Category: Branch Practice

On Wednesday 1st June Middleton Stoney hosted the June branch practice. In the past this has been a lovely practice with a warm welcome and a lovely summers evening. The welcome for 15 ringers from around the branch was as warm as ever but for the first time in 5 years it was a damp summers evening.

We started with plain hunt on 5 for a couple of bands and then rang call changes. Next we rang plain courses of Plain Bob Doubles without any problems. More plain hunt on 5 and then on 6 was followed by call changes and plain courses of Grandsire Doubles ably led by Jeremy whilst I investigated the church and organ! More plain courses of Grandsire followed then call changes and a final touch of Grandsire Doubles before ringing down.

Our next practice is call changes and plain hunt (and possibly a little more?) at Kirtlington on Monday 13th – a chance for branch folks to meet many members of the newly formed band. I look forward to seeing you there 😀

Anthony Cole

On Wed 4th May (Star Wars day!) 12 ringers (1 local, 1 Launton, 1 Biceter, 2 Kirtlington and 7 from Stratton Audley) headed for Piddington and the May branch practice.

The locals had been planning to cancel their own practice due to illness, but the bells were rung up ready for us when we arrived. We started with plain hunt on 4 before the band from Stratton Audley descended en-mass – nice to see them all (though I admit we didn’t hear them come into the church – bells being as loud as they are).

We rang several lots of call changes to get folks used to the bells and then started on plain hunt on 5. That went pretty well so we started on plain courses of Grandsire Doubles and by the end of the evening 3 of the Stratton Audley ringers had rung the treble to Grandsire Doubles for the first time .. excellent progress 😀

Ringing down.. well .. not going to mention that… whoops …just did!

Next practice is the special practice at Bicester on Mon 16th May – suggested methods are Little Bob Minor and Grandsire Triples – we will (as always) ring other things too so please do support that event and if you fancy having a go at plain hunt on 7 (or perhaps even a plain course of Grandsire Triples) then we would love to give you the opportunity.

Anthony Cole

On Wednesday 6th April 16 ringers (8 locals and 8 members from around the branch) attended the branch practice at Stratton Audley – a spectacular turnout compared to previous practices at Stratton Audley!

After ringing up (mixed successes and help for one of the ringers) we rang call changes, Grandsire Doubles (plain courses), plain hunt on 5 and rounds for the most recent local recruit. This pattern repeated itself throughout the evening with various ringers showing how easy it is to get caught out by slightly less easy to ring bells (springy ropes being the main issue).

We ended the evening with a 120 of Grandsire Doubles which, whilst approached with some trepidation by the branch secretary, was not only successful, but rather well struck, as if to prove that it could be done.

As a branch we are fairly well spoiled by our very easily handling bells, but bells such as Stratton Audley should be approached as a challenge to be mastered! The locals manage well and with practice anyone can master them and improve their handling which sets them up well for visiting other towers where the bells might not always be as easy to ring as our towers.

The next branch events is the outing on Sat 23rd April to Herefordshire. The (small) coach is full and I am certainly looking forward to it – full tower details for those wishing to attend but not on the coach will be posted shortly.

Anthony Cole

On Wednesday 2nd March 20 ringers (including some new recruits from Kirtlington and Stratton Audley) headed to Bletchingdon for the Kirtlington branch practice… (and yes I did type that right – Kirtlington’s ringing chamber floor is being repaired so the branch practice had to move venues).

We started off with a number of goes at rounds and call changes to ensure everyone had a go (and for the lesser experienced they got used to the bells which were lighter and easier going than they were used to). Then we rang some plain courses of Grandsire Doubles for those trying to learn that.

Back to rounds and call changes (more confidently this time – great to see really apparent progress in such a short space of time) before attempting plain hunt on 5 for a couple of the Stratton Audley recruits. We then rang more rounds & call changes before some plain courses of Plain Bob Doubles. After more round and call changes, and more plain hunt we finished (by way of a thank you to the willing helpers who stood behind giving tips and advice much of the evening) with a touch of Plain Bob Minor and a good ring down (ending in Queens which wasn’t something that had been attempted by a couple of the band before, but it worked so well that we received applause for our efforts).

The next branch event is (again) at Bletchingdon – two weeks time we have a special practice focusing on Plain Bob Doubles and Grandsire Doubles (but we’ll also ring whatever those that attend are working on) so do come along if you are able.

Anthony Cole

On Tues 2nd Feb Islip hosted the February branch practice. 20 people (19 ringers and 1 vicar) attended the practice.. most folk at a branch practice for a while… a delight to see 😀

We started off with rounds on 6 and then on 8, followed by call changes on 6. Becky then had a go at the treble to Grandsire Doubles which was followed by more rounds for Chandon and call changes on 8.

We had another go at Grandsire Doubles (with Becky on the treble again) followed by plain courses of Plain Bob Doubles. Next we did a touch of Grandsire Doubles with Anne on a working bell (a 60 with only bobs, twice through), which also gave Rachel a chance to look at what hunting the treble is all about. Then Rachel had a go at plain hunt on 5 from the treble and seemed to get the idea fairly quickly – well done Rachel! We rang a touch of Plain Bob Doubles and a plain course of Stedman Doubles to finish before ringing down 8 in peal (with applause at the end so it was a decent down :D).

During the evening Laura had a few handling practices too.

As is custom in Islip we then headed for the pub for refreshments and a chance for me to have a quick pre-AGM chat with the VP and Secretary.

