Planet Gary

TurfZone – CrabbyIsland

It’s always pleasing to see one of your zone suggestions appearing on the turf map and even more pleasing when the Wizards of Turf go with your suggestion for the name of the zone as well. The zone in question is called CrabbyIsland. The idea for the zone name came from a combination of two ideas. One was the name of the fictitious location where the priests in the comedy series Father Ted used to live, namely Craggy Island. The other is from the three crabs I found trapped inside a crabbing pot discovered one day during a fat bike ride at low tide on the exposed sands of Gosford bay. The three crabs were released to live another day.

Today, it was time to finally get round to taking the zone, still a unique to me, along with a few others in the local area. First thing you need to do should you be planning on visiting CrabbyIsland zone is to check the tide tables, as the island is tidal and surrounded by crab and golf ball infested waters twice each day. Today, high tide was around 3.30 in the afternoon, with low tide around 9.00 in the morning, so plenty of time to take the zone.

My starting point was Lyars Road, Longniddry, opposite the small bay called Longniddry Bents. Parking here on the road is free and saves the £3.00 charge for parking in the shore car parks. Not that I’m against paying the £3.00, it’s more in protest that you cannot park there during the night which means I cannot use the car park for night turf/rides along the coast. Lyars Road is better placed for some of the other unique zones on my to-take list.

The first unique I was after was another tidal zone called NeedsPlanning, which, as the name suggests, need planning to reach while keeping your feet dry. The zone is around 300m from the shore on the sand flats and can be in standing water depending on how wind and tide more the sand around. Today it was on firm dry sand though I needed a wide loop around deep standing water to remain dry.

My next unique zone was CrabbyIsland, located a couple of miles along the shore to the west following the path around Gosford Sands, also a section of the John Muir Way. It’s quite a pleasant walk, ticking of a few additional zones along the way, though perhaps spoiled by the near constant rumble of traffic on the A198 to North Berwick. And if you are into brick spotting, you will see plenty of EDINBURGH bricks scattered along the beach along with a few PRESTON GRANGE and others.

The small island is actually called GreenCraig, the name given to another zone nearby, but I think CrabbyIsland is a better. There’s not much to see on the island, just a few crabbing pots rotting away and a patch of grass. A nice spot for a picnic lunch had it not been for the bitingly chilly wind. So, I didn’t linger too long, heading across to the point for zone CraigielawPt, before retracing my steps back long the shore path. I found a sheltered spot out of the wind behind a wall for lunch.

Back at the car, I picked off another unique zone, IsNiddryBent, then a session of, yes, I’m not ashamed to admit, car turfing. Boo hiss, I hear some cry. But it is a legal form of transport, therefor allowed under Turf Law. First zone was RollAndSquare, located in a new housing estate to the south of Longniddry. Thought the design of the houses and the layout of the estate was quite in keeping with the older areas of East Lothian. Another unique zone was MindThePost, located on the coast at massive Seton Sands Holiday Village. And that was that. Back soon.

Copyright ©2026 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.

TurfZone – HarbourBeach

Who would have thought that there could be a nasty side to the game of turf? Yes, one might think that simply exploring town and country taking zones, gathering points and having a jolly good time might be one of the most innocuous, gentle and entirely innocent pastimes you could find, though the likes of train spotting, sand collecting and watching kettles boil, might just come close.

Yes, there are some turfers who have gone over to the Dark Side, though I must say to call them turfers is a disservice to real turfers. One of the most obvious and most heinous of crimes from the Dark Side is the appropriation of someone’s turfname. You might think that such a crime might come from the twisted mind of arch-villain Feathers McGraw, but no, there are sad people out there would seem to derive some twisted pleasure from such activities.

But first, why would you change your turfname in the first place? Well, some turfers like to do that during certain turf events such as when participating in competitions, for example, the TURF Ultimate Region Fight 2025, when members of Team Scotland might add TS to their turfname. PlanetGary would become TSPlanetGary, useful for informing non-team members that they are in the competetion. Another example might be at Christmas. In a recent example turfer Hodge changed his turfname to HoHoHodge, to reflect the theme of Christmas. A witty and worth thing to do.

Unfortunately, this leaves the turfname Hodge open and available for anyone to use. Now, I can understand if a new turfer came along and their actual surname was Hodge. They might use that in all innocence. But in this instance is seems to be a direct case of someone deliberately using the name Hodge simply to be nasty and spiteful, for whatever reason. Thankfully, the real Hodge was able to recover the turfname Hodge with the assistance of the Turf Crew who have access to the database holding all the data concerned with turf. The culprit had their turfname changed to TheFakeHodge much to their annoyance.

I had concerns about changing my own turfname back in 2021 when participating in Scotland vs Skåne turf challenge. My own turfname matches that of this blog and I would not have wanted to lose the turfname, no matter how unlikely that might be. So, in order to prevent the turfname PlanetGary from being stolen, I created a second turf account with a temporary turfname. I then changed PlanetGary to TSPlanetGary and the temp turfname to PlanetGary, thus preventing anyone from using that turfname. After the event it was simple to swap the names back. Mores soon.

Copyright ©2026 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.

TurfZone – WhereIsTheEsk

One imperial inch of snow has fallen; that’s 25.4 mm decimal. Maybe more, maybe less, here or there, depending on the local terrain. Just about enough to go sledging if you can find the right spot but not enough to warrant working from home. However, while it’s fun when freshly fallen, once it gets trodden, compressed by footfalls, partially melted by the weak winter sun, then frozen overnight, it’s a right pain in the proverbial derriere. The slippery uneven surfaces make turfing on foot a challenge and try turf cycling with a normal bike and you take your life in your hands. What you need is a fat bike. Good job I already have one.

For those that don’t know, a fat bike is like any traditional bike but with clearance on the frame and forks for enormous tyres. My Trek Farley 9.6 has 4.5-inch-wide tyres, that’s approx. 115 mm wide and they are ideal for turfing in the above-mentioned conditions. The tyres are amazing and they are not the biggest you can get. Not only do they smooth out all the icy rough stuff but they also provide enormous and confidence inspiring grip. Yes, they do take that little bit more effort to pedal but the rewards are well worth it.

TurfZone – FirthViaduct

Today, I visited Penicuik, tracking down a unique zone I’d been meaning to take since the zone was created back in May last year. The zone is called WhereIsTheEsk. Yes, I could have cycled there during the nice warm summer and bagged it then. But no, I’ve been keeping it for a special occasion. And that special occasion is today, with snow and ice carpeting the ground and temperatures hovering around bloody freezing. Yes, I know I’m mad but where’s the fun in being a normal turfer, if there even is such a thing? It’s not a lot of snow, I know, but winters snows are fickle these days and snowfall is not a dependable as it once was. So, making use of what we have.

So, off I went along the Dalkeith to Penicuik cycleway, once the Penicuik Branch line of the North British Railway, built to service the many paper mills that once operated along the valley of the River North Esk, effectively killing the river with their chemical discharges in the process. (It’s okay now that the mills have all gone). The path was not a busy as usual, the hard-packed slippery conditions keeping the usual runners, cyclists and dog walkers tucked up snugly in front of the telly. Mind you, still a few brave souls out running and cycling.

The fat bike, like when I’m riding the Brompton, tends to attract attention. Reactions are mixed. Some people, usually men, appear jealous, though I may be wrong. Others smile and say hello, though I’m never sure if they are laughing at me or just amazed so encounter this daft idiot riding a silly bike that is more at home on the groomed snow trails of Alaska. Of course, the best reaction is from the small children. Love seeing their wee faces light up in astonishment followed by ” Mummy, can I have one of those?”

