:56
Yeah. Yeah. And we all have a common goal and it’s nice to work together. And then, I mean, the other thing that I think about a lot is if you’re stuck on an issue, you know, whatever it is, a problem on a piece of equipment. And just talking to somebody else that is knowledgeable about the subject can get your mind spinning in different ways. You know, it’s just kind of a different mindset of thinking, I guess, because I mean, just my experience anyway, is if I’m troubleshooting some, I tend to go down one path and maybe that’s the right path. Maybe it didn’t. But if I hadn’t figured the problem out, if I talked to somebody else, they might start heading down another path. And then at the end of the conversation, I think it’s easier to find out the path you need to take. And maybe it’s the path they said, maybe it was the path you were on. Maybe it’s the path in the middle somewhere, just having that conversation, I think really helps get the juices flowing.
Brian Knoche: 15:59
and it’s good to have relationship with guys at other clubs in your area to I’m, I’m, I guess I could say I’m blessed with the fact that most of the guys in Omaha area that are at private clubs are extremely knowledgeable and we’re not afraid to call each other and ask each other, Hey, I’m, I’m seeing this. Have you ever seen it before? There’s, there’s really no high ego that any of us have that we try to protect. We’re, we realize that we might be on different properties, but we’re all doing the same thing. We’ll help each other that way too, which is a lot of fun. You’ve, you’ve met, you’ve met a handful of them. You met Brian over at Happy Hollow and Brian down at Arbor and Jordan and Nate. And you know, we all, we probably don’t conversate like we should, but we’re there to help each other if we need it. And we all know that. So.
Trent Manning: 16:49
Yeah, I mean, it’s so good what y’all have going on there. And yeah, and maybe that’s kind of a small group of y’all, but you know, it doesn’t matter the size. I just think it’s awesome. Yeah. That you have other people in the industry and the trenches doing the exact same thing that you can rely on day to day. I mean, if you needed to call one of them every day, they wouldn’t mind. And everybody I’ve met in this industry is, you know, the same way is. I mean, yeah, I, I enjoy what I do, but I’ll pick the phone up and talk to you or anybody else that wants to call and help them any way I can. I probably, I’m not going to have the answer, but I’ll talk to you about it. At least be there for more moral support. Oh yeah,
Brian Knoche: 17:38
the times it’s guys might have seen what you’re struggling with and you don’t even realize like oh, yeah I saw this. I saw it did the exact same thing. This is what I looked at And you’re like, oh you just saved me hours of frustration But you said it best when you did your your your talk was Oh, you were saying a high percentage of equipment managers in our industry throughout the entire country in Canada. They’re not ones that they want to help everybody. You know, we, you know, it’s a huge, it’s a huge, it’s a huge business and a huge industry, but we’re all so tight at the same time. And I.
Trent Manning: 18:20
yeah, yeah, And I mean, it amazes me. I mean, every time I go somewhere, whatever, I mean, everybody knows everybody and I mean, it’s just awesome. And it’s almost, you know, a family feeling. And, I mean, we’ll get into it, I guess, more. But I chose a little shindig at the, I don’t even remember the name of the restaurant. But, I mean, it was just so awesome to see that group of people come together. And I know you don’t get to see each other, but probably once or twice a year. But everybody’s together, you know, having a really good time and talking shop, talking whatever, talking life. And I think it’s important to have that outside of the workplace too. What’s
Brian Knoche: 19:05
we went to at Lazlo’s there and, uh, you know, some of those guys haven’t seen each other for a year and that’s their time to reconnect and, you know, they probably talk to each other on the phone, but being face to face for the first time, you know, all year is nice too, but you saw all aspects of it. You saw the small guy, a little mine hole course in the middle of nowhere in Nebraska. Talking to the guy at a private 18 hole club in Omaha, Lincoln, like they’ve been buddies for 50 years. It’s just Nebraska is very tight, very tight state. And it’s, it’s cool. And it sounds like, you know, the Carolinas and Georgia and those southern states that in the southeast are very tight as well. The guys are. Not afraid to call each other and hang out and do things and stuff like that. But,
Trent Manning: 19:58
what’s your favorite tool?
Brian Knoche: 20:01
my favorite tool
Trent Manning: 20:03
Yep. What’s your favorite tool?
Brian Knoche: 20:05
had to be my Miller Matic 252. It’d be my welder.
Trent Manning: 20:10
Oh, that’s all right, man. Stick some stuff back together.
