Twenty five people, including ringers and non-ringers attended this year’s striking competition, hosted by Kathryn and the Islip ringers at Islip, within easy earshot of the tower. It was good to see so many current and former ringers as well as friends of the branch there.
While only two towers – Ludgershall and Islip – could bring teams composed of their own ringers, in the end five separate teams were mustered, including a “harlequin” team, a ladies’ and a gentlemen’s team.
First up were Islip, who after their one minute of rounds rang 120 changes of call changes. They scored a total of 60 points.
Next to ring were Ludgershall, last year’s winners, who rang a touch of Plain Bob Doubles for their piece, scoring 41 Points.
The Harlequin scratch team rang a touch of Plain Bob Doubles, scoring 73 points.
The ladies’ team, which included three branch officers did somewhat better, ringing three plain courses of Grandsire Doubles, scoring 64 points.
Finally, the gentlemen’s team, led by Richard and also comprising a number of Branch officers, rang a touch of Plain bob Doubles, scoring 28 points and winning the trophy.
It is interesting to note that the formation of ladies’ and gentlemen’s teams seemed to bring out a previously undetected amount of competitive, although friendly, spirit amongst some of the participants.
During and after the competition there was a fine selection of barbecued food, salads, puddings and drinks on offer in Kathryn’s garden. A big thank you to Fifi for “manning” the barbecue.
Thanks should also be made to Willie, our president, for timekeeping in the tower and of course to Philip Curtis, who expertly judged the teams’ efforts.
Detailed results are included below.
Team E (Gentlemen) 8 + 20 = 28
Team B (Ludgershall) 8 + 33 = 41
Team A (Islip) 13 + 47 = 60
Team D (Ladies) 14 + 50 = 64
Team C (Harlequin) 13 +60 = 73
Key: First number is for the rounds and 2nd number for everything after.