TurfZone – TwoHares

I was wearing my heated socks and heated gloves today and both do well to keep the feet and fingers toasty. However, I’m not all that enamoured with the gloves. They were about £40.00 on Amazon and do their job but don’t seem breathable and you get very sweaty inside. And that dampness cools when the gloves are not used, meaning it’s worth carrying dry normal gloves with you. I see that better quality heated gloves can cost between £150.00 to £200.00, so I guess you get what you pay for.

The route taking me along the gentle gradients of an old railway line means fairly easy cycling, picking up zones along the way. Hills are only encountered in Penicuik where the line terminates and you switch to tarmac streets. The one hill I failed to ascent while riding was between zone FlyingBroom and the unique I was heading for, zone WhereIsTheEsk. It was too steep to ride in these conditions, too slippery and even walking was a challenge. However, eventually I made it to the zone, did a wee photo shoot, then started heading back to Bonnyrigg. A grand, if rather chilly, day out turfing.

Copyright ©2026 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.

Sunday 4th January
Off to a great start, ending up with 94 zones and over 22,000 points. Rosewell, Bonnyrigg, Eskbank and Dalkeith all falling under the spell of the PlanetGary turfman. A veritable sea of little white dots on the map. And in the latter stages, I noticed something strange occurring. My takeover time appears to be taking far less time than usual.

My takeover time currently stands at 18.6 seconds. Deduct from that the 5-second bonus for leaving your GPS on and you get 13.6 seconds. Yet I was barely stopping within the zone to hear the nice lady inside the phone tell me “Zone taken”. Then I noticed I had become royalty. My turfman icon was wearing a golden crown! Well, a yellow crown actually. I now held Region Lord status.

This is where a turfer holds the most zones in a region, in this instance, Scotland, and gets a 5-second bonus which shortens their takeover time. Meaning my takeover time was now 8.6 seconds. And I must say very noticeable when out in the field taking zones. I can only recall one occasion when I held Region Lord before and that only lasted seconds before vanishing as it was pinched by another turfer.

One thought that came to mind while I held the Region Lord bonus was should I make an attempt at bettering my current time of 7:45 on the Loanhead ferret run. A 5-second bonus for 9 of the takes would make a huge difference to the time. I say 9 zones because the counter starts after you take the first zone.

However, tempting as it may be the temperature was 3 degrees below and knowing the route of the Loanhead ferret run follows an old railway line with low-lying stretches that hold the cold, I decided that a high-speed cycle in the dark without knowing if there were any icy patches would be folly. I task best left for another day. And no point planning anything for the following day as I had family matters to attend to down in the Scottish Borders and in any case, I had lost the Region Lord bonus by morning. Hopefully, I might be able to hold the Region Lord bonus again sometime in the future.

Tuesday 6th January
I was so enthused about turfing on Sunday, keen and raring to get out there each day and collect as many points as I could. However, Monday saw me visiting the Scottish Borders to take my aging mother to the hospital, along with my sister who had been bitten by a friend’s dog. Not the most cheerful of days and I’m surprised how it effects my mood, which in turn, affects my enthusiasm for turfing. I guess also that lost day’s turfing has seen a 20,000 points gap open up between self and the leader, a gap I had hoped to keep to a bare minimum, if possible.

Now, in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels, the Post Office has a motto over their portico. “Neither rain nor snow nor glom of nit can stay these messengers about their duty”. And while the spelling is incorrect due to some letters having been stolen, I’m going to adopt a version of my own for turfing. “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these turfers from the unimpeded taking of zones.”

The correct version comes from the Herodotus quotation used on the General Post Office in New York City which reads: “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds” which has become an unofficial motto of the US Postal service. I shall try to keep this in mind when I find myself making excuses not to go turfing. More soon.

Copyright ©2026 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.

Turf Zone – SayAhhh

Well, 2026 is with us, the New Year has now been and gone, hurting heads have subsided, sleep has been caught up with and life returns to whatever normal we deem normal. So, what about New Year resolutions? Have you made yours and how many have you broken already? That bearing in mind we are only 4-days into 2026. To be honest I don’t see the point of making these, they rarely last for long, often forgotten the following day. But I’m going to make some. Yes, there, I’ve said it online, on the public domain of cyberspace and no backing out now.

So, what might I resolve to accomplish? Well, no point giving up the demon drink, I’ve not touched anything alcoholic for 20-years or some, bare that occasional sherry laced trifle, which I must say is spoiled by the addition of sherry. No point giving up smoking as I’ve never tried, ever, and no point getting more exercise as I do that already. My weight is the same as it was when I was 18-years old and resolving to stop chasing attractive women is, well, something I’ve only dreamed about being able to actually do in the first place. However, there is always the game of turf. What can I resolve to accomplish for this fine game?

Okay, here are my turf resolutions for 2026*.

• go for a Region winner medal, most likely Scotland.
• take 1000 round unique zones for the Diversiest medal.
• take 400 zones in 24-hours for the Staminatrix medal.
• take zones in 5 regions for the Pentaregion Star.
• take zones in 10 regions for the Decaregion Star.
• take zones in all 12 UK regions for the UK Explorer medal.
• go crazy one round for the Roundpointer-750k medal.
• collect 20 zones to complete the Monumental medal.

That’s quite a challenge I’ve set myself, so from 11.00am today, at the start of round #187, I’ll be out there getting points. And that’s the core of my plan to begin with, simply get out there as much as possible and collect points. The big challenge is perhaps the UK Explorer, as I only have 3 regions in the bag. However, ChoccyMuffin is planning a trip down to West Sussex to visit a friend, so we will be driving down with Brompton bikes in the boot, over multiple days and stopping off at zone rich areas along the route, taking zones in all the required regions on the way and also on the return trip. That should give each of us 11 regions, leaving Northern Ireland for a separate trip.

Now, I would bet an entire packet of four-fingered Kit-Kats that most turfers have come across annoying zones. I have and a few of them are annoying each and every time I try to take them. For example, and this is probably my favourite, if any annoying zones could be called that, zone BurnbraePoint here in sunny sub-zero Bonnyrigg. The zone encompasses a circular grassy area with planted areas in the corners. It’s surrounded by a decorative metal fence and has two access gates.

Now, there’s no issue taking the zone from within the fenced area. But that means alighting from the bike, opening the gate, taking the bike in, then the reverse of the same procedure. Note, makes sure you close the gate or a grumpy gentleman nearby will get even grumpier, shout at you to close the bloody gate less packs of roaming wild dogs get in and do whatever roaming wilds dogs do.

However, there’s a faster and easier way to take this zone. You can actually take it from each of the four corners outside the fence. Well, I should say with a bit of luck, ad usually, and sometimes. And that luck seems to be determined on the direction you approach any of the corners. Sometimes it might work when approaching from one way but not the opposite direction. Then the next time you try, nothing works at all and through the gate you go. It’s an annoying zone. Bye for now.

*Oh, my goodness, what have I let myself in for?

Copyright ©2026 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.

TurfZone – WickedMarket

The 21st of December is 5-years to the day from the moment I first encountered the concept of the turf game. And today I have a decision to make. That decision is, do I continue or do I stop. Yes, stop playing the game called turf. To be honest, I’m finding the game rather monotonous, dare I say boring, even with the challenges of the Turf Skåne Advent Calander. Not for the first time, I find I’m simply just going through the motions, just taking the bike out and taking zones for the sake of it, little more than a habit., though perhaps for the exercise as well. However, I’m thinking a review of where I stand would be a good idea and might kindle that spark again.

First of all, the part that underlies the game called turf, the points. Today, I’m sitting at around 14,500,000 points (rounded up for ease) which might appear amazing and depending on your point of view, perhaps it is. Mind you, some turfers do that in a single year, not over five years, the time it’s taken myself. This gives me rank 57 Turf Archangel, which again, might appear amazing, when you realise that rank is out of 60 possible ranks available. The next rank is 58 Turf God, which requires 15,000,000 points, only another 500,000 points away. Perhaps this is a good reason to continue the game? Food for thought.