Brian Knoche: 20:13
I’m not, uh, I don’t win beauty pageants with my welding. It’s not bubble gum, but it holds. And it’s always nice to have something come to you in pieces and stuck it back together and it holds.
Trent Manning: 20:24
Well, I’ve told this story a hundred times. This old welder told me it looks never held anything and there’s not a truer statement.
Brian Knoche: 20:31
There, that is a very, very true statement. Looks do not hold anything.
Trent Manning: 20:36
That’s right. Well, what do you do to relax or find your balance?
Brian Knoche: 20:40
Oh, I probably play golf, just watch TV. I used to do, I used to bowhunt quite a bit. I’ve gotten away from it, just with time and stuff like that, in the fall, being in the golf industry. But I want, I’m going to get back into it eventually. So, it’s more just playing golf and Watching just some weird reality shows on TV like Moonshiners or Swamp People or something like that. Depending on the
Trent Manning: 21:08
Yeah, that’s good stuff. Yeah, I was, I don’t know about surprised, you know, I’ve met so many people, but. A lot of us mechanics don’t play golf, but it seems like most of the people I met there in Nebraska, most of y’all enjoy playing golf. And I think that’s great. It’s awesome.
Brian Knoche: 21:26
Yeah, there’s quite a few of us as equipment managers in Nebraska that play golf.
Trent Manning: 21:31
Very cool.
Brian Knoche: 21:32
It’s You know, like for me, like when I have the opportunity to play the course I work at, I see different after cut things when I’m playing golf than I do when I’m out just driving around in my golf cart, just doing a, just doing a cut quality check. So like I’ll go out, we’ll mow fairways on a Friday, I might play Saturday afternoon and I might see something maybe in like a pinch point area where the guy turned around in a mode funny that I would never see just going down the middle of a fairway. On a regular cut quality check. So it’s nice to play you see different aspects of what you do So it’s one thing. I got going for me there being able to be playing but You know like they say golf’s not for everybody
Trent Manning: 22:18
Well, no, it’s, it’s, it’s not for everybody, but I think it’s awesome that you play. And I think that’s a really valid point of seeing the golf course from a golfer’s perspective, because yeah, we can ride. Even driving down the middle of the fairway, and we don’t notice stuff like we would if we’re actually out there walking around and playing the course. And, you know, I mean, your eyes are drawn to different things when you’re driving around, but when you’re out there getting ready to take a shot, you’re really taking all that in. So, I mean, I would encourage people, even if you don’t play golf, get out there and walk a few holes. Every once in a while, just to see it from a different perspective. And I remember this was back in the early 90s or mid 90s. Our superintendent, he had a voice recorder. You know, it had little miniature tapes. I’m dating myself here. But he would walk around he would walk the course. Just like the golfer, you know, would play. But from tee box to green, every hole. And he would make notes on his voice recorder, and then he’d come back and write those down and get his to do list together for the assistants and the crew. And he was seeing it all from the golfer’s perspective. And I think that’s really important.
Brian Knoche: 23:36
Yeah, my my boss at my previous job we would play golf together We play the golf course that we worked at and we also played Before I got into golf full time job, I would, I was a salesman and I would stop and we’d play the golf course and he’d write it down on a scorecard. He’d pick the hole and he’d just go the way you wrote your number and he’d write down what he, what he needed to fix on that hole if he saw something out of place. So it’s not, and that was where I learned it from was looking, looking, at what we do it from a different perspective was actually playing golf with him and seeing him jot notes down on a scorecard.
Trent Manning: 24:12
Yeah, no, that’s an awesome idea.
Brian Knoche: 24:15
it’s, it’s, it’s interesting how much you actually learn from your peers, whether you. You see it or not. Like sometimes you just think it’s a habit. You’re learning it because it’s a habit, but it’s actually not. You’re learning it because you’re watching somebody else do it. Which, you know,
Trent Manning: 24:28
right, right.
Brian Knoche: 24:28
it works. And I found that playing golf, I notice a lot more in green surrounds than anywhere else. From a golfer’s standpoint, I see a lot more mistakes with cutting in a green surround area. Like approaches and thinning, like, you know, collar areas and stuff like that.
Trent Manning: 24:47
Yep. We all have that person on a walk mower or even a triplex and not lifting in time and all those things happens all the time. Well, what’s the strangest thing you’ve seen at work
Brian Knoche: 25:01
strangest thing I’ve seen at work was I had a 54 10 and this was at my last job and the front reels would intermittently turn on and off as they were mowing. And if you cycled, they’d come up and stop and turn back on. And it ended up being, I got ahold of a guy from Smith turf out in Virginia by the name of Burke Anders, very well known
Trent Manning: 25:28
Oh yeah. Yeah. He’s been on the podcast too.
