Richard had, over a 20 year period, built a high reputation as one of Britain’s leading glass engravers. With his exactness for quality and detail, he has items on display in all major countries throughout the world.
He developed techniques of sculpting solid crystal blocks, and had renowned crystal manufacturers to make pieces of his own designs.
Having been indoors for all this duration, a change was needed, and a bobcat and mini-digger were acquired! As a hobby, Richard used his design and engineering (an earlier apprenticeship skill), to make one-off specialised vehicles (predominately 4×4’s). Designing “gadgets” were part of this fun, making him design and build implements for his mini-diggers and skid-steer Bobcats which led him into landscaping. The device he built to lift out Xmas trees (complete with their roots) at the rate of 350 trees an hour, is still sought after!
With his preciseness of driving his machines, and ability to adapt them to suit customers requirements, Richard ended up being contracted by a local tennis court company to help lay their surfaces. For the next 6 years this resulted in him learning eveything about macadam surfaces of all tennis and multisports areas.
During this period I became very critical of other painted finishes on tennis courts, and with the Companys’ assistance, I soon set up as an independant tennis court painter specialising only in macadam surfaces.
American/Australian court painting technique
Years later, tennis court painting, resurfacing and maintenance is still Richards’ total enjoyment and work satisfaction.
That same care and precision which went into his engraving is constantly applied in the preparation and painting of his courts, each of which becomes personal to him. The building of courts, and the resurfacing of them is also undertaken with the same attention.
To cater for his customers, Richard uses a large van which also transfers into a mobile home when overnight stays are needed -another enjoyment that reminds him of the barge he used to own. In the past years, the UK’s winter has found him on other Continents also painting courts over there, but his impending marriage to Beverley has curtailed his wander lust, and at last gained him a wonderful partner and team mate!!