But what about after that? The following rank is 59 Turf Titan. But, and it’s a rather big but, to become a Turf Titan I would need to reach 25,000,000 points. That’s another 10,000,000 points away. Okay, some turfers might do that in around a year, indeed some have. But that’s a serious undertaking for anyone, let alone a 64-year-old pensioner. Mind you, perhaps an electric bike would help? Now that sounds like a great idea! To finish on this point about ranks and points. The ultimate rank is 60 Turfalicious and guess how many points you need for that? Well, it’s only 50,000,000 points. Only?

Now, medals and there are plenty of those, many of which I’ve been able to achieve, including Ghost Minute, Greed 350, Darkest Ninja, Trainer and Daily 365, to mention but a few. All the relatively easy medals I might add. There are plenty of others available and there are a few that I could set my sights on.

• Take 50000 – current takes 49372, requiring 628 takes for the medal.
• Unique 5000 – current uniques taken 3382, requiring another 1618.
• Assist 2500 – sitting at 2066, meaning another 434 required.
• Greed 400 – hold 400 zones at the same time.
• Region Medal – for winning a round in a region i.e. Scotland.
• Country Medal – for winning a round in a country i.e. UK.
• Crowdy 21 – need to find 21 turfers in a zone at the same time.
• Order of Aquamen – awarded for taking a water zone.
• Roundpointer 750k – collect 750,000 points during a single round.
• Diversiest – take 1000 different zones during a single round.
• Staminatrix – take 400 zones withing a 24-hour period.
• Monumental – monuments taken 80, requiring another 20.

The Take 50000 can be achieved by simply turfing, chugging away taking zones and also getting points. The Unique 5000 would require considerable travel to reach unique zones further afield but quite doable. The Assist 2500 is also within means as I often turf with ChoccyMuffin letting her get the takes while I get the assist. The Greed 400 is a real challenge indeed and I’d place that at the bottom of the list.

Along with the Region and Country medals I’d include the Roundpointer 750k, as a grouping, as they would all require roughly the same number of points to achieve each of those medals. Problem here is that you never know who you are up against during any given round, though I think I’d set my sights on the Roundpointer 750k and hope for the best with the other two. And one can always dream of that Roundpointer 1M

With the Crowdy 21, my best bet would be to participate in a turf event where these are more likely to take place, for example, the 2026 Turf Bonanza in Glasgow. As for the Order of Aquamen, I need a small boat or inflatable dingy. In fact, I did look into this and was considering either purchasing something myself or getting a group of turfers together and clubbing together to buy something we could share out, a pool boat, as it were.

The Diversiest medal could either be a standalone challenge or perhaps part of something like the Roundpointer 750k. The Staminatrix, taking 400 zones withing a 24-hour period, would likely also be a stand along task considering the effort required. And finally, Monumental, the 20 monument zones might be gathered while taking the unique zones for the Unique 5000. Hmm, plenty stuff to be getting on with then.

Daily Dozen 365 – take a dozen zones a day for 365 days.

There is one medal I’ve always wished I could have continued, one I feel that would help keep other turfers out there turfing. That medal is the Daily 5, where you take at least 5 zones each day, all the way to 365 days. At the moment, this medal can only be achieved once. I would love to be able to keep going for another year, or two, or more. Or how about something similar but that little bit more challenging, the Daily Dozen, where you need to take at least 12 zones each day. Now, would that not be fantastic?

As well as medals there are other elements to the game of turf that can be useful for maintaining interest. The first is the League, where you are pitted against random turfers each round and where the winner of each round can progress up the League table. Also of interest are FTT and TvT, that’s First To Take, where the turfer endeavours to be the first to take a new zone. TvT stands for Turfer Verses Turfer, where turfers hunt down zones held by other turfers they have not taken a zone from previously. My main gripe with all three of these is that there’s no award or recognition beyond being listed in some statistics. Be nice of there were medals awarded, for example, for reaching any Level within the League or for numbers of FTT and TvT taken. One lives in hope.

Now the final decision. Yes, do I carry on turfing? No, do I stop turfing and do something entirely different? Och aye man, let’s go turfing!

Copyright ©2025 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.

Turf Zone – Bonnyrigg

Without a Planet Gary Advent Callender to stress me out this year, I’m now happily free to tackle the annual offering from Turf Skåne. Their Turf Advent Calander has 25 turf assignments, one for each day starting on the 1st December and ending on the 25th December. More details on the rules and participant guidelines here. On this page, I’m going to post each of the daily assignments and a short blog about my own adventures. Hope the Google translation makes sense.

No 25  – 25th December 2025 – This day is for Scottish turfers only
Take a zone, dressed in kilt, while you play WHAM!’s “Last Christmas” on bagpipe.
(Just kidding – Merry X-mas!)

No 24  – 24th December 2025 – Christmas Eve
In Sweden, Christmas is celebrated on 24/12, take zones where the sum of PPH is 24 and where any of the letters “G”, “O”, “D”, “J”, “U”, “L” are included in the zone names.

No 23  – 23rd December 2025 – The Three Wise Men
Take three zones that have to do with wise men or women (place or zone name).

Quite a challenge this one. Suitable zones are few and far between locally and I suspect I’d have better luck in Edinburgh. However, I have decorating/plasterwork to do today (I’m fitting cornices throughout the house), so local it will have to be. I have a short list of potentially suitable zones, though I may be pushing the definition of “wise” to it’s absolute limits. They are: Slytherin, NewtonChurch, HolyStMatthew, WayOfBaird, PeacocksBeard and RosePark. You will have to wait until I take my three zones to reveal what constitutes the “wise” association to each zone.

Okay, here goes. First zone is WayOfBaird, and the wise man associated with this zone is Scot, John Logie Baird, famous for his work inventing the television. The second zone is Slytherin, after Salazar Slytherin, found of Slytherin House at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Well, he must have had some degree of wisdon, even if he was more inclined to be a bit of a dodgy character. The third and final zone is RosePark and my wise person for this one is Rose Tyler, Dr Who’s assistant. Well, she must be wise to survive encounters with daleks, cybermen and the Master.

No 22  – 22nd December 2025 – The Shining Christmas Tree
Take a zone where you see a Christmas tree that is brightly lit. Municipal trees are expected to have electric lighting on when you take the zone. If you fix your own illuminated tree, the association has no comments on how you make it light up as long as it does not constitute arson or otherwise cause danger.

That would be zone Bonnyrigg.

No 21 – 21st December 2025 – Thomas
Thomas has a name day. Take five zones where the first letter of each forms TOMAS. (Do not need to be taken in order)

TheGuitar, OneForSorrow, Medway, A7View, Strawberries

No 20 – 20th December 2025 – The Religious Christmas
The Christmas prayer is important. Take three zones with church attributes.

Zone KirkCockpen, actually at Cockpen & Carrington Parish Church, built 1818. Zone HolyCharger, at St. Mary’s Church, Dalkeith, built 1844 and dedicated to St Mary the Virgin. Zone HolyDalkeith, zone now relocated to Dalkieth cemetary, moved from initial location at West Church, which is now a specialist joinery workshop.

No 19 – 19th December 2025 – One-nine
On November 15, 2025, Mölndals Bandy lost to Sandviken AIK 1-9. Take 9 zones with PPH 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 (in that order) or take 9 zones that together give 19 in PPH.

The first option would mean a trip into Edinburgh, most likely starting at my usual parking area by Blackford pond where there are a few PPH1 zones, then heading towards the city centre for the only PPH9 zone available, Waverly, at the railway station. The other option is easy enough locally. Hmm, a decision to make. Think I’ll do Edinburgh. More of a challenge that way.