Brian Knoche: 25:32
Okay. And, uh, he was friends. Uh, superintendent out here did a stint in Virginia for a while, and he hooked up with Burke and ended up, uh, called Burke and went over, you know, all the, all the solenoids and the valves were good. I said to him, I said, it’s got to be something in the valve block. And he’s like, well, he’s like, I don’t know. He’s like the valve box, solid aluminum. It’s all just milled out to how it needs to be. Everything seats against it. And he’s like, pull it and just check it out. And I ended up pulling the valve block out. This is after like 12 or 14 hours of diagnosis time. And I, uh, looked where that front reel valve seated in the lip where the valve seats was broken off the valve block.
Trent Manning: 26:19
No way.
Brian Knoche: 26:20
an oil and I called him back and told him what it was and he’s like, see, it’s like you were in the right direction. He’s like, I just needed to reassure you, but it’s funny to see something that’s just milled out of a hunk of aluminum fail.
Trent Manning: 26:35
Yeah, no, that is, yeah, that’s a, that’s a really good one. And I mean, that’s a tough one because that ain’t something that happens very often, or you ever see that.
Brian Knoche: 26:44
No, it was just probably a, I would say it’s probably a once in a lifetime thing for me. I’ll probably never see that again. But I learned a lot from it. I learned that my diagnostic procedures, I’m confident in them. And sometimes I had to, you have to reach outside the box. But if it wasn’t for Burke, it might have taken me another 20 hours to figure out that machine. It was just good to have a little reinsurance and a guy that’s been in the Toro industry for so long, able to help me with that. And say, yeah, you need to, yeah, go into that block and see, see if you do see something in there. So that’ll always
Trent Manning: 27:21
yeah. And I’m
Brian Knoche: 27:22
So, yeah.
Trent Manning: 27:25
like, you’re saying, I mean, sometimes that’s all you need is just that little reassurance. Like, yeah, I think you’re headed in the right direction. Take that thing apart and see what you find.
Brian Knoche: 27:33
So yeah. Replace that valve block all together and still mowing today for the guy that replaced me.
Trent Manning: 27:42
I don’t, so was that how old a machine,
Brian Knoche: 27:45
it was a two,
Trent Manning: 27:46
under warranty?
Brian Knoche: 27:47
it was a 2006 5410 and it had 8, 700 hours on it.
Trent Manning: 27:53
Wow. That’s crazy,
Brian Knoche: 27:55
going now with over 10, 000.
Trent Manning: 27:59
That was nuts. That’s so crazy, but it does remind me. I had, it was a 53, 10 tractor and two wheel drive, uh, tractor, John Deere and the rear lift wouldn’t work. And it was. Basically the same thing. I ended up pulling the valve apart and the valve was broke on the inside. The cast and had broke off and yeah, yeah, yeah. On the rock show. I’m like, wow. And maybe that’s a lot more common, but those aluminum valves, I don’t know that I’ve ever seen anything wrong on the inside.
Brian Knoche: 28:39
yeah, that was like, that was probably the strangest thing because it was aluminum. I didn’t think it would ever do that, but it did
Trent Manning: 28:45
Yeah, no, that’s
Brian Knoche: 28:46
still going strong today.
Trent Manning: 28:48
Sweet. Do you have a mentor in the industry?
Brian Knoche: 28:52
I would have to say it would be, uh, he’s now retired. Tim Sophie, that was at Indian Creek was the one that pushed me to stay in it. And he taught me the reels and he taught me to keep it simple when you’re diagnosed and stuff. And I don’t, I honestly don’t think if I didn’t work, if, if he wasn’t part of that team, I don’t know if I would have stayed in it because he was really patient. He was a great educator and he saw the potential in me as a mechanic to just be like, okay, yeah, you can pick this golf stuff up and go with it and you’ll be good at it. So, yeah, my, then my mentor would be Tim Soppy, who’s now been retired for about two years now, two and a half years. So, and then you met Nate, you met Nate at Indian Creek. That’s who replaced him
Trent Manning: 29:46
Yeah, yeah,
Brian Knoche: 29:47
was Nate. So.
Trent Manning: 29:48
Try trying to get him lined up for the podcast too. I hit a little gold mine in my trip to Nebraska.
Brian Knoche: 29:59
We don’t, I could talk to a two by four, like, we don’t, we don’t,
Trent Manning: 30:06
the same thing that, uh, Jordan Ross said he can talk to a two by four.
