18 October 2009

The ICG NE Regional Chapter held its Fall 2009 meeting at Linguine’s Italian Eatery in Marlborough, MA on Saturday, 17 October with 7 members and 1 prospective member attending from 5 states. 
Seated below R-L are: Jay Whipple, from Hamilton, NY, Bill Grady, from West Kennebunk, ME; Frank Viola, from Saugus, MA, and Ken Collins, former PCS International Clubmaker of the Year, from Manchester, NH.
Following the luncheon and subsequent discussion, Ken commented that he will be joining our ranks in the very near future.  With over 35 years in clubmaking and holding practically every certificate and award that the industry offers, Ken's membership will certainly bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to our ranks!

Also in attendance pictured from R-L below were: Bob Faubel, of Redding, CT, meeting host DJ McIntosh, of Nashua, NH, Bob Swets, of Farmington, CT, and Steve Newton, of Ilion, NY.
DJ McIntosh gave an in-depth overview of the development and thought process behind the ICG Clubmaking & Repair Certification test and practical exam.  The main point to remember is that the entire certification process is intended to be an individual learning and personal growth experience that will boost the member's self-confidence and help elevate their status with their customer base.  Each member electing to participate in the certification process will be personally mentored along the way by a regional coordinator to ensure that he or she gets the maximum benefit from the overall experience.

DJ then introduced the group to a magnetic power device called "EasyClub"™ specifically designed to help set or break epoxy bonding.  Depending on the power setting and time applied, the device can either be used to set 24-hour epoxy in less than 15 seconds or break an existing epoxy bond for easy shaft removal.  The product is still under development awaiting full production and a bit "pricey" at this point with a cost of about $1500 per unit, but DJ indicated that smaller units in the $500 price range will potentially be available in the near future.

Next, Frank Viola gave an overview of the Flightscope® 3D Doppler Tracking Radar.  Devices such as this are primarily used by the high volume, retail shop owners such as Frank, but they do offer some unique options such as the ability to fit customers to a particular golf ball that will maximize the player's carry distance by helping them select the correct ball to match their swing speed, launch angle, etc.  The Flightscope® unit that Frank demonstrated has an MSRP of $7,995, so it's definitely not the sort of tool that most hobbyists would ever consider, but it does clearly show how far one can go with the available testing and measurement technology available in our industry today.

Lastly, the attendees agreed that our next meeting should include a round of golf in addition to a luncheon, and Bob Swets offered his location in Farmington, MA as a possible meeting site.  Bob will investigate possible dates in May 2010 and work with Steve Newton to coordinate our Spring 2010 chapter meeting.