So, hopped onto the No 31, hopped off at zone CraigmillKirk and walked along to first zone, then Relugas PPH+1, then DickCorner PPH+2, followed with Siennna PPH+3, next RickOldMan PPH+4 with MarchmontCres PPH+5 soon after, followed by WarrenderPark PPH+6 and Argyle PPH+7 and StGiles PPH+8 and finally, Waverley PPH+9. Assignment complete.

No 18 – 18th December 2025 – Salted
In winter the roads are salted. Salty candy is the best candy. Take a zone whose name or location is related to candy – salty or sweet, or (salty) cucumber or (salty) fish.

Struggling with this one! However, took zone HarryPotter on the 19th and I recall something from the movies of the same name, i.e. Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans. That should include something salty or sweet and will do nicely.

No 17 – 17th December 2025 – Morning has gold in its mouth
Morning time is golden. Choose a zone of your choice when you check your mailbox BEFORE 7:00 AM to see if there is a morning newspaper there.

Forgot to take a zone before 7.00am on the 17th and the 18th but did manage one on the 19th. Nothing fancy, just my nearest zone, Brixwold.

No 16 – 16th December 2025 – Christmas Cards Must Arrive
It’s really too late to send them, but you do what you can to find a mailbox that has one emptying left today. You need to look at at least two mailboxes to see which one is emptied last. Take at least two zones near different mailboxes.

For this one I used a compination of local knowledge and an online facility provided by the Post Office to locate post boxes. My two zone selections are ManyFeet, here in Bonnyrigg, and Beatles in Dalkeith. Both zones have post boxes within sight of the zone.

No 15 – 15th December 2025 – Midwinter Cold
It should be cold at Christmas, take a zone where the name or place may have a hint of winter.

Some thinking required for this one. Best I could come up with was zone A7View, which is in sight of McDonalds and Starbucks, both which serve iced beverages. There was also a discarded McDonalds Diet Coke cup lying there which would probably have contained ice. However, I’m also adding zone HolyCharger at the entrance to Dalkeith Country Park. There’s an old ice house about 100m away on the road leading to the palace.

No 14 – 14th December 2025 – Take the bus instead!
The day after Lucia, it’s probably smart to take the bus. Take a zone near a bus stop.

What to say about this one? There’s a zone called SignsOfHumans. It’s located at what was once Polton railway station and is beside a bus stop. I took the zone. The end.

No 13 – 13th December 2025 – Lucia

Original Swedish
Lucia är optikernas skyddshelgon, ta en zon där du dåligt kan se en optiker/optikbutik

Google Translation
Lucia is the patron saint of opticians, take a zone where you can’t see an optician/optical shop.

DeepL Translation
Lucia is the patron saint of opticians, so choose an area where you can easily find an optician/optical store.

Clirification posted on the Turf Scotland WhatsApp Group
Neither are correct! The advised translation (from Skåne) is: “‘Lucia is the patron saint of opticians, take a zone where you can badly/barely see an optician/optical shop” The translation came with a reminder that the idea of the calendar is to have fun.

Note the differences in the translations. I think the last one is the more accurate translation. Need to be careful with online translations or things might get lost in translation. But nice easy one for me. Zone Bonnyrigg is opposite Bonnyrigg Opticians. However, to cover all the options, I’ll also remove my spectacles at the zone and I won’t be able to see the opticians from the zone.

No 12 – 12th December 2025 – Warm up your voice for the Lucia song
It’s almost time to warm up your voice for the choir singing on Lucia Day. Singing is usually done with vowels. Take a zone with at least 5 vowels in the name. Feel free to sing the vowels while the countdown is going on! Film evidence gives an honorable mention.

My offering for No 12, zone BurnbraePoint. And with one each of the five vowels.

No 11 – 11th December 2025 – Christmas Plague
WHAM!’s “Last Christmas” is a painful 4:27. Grab as many zones as you can that have the letters “W”, “H”, “A” or “”M” in their names while the song is playing.

Talk about coincidence. ChoccyMuffin asked her beside Alexa device to play some Christmas songs and guess which one she played first. Aye, Last Christmas by WHAM. There is no escape! Anyway, I identified two zones that fit the bill for this assignment, both locally and also within the 40 Bonnyrigg zones I’m taking for the El Staminatore medal. They are zones Wishart and ArgentumDrive. They are only minutes apart which means I don’t have to listen to the entire song.

No 10 – 10th December 2025 – Christmas Cake
Christmas baking is mandatory. Take a zone where you see a place where bread is baked, or, take a zone that looks like a loaf of bread or a cake.

A few possibilities for this one. One is zone Restoration down in Dalkeith Country Park though you might have to blag access to the zone as they sell Christmas trees from that area. However, I don’t know for sure if they actually do bake their own bread or order in from suppliers. Another zone is Dalhousie, at Dalhousie Castle Hotel. Our very own CardiffSoulCru used to work there and they did bake bread then but if they do so now, I’m not certain. His scones are sorely missed. So, I’ve gone for the third option zone A7View, in full view of Greggs Eskbank Drive Thru. Okay, their bread is probably mixed and pre-baked in regional bakeries but they do at least finish off the baking on site. So, that will do for me.

No 9 – 9th December 2025 – Anna’s Day
Tradition: The day has historically been linked to tasting the year’s Christmas beer. It’s also Gingerbread Day. Get sober and eat some gingerbread in a zone whose name begins with the letter “P”.

Well, sort of completed this one. Easy enough to take a zone starting with the letter “P”, that would be Pittendreich, only a minutes walk from the house. However, gingerbeard is not something we generally buy, so I had make do with something else with ginger in the ingredients. As luck would have it we had some ginger Biscotti biscuits in the biscuit time. Yum yum.

No 8 – 8th December 2025 – Self-discipline. Don’t freeze!
Do a warded session with exactly the same number of zone takings as today’s date (8). If you want to take more zones – keep in mind that you need an hour before and an hour after that you don’t take any zones.

Quick session in the evening locally. Eight zones taken, no more, no less. Lost count how many times I counted them to make sure there was only eight.

No 7 – 7th December 2025 – Second Advent
When the second candle burns, Lucia will soon be here. She offers us coffee and promises that Christmas will bring. Find a zone where you can buy a cup of coffee and, if possible, invite a fellow human being to coffee. For extra Christmas spirit: take a picture of you and the person you brought coffee to and share it wherever you want.

Nice easy one this. Or is it? To find a zone where you can actually purchase a coffee from within the zone is about as rare as a UFO stopping at Tesco Express for four Meal Deals and to ask where ET is showing at the cinema. Even finding a zone near, or within sight of a place you can buy a cup of coffee, isn’t all that common. Though I suppose you could pick a zone, find the nearest house, knock on the door and ask if they will sell you a cup of coffee. But, that’s a bit OTT, is it not? Anyway, my target will be zone A7View, just a few meters from Starbucks in Eskbank. However, technically, they only do coffee in mugs or tumblers, not cups of coffee. I know, I’ll take my own cup along and ask them to use that!

It is now after the reset and the start of a new round. Zone A7View taken and assignment complete. Didn’t go in for a coffee as I don’t like Starbucks coffee, far too strong. And they don’t do scones! How could they not do scones? Shocking!

No 6 – 6th December 2025 – Christmas Sausage
The word occurs as part of a sausage name and is also the shorter title that the Englishman Charles previously had. Take a zone that has to do with the word or is located at a place that is related to the word or is related to the word that is Charles’s new title.

I’ll needed some help and our learned super turfer ESOCWalter provided exactly what was required. So, in light of the clarification below, I hopped onto the No 31 bus into Edinburgh. Bad idea. Very bad idea. Remind me never to visit Edinburgh on a Saturday before Christmas. It was totally crazy mental. Hell’s grannies hurtling along the pavement on their Harley Davison mobility scooters parting shoppers like Moses and the Red Sea. Underdressed teenage girls having tantrums after being told to put their bloody phone away for Christ’s sake. Sad looking, shopping-bag laden husbands waiting outside M&S and wondering where they went wrong in life. And why is it that the item you visit the brand shop specifically to try on isn’t in stock? But at least I got the zone I was after, PrincesZone, assignment complete.