Brian Knoche: 30:10
we, uh,
Trent Manning: 30:11
That’s awesome.
Brian Knoche: 30:12
don’t mind talking to people out here.
Trent Manning: 30:14
that’s good though. That’s a good thing. Yeah. What do you think the most valuable lesson is that you learned from your mentor?
Brian Knoche: 30:22
Be patient. If you’re patient, things will come to you it’s the same thing you tell any young technician that’s getting into being a mechanic is you can throw things and kick and scream and cuss. But that bolt didn’t loosen up or that hydraulic line didn’t move because you cussed it out. You just got to be patient and everything will come to you and it will work out the way you want it to if you’re patient and and go about it in the right procedures. So that would be one thing that I took from him was always be patient
Trent Manning: 30:57
That’s awesome.
Brian Knoche: 30:58
You’ll get what you’re trying to get out of it.
Trent Manning: 31:01
Yeah, no, that’s a, that’s a really, really good one. I mean, that’s, yeah, I wish, I wish I had more patience when I, in my younger days, I definitely got frustrated easier. And, uh, I don’t know. I think patience is, uh, learned over time too. But I, I mean, it is really important to have somebody that’s, you know, older than you or your mentor telling you, you need to be patient because I know when my dad said you need to be patient, I didn’t give that a whole lot of thought. Like, you don’t know what he’s talking about. And, you know, obviously looking back on it, yeah, he knew what he was talking about.
Brian Knoche: 31:40
Yep.
Trent Manning: 31:41
Well, what would be your dream job or opportunity?
Brian Knoche: 31:44
Oh, my dream job would be to go, would be to go over and take over Brian’s job at Medina.
Trent Manning: 31:53
Oh, okay. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Brian Knoche: 31:56
had the, the pleasure of playing Medina with a former family member on my ex wife’s side and, uh, absolutely love the property. And just by following him on Twitter and seeing, you know, pictures of his shop and stuff like that, I was like, yep, big operation. To me, it’d be a lot of stress, but a lot of fun at the same time. I, I would love to take Brian’s job over,
Trent Manning: 32:24
Oh yeah. No, that’s awesome. Well, maybe you already answered the next question. What technician would you like to work with for a day?
Brian Knoche: 32:32
I think I’d go, I think I’d like to go up and, and he doesn’t even know me, but I’d like to go up and work with Brian for a day up in Medina
Trent Manning: 32:39
Oh yeah. Well,
Brian Knoche: 32:40
just to see
Trent Manning: 32:41
can’t make you any promises, but I can give you Brian’s number. I can, and I will, if you want it. No, Brian’s an awesome dude and, uh, I’m sure he’d be happy to talk to you. And I’m sure he’d be happy for you to stop by too.
Brian Knoche: 32:56
i’d.
Trent Manning: 32:57
and you’re right there, their shop, their shop is amazing. I mean, it’s a really old building, but I mean, they’ve cleaned it up. They added on to it. It’s yeah, it’s a super nice facility. He’s got up there.
Brian Knoche: 33:11
I, yeah, it’d be Medina all the way
Trent Manning: 33:14
All right, that’s awesome, man. And you’d still be in the Midwest. So not too far from where you’re at now.
Brian Knoche: 33:21
about 10 hours. Yeah,
Trent Manning: 33:23
about how far?
Brian Knoche: 33:25
about 10 hours. The way I drive, I
Trent Manning: 33:27
Oh, is it that far? Geez.
Brian Knoche: 33:29
it’s eight to Chicago and I think it’s another hour north. So maybe nine hours, 10
Trent Manning: 33:34
Okay. Yeah. Why don’t I’m thinking he’s yeah, just West of. Chicago. I’m pretty sure. But anyway, wait, wait, wait, wait,
Brian Knoche: 33:46
Yeah. They might be, he might be closer to the eight hour mark actually. Yeah.
Trent Manning: 33:50
Yeah. Yeah, Well, that’s, that’s definitely doable.
Brian Knoche: 33:53
Yeah,
Trent Manning: 33:54
Well, what do you wish you’d known on day one?
Brian Knoche: 33:57
not to stick my fingers between the crossbar on real when you’re checking cut when you’re real
Trent Manning: 34:05
That is a really good
Brian Knoche: 34:06
first thing I would, I would have been, I would have loved to have grasped that knowledge instead of getting the nice blood blister behind the fingernail.
Trent Manning: 34:13
And just for, for the listeners that, that don’t know, that bar is called the SOB bar because that’s what it makes you say when you smash your finger.