Great question — this is a wordplay riddle, not a straightforward instruction, which is why direct translation feels confusing. Let’s unpack it properly.

Clear English Translation – Julkorv
The word occurs as part of a sausage name and is also the shorter title that the Englishman Charles previously had. Take a zone that either has something to do with the word, is located at a place connected to the word, or is connected to the word that is Charles’s new title.

What This Actually Means (Explained Simply)
This is a double-meaning clue built on the word “prins”:

1. Sausage Meaning
In Sweden, there is a type of sausage called: Prinskorv which literally means “prince sausage” — a small Christmas sausage traditionally eaten at Christmas (hence Julkorv). So the word “prins” (prince) appears inside a sausage name.

2. Prince Charles Meaning
The text then says: “the shorter title that the Englishman Charles previously had”.
That refers to: Prince Charles (before he became king). His new title is now: King (Kung).

What the Task Is Asking You to Do (for Turf)
You are being told to: capture a Turf zone that is connected to either:
• The word “prins” (prince)
• A place linked to “prins”
• OR something linked to Charles’s new title: King (Kung)

That means zones related to things like:
• Prince / Prins
• King / Kung
• Places named:
• Kungsgatan (King’s Street)
• Kungliga (Royal)
• Prinsgatan (Prince Street)
• Castles, royal statues, royal parks, etc.

Your Guess About Prince Charles Was 100% Correct

You were absolutely right to connect this to:
• Korv → Prinskorv
• Prince → Prince Charles
• Now King → Charles III

That is exactly what the clue is doing.

Final One-Sentence Summary
This clue tells you to take a Turf zone connected to “prince” (prins), royalty, or kingship, based on the wordplay between prinskorv (prince sausage) and Prince Charles becoming King.

No 5 – 5th December 2025 – The Name of the Place
What is Santa’s real name? Take 8 zones where the first letter of each zone name forms “Nicolaus”.

Interesting. More zones required this time and zones beginning with the letter U are as rare as wild haggis. So, first the research. Start with the Turf Map Tool, draw a polygon around the area I want to turf and download the list of zone names as a .txt file. Copy and paste into MS Word and sort in alphabetical order. Next, highlight all the zones starting with the letters in NICOLAUS and delete the remainder. Most zones are local here in Bonnyrigg with only two outliers, UpperDalPath and OldBattle, both not too far away. Next, email list to self to have available on the mobile phone. Sorted and ready to turf. However, off to B&Q first, turfing later.

Some time later. I had a choice of zones to select from and ended up with the following: NotFencedIn, IKnowBroom, ChesterGarden, OldBattle, LadyMarion, AuldCoal, UpperDalPath and Slytherin. I decided to use the Trek Farley fat bike for the two off-road zones, UpperDalPath, located across muddy fields and OldBattle, found along a muddy woodland trail. The other five zones were all in town and easier to take.

No 4 – 4th December 2025 – The Highlight of the Year
Take a zone where you can look down on the lower surroundings when you take the zone. Preferably a natural height or building. If you bring your own chair, photo evidence is required.

Where to go to fulfil this assignment? Should I take the easy way out and take the zone 5 minutes away on the bridge at Eskbank railway station? Or should I grab my climbing gear, sharpen the crampons, hire a Sherpa (turfer ChoccyMuffin), head into Edinburgh and take the best view we have, zone ArthursSeat? I chose the latter zone, not because it is easy, but because it is hard. And there’s also a nearby unique zone I want to get as well.

No 3 – 3rd December 2025 – Donald Duck
Traditions are meant to be followed. Like, for example, Donald Duck on Christmas Eve. Take zones where there are letters that form “DUCK”. Extra prize for the one who can do it with the LEAST number of zones.

Initially, I thought the Swedes were pulling my leg with this one but it seems that, since 1959, in Sweden and on Christmas eve, millions watch a Disney special featuring Donald Duck. well, you learn something new every day.

Now, this one is much better, more options for doing something more challenging and interesting. Of course, for simplicity, one might look for a zone with the word DUCK in it, however, my nearest one would be DuckPondZone in St Andrews, which is a 3-hour round trip in the car or 12-hour ride on the velocipede. Guess I’ll give that one a miss. So, what else? Well, the most obvious one for me is to take four zones one each beginning with the four letters in the word DUCK, and for added fun, in that order. So, that’s my plan for this assignment. Just need to locate the four zones. Back later.

It’s now sometime later and a trip down to the Portobello area of Edinburgh in the afternoon offered up the four zones I was looking for – DurhamPlaza, UnderThePower, CulletWalker and KayakZone. However, chatter on the Turf Scotland WhatsApp group reveals I should have been looking for zones to create the word KALLE ANKA, the Swedish term for Donald Duck. Initially, I thought I’d messed up but zones CulletWalker and KayakZone do contain all the required characters to make KALLE ANKA. Nice one!

No 2 – 2nd December 2025 – The Day After
Did you have too much mulled wine on the 1st of Advent? Take a zone where you see a place where you can buy headache pills.

Day two offers up another easy assignment with just a single zone required. This time, I chose zone Bonnyrigg located in the centre of the town and with a mini supermarket only a few meters away. I know you can purchase headache pills there as I’ve bought them there previously. Not for drinking too much mulled wine I might add, I cannot stand the stuff, it was when I had a very bad case of life-threatening man flu!

No 1 – 1st December 2025 – Three-way Intersection
There’s a lot about the number 3 at Christmas. The Trinity. And the three wise men who managed to arrive at the same time even though they came from different places. Take a zone near a three-way intersection (a T-intersection will do too).

A rather easy one to start. We, that’s ChoccyMuffin and myself, had an Amazon parcel to return, so a quite walk up to the town, grabbing a few zones along the way and YourDiary fitted the assignment just fine. Have you all remembered to add your Santa hat to your turfman icon?

Copyright ©2025 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.

Turf Zone – FalkirkWheel

Before you became a turfer, when life was fun and care free, you would most likely have been a perfectly normal common or garden variety of human being. Though what that actually is, is not something I care to define. Then the fabled game of turf comes along and you become a turfer. This will probably change you from a normal human being into something entirely different. A turfer. Homo turfensis.

Once upon a time you might step out the front door, for example, to post a letter in the post box a few minutes’ walk along the street. Once you become a turfer, that 5-minute task now takes an hour or even more. That bus trip into Edinburgh to visit the dentist, a trip that would usually take an hour, well, you find yourself leaving an hour earlier than you need, to grab a few more zones. And you go the long way round on the return trip. When planning a holiday, before turf, you might be looking for places to visit or beaches to get that all-over tan, eateries serving scones and so on. Once you become a turfer your first question is, how many zones are there?

Once you become a turfer you do things that other people simply do not do. Things that, when mentioned to other people, non-turfing people I might add, you are greeted with incredulous looks, blank stares and occasionally suggestions of being taken away my men in white coats to secure accommodation or men in black coats to locations best left unsaid. Then you do things that require considerable effort, like the El Staminatore medal, taking 200 zones within a 24-hour period. And that’s what keeps me busy at the moment.

My plan is to complete five sessions, each taking around 40 zones here on my local patch of Bonnyrigg. The method is simple. I’ve enlisted the help of two other imaginary turfers, MrTrek and MrFarley, each logged onto my spare phone in turn. Each of them in turn will take the zones and I’ll get an assist. Test sessions have shown the system works well enough after a few minor issues were resolved. So, how are things going?