Brian Knoche: 34:26
Yeah,
Trent Manning: 34:26
I don’t know if you’ve heard that before. I don’t remember where I heard that, but I heard that a long time ago. The SOB bar?
Brian Knoche: 34:32
That’s the first I’ve heard of it called is the SOB bar, but it’s gonna stick. I’ll use that for now on.
Trent Manning: 34:38
Yep. Is it is the SOB bar.
34:40
Get ready for tips and tricks.
Trent Manning: 34:43
Well, what kind of, uh, tips and tricks you wanna share with us?
Brian Knoche: 34:47
I guess I don’t know if it’s more It’s probably more of just like a fun little trick that I do with myself. But I try to see if I can set a reel by eye before I do it with paper.
Trent Manning: 35:00
Do it by feel.
Brian Knoche: 35:01
with no contact. I try to get really
Trent Manning: 35:03
Oh, okay.
Brian Knoche: 35:04
So I try to bring it around and I just try to look at the, the, the cutting edge of the real blade and then the top face of the bed knife and the front face and I try to see the air gap if I get it to cut paper and I’ve never been able to do it with a single sheet, but I have been able to get it with a double sheet.
Trent Manning: 35:20
Okay, yeah, that’s a fun little
Brian Knoche: 35:22
So that’s a little trick. that I do. And then the other thing I think it’s, I guess it would be more of a tip is I never put tools away dirty.
Trent Manning: 35:31
Oh, yeah, yeah. Well, I don’t know if that’s a tip or a sin if you do that.
Brian Knoche: 35:37
Cause you will really aggravate yourself first thing in the morning if you’re reaching your toolbox and grab a greasy wrench.
Trent Manning: 35:42
Mm hmm.
Brian Knoche: 35:43
I guess, you know, the other thing I would say is if you, if you struggle, like, a tip I would have is if you struggle with electrical diagnostics, it doesn’t hurt to read the manual for a multimeter. You can really learn,
Trent Manning: 35:54
yeah, yeah.
Brian Knoche: 35:55
you can really learn the advantages of the settings on a multimeter. If you struggle with electrical diagnostics and how just by reading that will help you navigate with ohms or current draw On a battery that’s dying out sitting overnight or something like that, or, or even just, uh, even if you’re trying to add something into it and you want to see what’s pulling for current, so you know what, what fuse to amp it at. I know like electrical and hydraulics are Probably the two strongest things we deal with that people struggle with the most.
Trent Manning: 36:32
Mm hmm.
Brian Knoche: 36:32
And then, you know, of course, hydraulically, it’s hard to give any tips and tricks because it’s so hard to buy the pressure gauges because they’re so pricey and the limited amount of times that we use them.
Trent Manning: 36:43
Yeah, it’s hard to justify that purchase of a flow meter and all the pressure gauges. And then, I mean, that’s the other thing. You got the price of the flow meter and then you got the price of the fitting kit. You know, and you need another 500 worth of fittings to even use the flow meter. And yeah, as many times as we would use it, you know, on an, in a normal golf course operation, it’s, it’s definitely hard to, to justify it.
Brian Knoche: 37:12
I think the other. Tip I would have is don’t, don’t underestimate a case strain test on a real motor
Trent Manning: 37:22
Mm hmm.
Brian Knoche: 37:22
where we, I mean, that’s, I’ve, oh, it can’t be that and gone back and done it and it’s turned around and bit me in the butt cause I was like, oh, it can’t be that. And then next thing you know,
Trent Manning: 37:36
And that’s something that’s not too hard to do is the case drain test. Yeah.
Brian Knoche: 37:41
just jam up your reel and\take the hose off and there it is.
Trent Manning: 37:46
And I don’t know about your experience. My experience is if the real motor is good, it just barely drips. And if it’s bad, it squirts out of there in a hurry. I
Brian Knoche: 37:58
that’s pretty much how I’ve was taught was if you have a slight little drip, you’re good. But if you have actual flow, you got something, you got something, you got a seal or something, something worn out in there needs to be replaced. Rebuild something. That’s, I guess.
Trent Manning: 38:15
some of the, some of the operator manuals, it tells you, you know, to measure out the volume, you know, over a certain amount of time. and get your gallons per minute. But I mean, in my experience, it’s been obvious that either is not leaking or is leaking.
Brian Knoche: 38:32
Usually it’s, uh, usually for me, I’ve everything I’ve ever done. It’s been obvious. I didn’t have to go and do the medical equations and measure it out. It’s been like, that’s not normal.