My first session, starting noon yesterday, brought home 43 takes/assists. First zone failed due to MrTrek not being able to access the server. However, I got the take, rather than an assist, which counts towards the total. I re-took the zone later to get back on track for the following session. Lost three takes due to inattention and nipped across into Eskbank to make up the deficit. My target for each session is at least 40 takes, or more if possible. The second session, starting around 2.00 pm after a lunch break, went without a hitch, bringing my total to 84, almost half way there.

Third session was in the evening and thankfully the winds still lingering after Storm Bran had abated a little making cycling that little bit easier. Still that same issue taking the first zone after uninstalling the app, re-installing the app and logging in as a different turfname. Not too much of an issue as I still get the take. Messed up two zones in Polton but nothing to worry about. I still get the take but would be better with an assist which would allow my other assistant turfer to take the zone while I get the assist. However, with the total now at 127, leaving only 73 takes required, I’ll bag those tomorrow with an early morning session and a final session after breakfast.

This morning, at 5.30am, I tackled the fourth session bringing home 39 takes and increasing the overall tally to 166. That leaves only 34 further takes required and I’ll be able to take those as PlanetGary as I will no longer need to re-take zones again later. It’s nice and quiet this early in the morning, traffic is light but most drivers seem to ignore speed limits and hurtle about regardless of the new 20mph speed limit. Surprised at how many dog walkers were about.

El Staminatore – 200 zones taken in under 24-hours.

Fifth and final session was Dalkeith and Eskbank, for a change of scenery. One hour on the bike and then, at just the back of 10.00 am, that welcome popup stating medal earned El Staminatore. Thank goodness for that. There’s always that little niggle in the back of your mind that something will go wrong. Like assists not actually being allowed. Much relief. Time taken turfing was just under 9 hours and around 40 miles cycled. Legs feel rather tired but in a good way.

Thoughts now turn to the next one, the Staminatrix medal, taking 400 zones within a 24-hour period. Main question I ask myself is, can I actually manage that? If you double up the time taken for starters, note that also means double the mileage as well and it’s a fair challenge indeed. An ebike looks so very, very tempting. When you look at how many people have achieved the Staminatrix, and that’s only 472 out of 454,916 turfers (shown at the foot of the turf web page), that’s 0.1%, you get an idea of how much effort is involved. For comparison, the El Staminatore is only 0.25%. More soon.

Copyright ©2025 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.

Throughout the Turf blog pages I’ve been posting my progress on medals achieved and ranks gained and thought it would be useful to bring them all together on a single page as an overview. Perhaps also to show just what can be achieved.

January 2026

• Take-50000 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 50000 takeovers.

December 2025

• El Staminatore medal, taking 200 zones in a 24-hour period.

June 2025

• Bonanza Participator medal – for Bonanza Bike Scotland 2025.

February 2025

• Bing Bagging 5 – take 5 zones located on shale bings. (un-official).

January 2025

• Assist-1000 medal – assisting another turfer 1000 times with a zone takeovers.

December 2024

• Take-40000 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 40000 takeovers.

November 2024

• Assist-750 medal – assisting another turfer 750 times with a zone takeovers.

October 2024

• 2500 Unique medal – awarded when you take 2500 different zones.
• Monument medal – for taking 50 zones with Monument attribute.

September 2024

• Rank 56 – Turf Angel, 11,000,000 points.

August 2024

• Take-35000 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 35000 takeovers.

May 2024

• Assist-500 medal – assisting another turfer 500 times with a zone takeover.

April 2024

• Rank 55 – Holy Turfer, 9,500,000 points.

March 2024

• Take-30000 – this medal is distributed as you perform 30000 takeovers.

October 2023

• Roundpointer-500k medal – awarded for 500,000 points in a single round.
• Turfoween 50 – take 50 zones during Halloween (unofficial).
• Rank 54 – Incredible Turfer, 8,000,000 points.
• Take-25000 – this medal is distributed as you perform 25000 takeovers.
• Roundpointer-250k medal – awarded for 250,000 points in a single round.
• Roundpointer-100k medal – awarded for 100,000 points in a single round.
• Roundpointer-75k medal – awarded for 75,000 points in a single round.
• Roundpointer-50k medal – awarded for 50,000 points in a single round.
• Roundpointer-25k medal – awarded for 25,000 points in a single round.
• Roundpointer-10k medal – awarded for 10,000 points in a single round.

September 2023

• Eventor medal – Scottish Turf Open Championships.

August 2023

• Rank 53 – Amazing Turfer, 7,250,000 points.
• Water of Leith Walkway – taking 60 zones over 13-miles.

July 2023

• Seven Hills of Midlothian – take the seven highest zones in Midlothian (unofficial).
• Ornithologist – identify 50 species of bird at no more than 10 zones (unofficial).

May 2023

• Rank 52 – Turf Caesar, 6,500,000 points.
• Nature Watch 10 – identify 10 species of animal from a zone (unofficial).
• Nature Watch 5 – identify 5 species of animal from a zone (unofficial).

April 2023

• Take-20000 – this medal is distributed as you perform 20000 takeovers.
• Turf Awards 2022 – Turfer of the Year nominee for Turf video blogging.

February 2023

• 2-in-1 medal, take two zones within 60 seconds (unofficial).
• Rank 51 – Turf Zsar 5,750,000 points.

January 2023

• Crowdy-13 medal – one of 13 assisters during a zone takeover.
• Event TurfEmbra10 – participated in this event 28th January in Edinburgh.
• Snowman medal – take 100 zones when snow is on the ground (unofficial).

December 2022

• Örebro Kalendar 2022 – turfing based advent calendar.
• Skåne Kalendar 2022 – turfing based advent calendar.

October 2022

• Event TurfEmbra09 – participated in this even 29th October in Edinburgh.
• Twitcher medal – identify 25 bird species from no more than 10 zones (unofficial).
• Birder medal –  identify 10 bird species from no more than 10 zones (unofficial).
• Rank 50 – Turf King, 5,000,000 points.
• Greed 350 medal – gained when you control 350 zones at the same time.

September 2022

• Event – Turf Ultimate Regional Fight 2022 (TURF 2022).
• Take-15000 – this medal is distributed as you perform 15000 takeovers.
• Daily-365 medal – complete 5 takeovers every day for 365 days.

August 2022

• Rank 49 – Turf Count, 4,500,000 points.

June 2022

• Rank 48 – Turf Overlord, 4,000,000 points.

May 2022

• Assist-250 medal – assisting another turfer 250 times with a zone takeover.

March 2022

• Rank 47 – Turf Lord, 3,500,000 points
• Daily-180 medal – complete 5 takeovers every day for 180 days.

January 2022

• Take-10000 – this medal is distributed as you perform 10000 takeovers.
• Assist-100 medal – assisting another turfer 100 times with a zone takeover.
• Rank 46 – Turf Preacher, 3,000,000 points.

December 2021

• Assist-50 medal – assisting another turfer 50 times with a zone takeover.
• Daily-90 medal – complete 5 takeovers every day for 90 days.
• Rank 45 – Turf Elder, 2,700,000 points.
• Örebro Kalendar 2021 – turfing based advent calendar.

November 2021

• Event – Turf Kalender 2021 – 24 assignments to complete, one each day.
• Daily-60 medal – complete 5 takeovers every day for 60 days.

October 2021

• Rank 44 – Turf Hero, 2,370,000 points.
• Take-7500 – this medal is distributed as you perform 7500 takeovers.
• Daily-30 medal – complete 5 takeovers every day for 30 days.
• 1000 Unique medal – awarded when you take 1000 different zones.

September 2021

• Event – Turf Ultimate Region Fight 2021 (TURF 2021).
• Rank 43 – Turf Knight, 2,060,000 points.
• Assist-25 medal – assisting another turfer 25 times with a zone takeover.
• Daily-10 medal – complete 5 takeovers every day for 10 days.