Trent Manning: 38:42
Right. And especially you’re doing a, a fairway more or something like that. You got four other motors to compare it to and you found out, yeah, this one’s different.
Brian Knoche: 38:52
Even a triplex you got two other ones to compare it to. So you’re
Trent Manning: 38:55
True.
Brian Knoche: 38:56
Usually the rest of the machine will help you confidently make your diagnosis procedure stick and be like, yeah, I got a failed real motor.
Trent Manning: 39:04
Right. Right.
Brian Knoche: 39:05
Yeah, it’s just, that would be, be my tips is something that’s so simple. Don’t ever take it for granted and overlook it. Do it
Trent Manning: 39:15
Oh yeah. Yep.
Brian Knoche: 39:16
because it could, it could send you on a goose chase that you could have resolved by just saying, Oh, it can’t be that,
Trent Manning: 39:22
When I’ve seen that situation, you know, with guys and especially electrical problems and they pull out a electrical stomatic, you know, and it’s five pages long and they really get in the weeds on. Where the problem is. So identify the problem and make that electrical schematic a whole lot smaller and don’t worry about all the stuff outside that you don’t need to be worried about and you know, and then somebody starts testing something and You know, the problem was the mower won’t start and the next thing you know, they’re checking the headlights And you’re like, well, how did you get to the headlights from a no start situation? So, you know, I mean, and I’m not calling anybody out. I mean, we’re all guilty of kind of heading in the wrong direction sometimes, but, uh, just focus in on that particular problem area, whatever it is.
Brian Knoche: 40:18
Like with electrical, it’s, you know, you got sensors now and all these advanced systems, sometimes guys overlook the five volt reference signal on a sensor. And it sends them on a goose
Trent Manning: 40:28
All right.
Brian Knoche: 40:29
So like you said, end up on the headlights and stuff like that. Sometimes you got to read it, look at the schematic and be like, okay, I’m in, I’m within my circuits. That’s giving me an issue, move down the circuit and go. But like I always started the battery, then go to the fuse. Keep it simple.
Trent Manning: 40:47
Yep. Yep. Keep it simple. It’s been said plenty of times, but I think it needs to be reiterated. Just keep it simple. Let’s talk about the Nebraska Symposium.
Brian Knoche: 40:59
Okay.
Trent Manning: 41:00
And I really appreciate you having me over to your course. I don’t know that you had a whole lot of choice. I’m sure Jordan and Brian just called you and said, Hey, we’re coming. And we’re bringing this Yahoo from Georgia with us. But no, thank you for having us there and beautiful, beautiful property. I was blown away.
Brian Knoche: 41:19
Thank you. We all appreciate that. I told the crew after your visit that you said it was a beautiful piece of property. And it was funny because I listened to Brian Eplin and Jordan’s podcast with you after. And, uh, it was, uh, I played it for the guys at work. And when you said you know, it’s special when you’re on it and you see like the vistas and the stuff like that, that you were recalling. And it was, and that’s the one thing about, about lost rail is you can talk about it to your blue in the face, but until you’re actually on it and see the views and the rolling Hills that close to Omaha. Then you realize why we all love what we do out there so much
Trent Manning: 42:01
Oh yeah. Yeah, no, I mean, there’s a lot to love.
Brian Knoche: 42:05
and I had the option. I wasn’t, it wasn’t forced on me for you to visit. But following you on Twitter and stuff like that, I thought it would be really cool to meet you on the property that I work at the first time.
Trent Manning: 42:19
Oh, yeah, that’s awesome, man. No, that was so
Brian Knoche: 42:22
that kind of show off what I do. And, you could see how small of a shop I have to work with. Like I said, when I talked to you earlier, I’m organizing my non existent part room parts room when you were out here earlier. So, but yeah, it was, it was good times. Just glad. I’m glad I had all you guys out.
Trent Manning: 42:41
Yeah, I don’t know. It was so much fun. And yeah, just to say it again, the property is truly amazing. And I had this conversation with my director of agronomy several months ago, maybe last year. But you know, how, when you walk onto a golf course, how do you know it’s special? And I don’t know that there’s, you know, one word, one thing, you know, that you can say, well, this makes a golf course special, but being on the property, you get the sense, the feel, you know, whatever it is, I don’t, I don’t have enough words in my vocabulary to describe it, but when you step foot on a piece of property, you can tell if it’s special or not. And I mean, the level of detail, and like you said, all the vistas, the rolling terrain, I mean, you have a special property and there’s, you know, however many thousands of golf courses out there and a lot of them are just golf courses and they’re not special and I’m not trying to take anything away from anybody. You know, it’s still probably fun to play. But it doesn’t have the, the wow and the special factor like your place does.
Brian Knoche: 44:02
Yeah, but like, it’s weird because every golf course has its own special, like, vibe to it. It’s just, outsiders picking up on that vibe when they play it, or visit it, in our situation when we visit. Visit a peers golf course or, or whatever, but it’s just, our owner, that was a special dream to him to be able to build something like that in Omaha, and it finally came true. And I think that’s why we all take so much pride in our jobs out there as well, is because it means so much to our owner as well. So,
Trent Manning: 44:34
I think that’s really important to you to have the ownership back in and, you know, and not just financially or whatever, but, you know, buy in, you know, to the Kool Aid they’re making.
Brian Knoche: 44:45
yeah, it’s definitely special to me, and I’m, Glad that you were able to come out and see and say that it’s special as well. You can see what what kind of what I see in it when I, when I toured and accepted the position out there.
Trent Manning: 44:58
Oh, yeah, I couldn’t imagine, yeah, riding around there the first time. And yeah, now I want to work at this place. Yeah, I think I could work here every day. I mean, yeah, that’s super cool.
Brian Knoche: 45:09
you know, like when I got there, it was, there was four golf holes that were dormant seeded and it was just straw mat, no grass.
Trent Manning: 45:15
Hmm.
Brian Knoche: 45:16
So I was able to watch at least, you know, through that grow. And I was able to watch four holes after it was being shaped come to life and become a golf hole from seed germination to what it is now a year and a half later, which was pretty, pretty cool. I’m glad I, I’m glad I accepted the position and took the growing job as a crazy man. I was like, yeah, I’ll do a growing.
Trent Manning: 45:39
Right.
Brian Knoche: 45:40
but,
Trent Manning: 45:41
yeah, let’s talk about that for a minute. How crazy was the grow in? Was it a ton of, you know, construction equipment that you’re working on too,
Brian Knoche: 45:49
So I didn’t, I didn’t have, so the. Management company that manages the golf course was also, uh, there’s landscapes unlimited. That’s that’s our management company. And they also did the construction of the golf course. They built the golf course. I did not have to do any of the construction equipment. The few pieces that were still on site when I arrived and started were actually through a rental company. So if they had a breakdown, the rental company would come out and fix it. But I had growing equipment That was on site when I got there, so I had reels, I had to check, I had No shop. The shop was basically just a concrete floor and a skeleton. They were still still doing the plumbing, the electrical, the entire parking lot was a dirt and mud and we actually worked out of a An old William Scotsman C container that was converted into an office for the first four and a half months I was there,
Trent Manning: 46:52
Wow. Yeah.
Brian Knoche: 46:54
but I wouldn’t,
Trent Manning: 46:54
be tough getting through the winter to,
Brian Knoche: 46:57
Yeah. it was very tough. Luckily I started in the middle of March.
Trent Manning: 47:02
Oh, nice, nice, nice.
Brian Knoche: 47:04
My first full winter there, we were in our, we were in our shop with heat, which was nice.
Trent Manning: 47:09
Oh yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That’s yeah. Yeah. We, your climates. That’s a, that’s a must for sure. You want to do some rapid fire? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Brian Knoche: 47:19
Yeah, we could do some rapid fire. I’ll see how good I am at answering questions.
Trent Manning: 47:23
Well, so you’ve done, you’ve done great so far, what’s your favorite movie?
Brian Knoche: 47:27
Shooter
Trent Manning: 47:28
All right. Oh man. Yeah. That is a great, say again.
Brian Knoche: 47:32
with with Mark Wahlberg.
Trent Manning: 47:34
Yeah. Yeah. No, that’s yeah. I don’t know why I’ve seen that movie a hundred times and I love it. And I don’t know shooter. It took me, took me a minute. What would be your last meal? Yeah.
Brian Knoche: 47:44
My last meal. Ooh,
Trent Manning: 47:47
Yeah, like the last one you could eat ever.
Brian Knoche: 47:49
would probably be would be a prime rib from round the bend steakhouse in Ashland, Nebraska.
Trent Manning: 47:55
Prime rib. All right. I love it. I could have swore I heard somebody in the background saying you better say pizza.
Brian Knoche: 48:02
My wife said Casey’s gas station pizza.
Trent Manning: 48:06
Oh, that’s funny.
Brian Knoche: 48:08
That’s a hard number too, right there. Gas station pizza.