August 2021

• Rank 42 – Turf Guardian, 1,770,000 points.
• Greed 300 medal – gained when you control 300 zones at the same time.
• Diversier medal – taken 500 round unique zones during the same round.

July 2021

• Rank 41 – Turf Grandmaster 1,500,000 points.
• Take-5000 – this medal is distributed as you perform 5000 takeovers.

June 2021

• Rank 40 – Turf Master 1,250,000.
• Insomnia medal – at least a zone every hour over a 24 hour period.
• Restless medal – at least a zone every hour over a 12 hour period.
• Greed-250 medal – gained when you control 250 zones at the same time.
• Darkest Ninja medal – at least 30 zones between 02:00 am and 03:00 am.

May 2021

• Rank 39 – Advanced Turfer 1,110,000 points.
• Rank 38 – Experienced Turfer 980,000 points.
• Rank 37 – Novice Turfer 860,000 points.
• Greed-200 medal – gained when you control 200 zones at the same time.

April 2021

• Event – Scotland v Skåne Turf Challenge.
• Rank 36 – Light Turfer 750,000 points.
• Trainer medal – take a train station zone daily for 30 days.
• Take-2500 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 2500 takeovers.

March 2021

• Rank 35 – Delicate Zoner 650,000 points.
• Rank 34 – Master Zoner 560,000 points.
• Rank 33 – Advanced Zoner 480,000 points.
• Rank 32 – Experienced 410,000 points.
• Rank 31 – Novice Zoner  350,000 points.
• Rank 30 – Grand Conquistador 300,000 points.
• 500 Unique medal – awarded when you take 500 different zones.
• Greed-150 medal – gained when you control 150 zones at the same time.
• Revisitor medal –  who revisits at least fifty zones within 5 days.
• Crowdy-2 medal – the Turfer that has assisted with two zone takeovers.
• Ghost Minute medal – taking a holy zone between 00:00 and 00:01.
• Eager Weasel medal – taken at least 10 zones within 10 minutes.
• Eager Ferret medal – taken at least 10 zones within 15 minutes.
• Staminator medal – at least 100 zones over a 24 hour period.

February 2021

• Rank 29 – Master Conquistador 263,750 points.
• Rank 28 – Advanced Conquistador 241.250 points.
• Rank 27 – Experienced Conquistador 220,000 points.
• Rank 26 – Novice Conquistador 200,000 points.
• Rank 25 – The Seeker 181,250 points.
• Rank 24 – Master Seeker 158,750 points.
• 250 Unique medal – awarded when you take 250 different zones.
• Dark Ninja medal – at least 3 zones between 2.00 am and 3.00 am.
• Greed-100 medal – gained when you control 100 zones at the same time.
• Orderly III medal – a bridge zone, holy zone and monument zone in 20 minutes.
• Eager Beaver medal – taken at least 10 zones within 20 minutes.
• Diverse medal – taken 250 round unique zones during the same round.
• Take-500 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 500 takeovers.
• Assist-5 medal – the Turfer who has assisted another Turfer five times.
• Crowdy-1 medal – the Turfer that has assisted with a zone takeover.

January 2021

• Rank 23 – Advanced Seeker 141,250 points.
• Rank 22 – Experienced Seeker 126,250 points.
• Rank 21 – Novice Seeker 112,500 points.
• Rank 20 – Super Adventurer 100,000 points.
• Rank 19 – Master Adventurer 86,250 points.
• Rank 18 – Advanced Adventurer 75,000 points.
• Rank 17 – Experienced Adventurer 65,000 points.
• Rank 16 – Novice Adventurer 53,750 points.
• Rank 15 – Great Explorer 43,750 points.
• Bridge Crosser – taken at least 3 bridge zones in 30 minutes.
• Bridge Fanatic – taken at least 3 bridge zones in 20 minutes.
• Bridge Lover – taken at least 3 bridge zones in 10 minutes.
• Stamina medal – at least 50 zones over a 24 hour period.
• Take-250 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 250 takeovers.
• 100 Unique medal – awarded when you take 100 different zones.
• Neutralizer medal – taken at least 20 neutral zones in 5 hours.
• Dawn Ninja medal – at least three zones between 04:00 am and 05:00 am.

December 2020

• Rank 14 – Master Explorer 35,000 points.
• Rank 13 – Advanced Explorer 27,500 points.
• Rank 12 – Experienced Explorer 21,000 points.
• Rank 11 – Novice Explorer 17,500 points.
• Rank 10 – World Traveller 15,000 points.
• Rank 9 – Master Traveller 12,000 points.
• Rank 8 – Advanced Traveller 8,100 points.
• Rank 7 – Experienced Traveller 5,500 points.
• Rank 6 – Novice Traveller 3,500 points.
• Rank 4 – Master Scout 1,200 points.
• Rank 3 – Advanced Scout 700 points.
• Rank 2 – Experienced Scout 420 points.
• Rank 1 – Novice Scout 195 points.
• Rank 0 – Newbie 0 points.
• Take-100 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 100 takeovers.
• Take-50 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 50 takeovers.
• Take-25 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 25 takeovers.
• Take-10 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 10 takeovers.
• Take-5 medal – this medal is distributed as you perform 5 takeovers.
• Greed-75 medal – gained when you control 75 zones at the same time.
• Greed-50 medal – gained when you control 50 zones at the same time.
• Greed-40 medal – gained when you control 40 zones at the same time.
• Greed-20 medal – gained when you control 20 zones at the same time.
• Greed-10 medal – gained when you control 10 zones at the same time.
• Greed-5 medal – gained when you control 5 zones at the same time.
• 50 Unique medal – awarded when you take 50 different zones.
• 15 Unique medal – awarded when you take 15 different zones.
• Eager Squirrel medal – taken at least 10 zones within 30 minutes.

Copyright ©2023 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.

This page lists my TvT or Turfer verses Turfer collection, turfers I’ve taken at least one zone from, also known as turfer uniques, starting 21st December 2020. There are no medals but it can an interesting challenge. Note that turf names may change over time.

Total turfer uniques taken to date – 605

2026
ELOCH

2025
Wyvis, Tha_Dawg, Polar_bearings, Meems, CheshireCat, DepecheMode, MrTrek, MrFarley, MrBrompton, SpyIII, #MNBC, PennyLane, craigb84, CmyDog, Mr_Maverick, HansBersa, amacleod, Rabsco, WeeRabidEwok, ismellsnow, terroirmerroir, Silverbirch, Andytc, Nybegynner, Reacher, SeasideMal, Tirbna, LenaI, Xoff, Harlequin, MrTea, MellowBee, jules22, burbuliigais, Liathach193, MJS05, MerrymaKer, leakyroof, RobHEdi, StobDubh, FattiesFitFine, Simbat, JediRob, Philbers, RoboKop, fanniesuraunt, SwiftSquirrel, SarahMcI, Ianthe13, Tarleton, Urban-Cowboy, ChewieBrown, Kippers, Shmoo, IRD, hillrep, TheUnknown, Schotte, dav.mur, T’square, drspin, Svepet, skautomatik, Király, Maggis43, BosseW, Munin, TriggerHappy, Blackbird, Movemania, Medicus, Blockbusterz, stefanx46, mrAce, northstar, Kygni, JonasfromHell, rabbit_rail, perkeles.fru, PPHP4, LapWingz, MaXi, ramblerboy, Annie9jobs, DrWes, Stillyrunners, busesarebest, TantCykel, clofen, ami68, JJ67, Nemesus, greenlander, Gölin, CattisB, peterspirea, HLN, Promethus, Svensings, sumo, grock, Turfmamma, Heureka, ellgesr, lönnen, Podde, mrcoolwhat, Moliso, BunnaB, Tempest, Pumac, Mani, Mr_Gixxer, Ribston, BonneLouise, MrJokerit, CuriousCrow, recycling, cr419b, codavex, TheSnail, CptShazbat, Esjbe, JarvisB, Apalos, Fashven, Peragorn, planetanna, HAL9000, toemas, EdinAust, EastCoast13, Dannyk60, Pokeman, 5hak3y, Jackieg, Rhapsodylegend, Harey, skinnysawman, SaraExplore, ScottishBoy12, stripes, ChillBurn, harubaru, Cambla, aumlette, Greensward, crazygoat, sparke, TigerN7, Fenz, Fergie, AaronTheArrow, MozzaR, Benedict.fun, candlestickmkr, KLARUNIA, ViolaPlayer, Dazzler, Bigguy48, SlipperyShanny, Alcibiades, sjami44, Boats2, Gazon, tunahunter, MGS-SfL, Alfordlass, Nachoz, ohshoot!, VicentESOC, 77, Hannah.R, Tortoise33, Duality, Stevo280197, Concrete!, Addybads, MightyQ, IronSparrow, EMuir125, Planeteer.

2024
dustmallow, Corbielinn, zoomer, Jak_Deth, KLT, Mocochinchi, SarahApple, granitemike, spacemanspif3, biff83, Gordonspocky55, bikestuff, dubby, sskaff, TheOGE, MyZone2007, Bear99, forestgrump, tweedweir, geoffh, Orde02, LilywhiteT, ravinous, TamSham, mrsmous, Emjbee, AliceKnight, TurfedOot, sparky63, EdinKTB135, teacup2.0, Walking4steps, BroonDandTina, Placid_Casual, XIII, Lightinkorean, mikep, HissingSid, Brows, Smurfn, luneside, wfb59, Pootle, KellysHero, MichTorr, Kampff, peculiarbear, skellum, peda, SushiCat, srocmikej, Thearlaich, ForthPirate, Haliax, Ecosse_QoS, lilsismika, SlainteJimmy, Dangerouslizzy, RoloAdventure, EatSleepTurf, Trainz, Shoosh, EdMedic23, Pigbot, fitz, MrHybris, Ita, macspiggles, jcop, Biddies, deej, Bernie27, Pinepod, otyr, Baggisman, ZwiftTurfer, havering, AJHB, DavidRSROC, MiriamSROC, TurfanatorSROC, FlamingoPars, EdiExp, Artificial, shanks’s-pony, Ramble, bobvic67, わかランナー, BuckBeak, TheBish, enhjuling, Learose, Jackdaw85, MaggieT, rubyroo, luro, Lauraloll, OldNewcomer, Cialar, cloisters, BirgittaS, Pathlete, cake?, JIL, HappyF, 0beroff, Gusi, AnnSch, Proscoe, Lib.dib, MrPeO, LaRoo, Redsnake, Scorpio73, Qm, whit1001, WarrenRabbit, Talla1, NewTownIsBlue, mikey44, TheDude71, MTBNoob, horseyj, cyclecamping, allinug, MarkusAke, meleys, lakespilgrim, Skylarker, bookish.jogger, Siodach, BigBoomer, Danemark, RNS, dannyb91020, LanndenFox, stretchMTB, allycatz, McFlyAway, jimmysalad, teenage-twat, teep, catsfather, CollieB, MrBelpit, RabdeBruce, gob5hite, sailajd, Marrob, GooseEater, EvilPegg, Topsyturfy, FeGran, 1daninscotland, kcal, lenlen360, HedwigOwl, Trumpetdude, MitchRapp, Goygoy, regalia, welchie, Toot, JamRo, RedDoor, STAGStevie, Bellerina12, North_Wing, ciney, ambrose, BarneyBoo, RosyPosy, sur-G, ESOC_Rocks, JiminyCrikit, Mathsboy, MagicShrew, DianaVilliers, mx5man, Skylark, barbsie, GMturf, lillolil, RE101, rnics.

2023
taysidefrog, ScubaPuffin, mustang1234, NornIronSQ, Kenica, TheTortoise, bob.bbd, Tuuunes!, Spotoc, WhatBog?, magnusn, Stellamarita, ScottyDog, cmdopenguin7, KingdomReiver, bobsuruncle, Luthien, corsicana, ChemiesR, turfingthrough, HappyHaggis, BaldiePete, MrPugsley, Hib71, AndyP, spads, chrisfl, thisisewan, Pest, Arnsturf#, Kronvrak, Tobythedog, LindaGC, Gman93, turbosmith, CoolEsocAds, slowasstop, Aodhan, MoMac, stc89, richard13, SparkyMarky, chemiesf, Borelord, barking, Boneshaker, Rummbaabaa.

2022
steventon_gang, JammyDognut, Pekijala, AROS-KS, NorthofIapetus, Strac, DaHunter, Dangermous, BawZoneFire, 12sixC, Alsterspross, fjtweedie, neillyposse, Coaster, Fuzilier52, L712, OchilWomble, AndyMac, Lindhardt, Leopard99, BraidAl, Veld, Blockhead, Flangela, Ferry, Slaw, RebelRebel, RebEyy12, Saur, SHW_Goodbell, Arkki, Caminante, jeffhodg, ZulaTheAlien:), Christmas2, godders, Greenkeeper, Rossco, andypatqos, saintchris13, pinkgirl, HappyHibby, steddie4life, MANOSTEEL, sheenbeen, MuttsCycles, BeccyOz, NancyDrew, ELORoss.

2021
ESOCHi, van_andermaet, TimmyM, callumb, ChoccyMuffin, ESOCKisaKat, KoveshEzorim, Pyramid, Cremebrulee, EsocNora, Tekuteku, gaelgirl, Shoegazer, Orinoko, Psychygranma, FVO-Q, K.N.L., katlesoc, SeaTurtle, Fezjivebunny, Ephemeral, sparkleblue, ktmcnl, pPilot, stoker, Furryback, elojw, carrybagman, TheMockbeggar, ELO_PY, Drylaw13, GopherTea60, Buk13y, DoodleDad, Wintergreen, SIman, JaxJaunts, MJCFife, greasedweasel, SeaCat, ELOG, Pyewacket, applepip, Quidkid, LangTouner, M&M’s, Lustysue, BlazedL0ve, PancakeMike, elkaytoo, edgygrl, MsJ, Suilven, MrBourbon, elpth, edinfolks, SnickerDoodle, TheToad, bleschu, JingsCrivens, chesterton, DrG, squirrelnutkin, Tandem, FiFVO, saylamoon, RosieBode, TopFlat, Knoydart, PoshWhippet, kjtindall, bodby, Dowasaurus, FeTaTo, ESOCJanet, noxidc, CardiffSoulCru, Jarvmobile, gavtav, willrun4cake, snowpilot, soosoo, stuperman, TTVmruseeks, BigGav, Ramesses, Furseal, CabinFeather, Baloo!, ELOsheila, DNostrebor, SpookyWood-y, HigsyWigsy, Artful, Heretofore, Rocky&Fed, Eggie_boi, FenderJazz, CSL, Beanjo, octo, Porridge68, ElsieSpanner, AlphaDonkey02, ccmartin:), DaffyDuck, grm3xy, ET, bythesea, Jenh, TSTopper, F1patrick, bollockwort, Vikingb, SazlDazl, NuclearPasta, ArthurDaley483, Edinburger, daffodil, Letsdoit, QuirkESOCs, TheLovely, TheInquisitor, Finreir, emack, Cruachan, ESOCWalter, joly.

2020
Rossewan, ESOC-HR, ESOCJeneral, Teviot, llama176, zegalia, Aibo, Hodgejrjr, Hodge, MarkkuEsoc, Pedro_delboy, PognHog, féarglas,

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