Trent Manning: 48:12
Well, I mean, I’ve heard, I’ve heard it a lot and I’ve heard Casey’s has got really good pizza. I think it was, uh, Ryan. Happenstall that I had on the podcast was a big Casey’s fan. He was from the Midwest before he went to where he’s at now. I forget where he is exactly, but no, that’s awesome. Yeah. What are you getting with the prime rib besides Casey’s pizza? Awesome.
Brian Knoche: 48:40
I’d get onion rings and a baked potato plain baked.
Trent Manning: 48:44
love it, man.
Brian Knoche: 48:45
Salt and pepper on it and a little butter and call it good.
Trent Manning: 48:47
Good deal. Well, what are you most proud of besides your family slash your wife? Since she’s standing right there.
Brian Knoche: 48:55
I would have to say probably the respect that I get from my peers in the business for only being in it for 10
Trent Manning: 49:03
really good. That’s really good.
Brian Knoche: 49:06
it’s, I’m proud of myself that I’ve made an impact on other people to get the respect, which I never thought.
Trent Manning: 49:12
man.
Brian Knoche: 49:12
But it’s like we said earlier, it’s, we’re not afraid to help each other. And that might be what it, what it, you know, what it came from. But it’s just, when I was in sales, there’s guys that are four and a half, five hours away from me that I still have conversations with once a month, monthly, every two months, like I do my parents and just the relationships and get from your peers in the, in the business is really cool.
Trent Manning: 49:38
No, that’s awesome. Yeah, I mean, and like we said, it’s such a tight knit, you know, community, the turf industry, whatever you want to call it. And yeah, we’re all doing the same thing. We all do it a little bit different and we just want to help each other. So. Good on you. I’m glad you’re proud of yourself. That’s awesome, because it’s very important and it’s very hard for a lot of us to say that even that you’re proud of your accomplishments and you’re, you’re proud of the things that you’ve done in life and I think it’s really important for, for everybody, no matter, you know, where you are in life to, to be proud of what you’re doing. So thank you for saying that.
Brian Knoche: 50:20
You’re welcome.
Trent Manning: 50:22
Well, that is a wrap. You want to tell the listeners how they can get ahold of you? You mentioned Twitter several times. You got a Twitter handle.
Brian Knoche: 50:30
Oh, I think my Twitter handle is just, it’s my first initial B, my last name Naki, K N O C H E 3 5 0. then, I’m on Facebook, I’m on Instagram, and if they DM me on Twitter, I don’t mind giving them my phone number or an email, and they can just get ahold of me that way if they ever want to talk or whatever.
Trent Manning: 50:55
Right on.
Brian Knoche: 50:56
I gotta
Trent Manning: 50:56
thank you so much, Brian.
Brian Knoche: 50:58
Thank you,
Trent Manning: 50:58
Go ahead.
Brian Knoche: 50:59
I want to get down to national and do some of the equipment manager stuff and network that way too and meet more meet more of the guys on the east coast the west coast and Midwest that I don’t get get to you know, because we’re all so busy during the season,
Trent Manning: 51:14
Right, right, right. Are you planning on coming to Phoenix?
Brian Knoche: 51:17
will not be it. I am going to actually try and make it to next year’s.
Trent Manning: 51:22
Okay. San Diego.
Brian Knoche: 51:24
it to San Diego. Yeah.
Trent Manning: 51:26
Bring the wife with you. Have a good time.
Brian Knoche: 51:29
Oh, she’d love it. She’d end up at the beach the whole time.
Trent Manning: 51:32
Well, that’s okay.
Brian Knoche: 51:34
She’s, uh, yeah,
Trent Manning: 51:34
She can stay on the beach. You can go to some classes. I mean, it’s all good.
Brian Knoche: 51:39
from North Carolina. So she misses the beach.
Trent Manning: 51:41
Oh, I bet. Yeah. Yeah. That’s, that’s one thing. Y’all don’t have a beach real close to Nebraska.
Brian Knoche: 51:48
Got to travel.
Trent Manning: 51:49
That’s right. Well, thank you. again. I Appreciate
Brian Knoche: 51:52
thank you appreciate
Trent Manning: 51:53
on and we’ll talk to you soon.
Brian Knoche: 51:56
talk to you soon.
Trent Manning: 51:57
thank you so much for listening to the Reel turf techs podcast. I hope you learned something today. Don’t forget to subscribe. If you have any topics you’d like to discuss, or you’d like to be a guest, find us on Twitter at Reel turf techs.