Our next event is the Branch AGM at Caversfield on Sat 20th Feb – 10:30am start with ringing and service, followed by the meeting and a pub lunch. It would be nice to see at least one representative from each tower especially as attendance in recent years has been sadly quite low. Full details are on the Branch AGM page.

Anthony Cole

On Monday 4th January (even before the local schools went back) 9 branch members attended the first branch practice of the year at Bicester.

The latest edition of Odd Bob and a list of 2016 branch practices was handed out to the towers present (not all packs having been prepared ahead of the practice.. much to Jeremy’s chagrin). With 6 ringers present before 7:40pm (very encouraging!) we started by ringing up the back 6 (knowing that a few extra ringers were due to come so 8 was a possibility!). We rang  a touch of Plain Bob Doubles with Hannah attempting the bobs.. some coaxing from the conductor was required, but we got through it and talked about it afterwards ahead of another attempt to be made later.

Someone suggested they hadn’t rung Stedman Doubles for ages.. well.. a quick look around the room suggested we had a (out of practice) band that could ring it so whilst that was looked up we rang up the front 4 and then rang some plain courses of Grandsire Doubles. After some “negotiating” as to who would ring which bell we attempted Stedman.. first attempt didn’t work, but second attempt got through to the end and the third attempt was much better. Fay then mentioned that “in years gone by” we rang Stedman Triples at Bicester practices.. so there is a challenge for the branch folk this year.. to ring a course of Stedman Triples before 2016 ends! Watch this space as they say.

Next we rang some (shaky at first) plain hunt on 7 and then plain hunt on 8, both of which improved the more courses we did.

Another touch of Plain Bob Doubles for Hannah (still with a little guidance) was followed by more plain courses of Grandsire Doubles. For our finale we rang one course of Plain Bob Minor as requested by Ian, before ringing down the back 8 in peal… not too badly (not going to mention the “up”).

A good start to 2016 and a challenge to focus our minds in the coming months! Next event is the special practice at Islip on Tues 19th Jan – Plain Bob Minor and Winchendon Place Doubles (St Simons with places everywhere instead of all the dodges!) – see Winchendon Place for the line!

Anthony Cole

On Wednesday 2nd December 7 ringers (mostly from Charlton on Otmoor) banded together for the last branch practice of 2015 at Charlton on Otmoor.

After a rather rough ring up in peal we rang call changes for Rachel (well done!) – afterwards we had a discussion on how to work out which bell to follow if you the bells below you swap and if you head down.

Next we rang plain courses of Grandsire Doubles and then (after a break and chat) some more Grandsire Doubles with Rachel on the treble (and Willy beside).. sadly that didn’t go too well, but then Rachel had only covered to plain hunt before! We swapped around and Rachel stood beside Willy whilst we rang again, talking her through it though I suspect quite a bit went over her head (session with the whiteboard required soon methinks). Rachel left for her (kept quiet until that point) birthday party! We rang plain courses of Plain Bob Doubles to finish and then after a reasonable ring down headed for the pub across the road (like you do at Charlton!)

Last event of the year is on a couple of weeks – Monday 14th Dec at Bicester.. with mince pies and sausage rolls if I get my act together in time! See lots of you there soon hopefully.

Anthony Cole

On Wednesday 4th Nov 18 ringers descended on Bletchingdon for the November branch practice.

After ringing up (best glossed over) we rang 3 lots of call changes for the two new learners from Kirtlington and one from Yarnton before moving on to plain courses of Grandsire Doubles. After more call changes we changed to plain courses of Plain Bob Doubles.  More call changes and then we finished with a touch of Grandsire Doubles (bobs only) with Anne on an affected bell (following being taught it on the Steeple Aston course) and she did fine earning herself some well deserved applause from those watching.

The evening saw big improvements from the Kirtlington learners and progress from others too and Willie said it was the best branch practice of the year.

The next branch event is the special practice at Bicester on Monday 16th Nov – special methods being St Simon’s and St Martin’s Doubles and maybe Plain Bob Triples if we’re lucky. Hopefully see lots of ringers coming to admire our new carpet!

Anthony Cole

On Monday 5th October 9 ringers from 4 branch towers banded together for the branch practice at Bicester.

After ringing up (hmm.. not our best) we rang plain courses of Grandsire Doubles, followed by ringing up the back bells and trying some plain hunt on 7 – new for some! With a bit of coaxing we go through it so well done Jean.

We rang a touch of Grandsire Doubles with Jeremy calling to get in some practice before I get him to call a quarter peal… shame it fired out about 90 changes through. We rang more plain hunt on 7 and then a good touch of Plain Bob Minor. We rang more Grandsire Doubles before ringing down which was pretty good. Hopefully we’ll have our new carpet before you all next visit!

The next branch event is the special practice at Islip on Tues 20th Oct – Reverse Canterbury Doubles (Plain Bob Doubles with places instead of dodges) and Plain Bob Minor. See you all there!

Anthony Cole

Well it makes for a great headline anyway! On Friday 3rd July Caversfield hosted its first branch practice for many years and with a number of branch folk not having rung there it proved a good draw, with 13 branch members (from 6 towers), 1 learner, and 2 hangers on attending.

Having rung up in peal we rang plain courses of Grandsire Doubles (well done Sam on the treble), followed by some rounds for Claire. More plain courses of Grandsire Doubles followed (well done Amanda – first time ever inside, and hardly any prompting required – excellent:D ). We then had a short touch of Grandsire Doubles (almost there with the observation bell Anne!) with Simon watching. Some call changes were next followed by another touch of Grandsire Doubles (first Anne observation, then Simon – no mistakes Simon so singles next time!). More rounds for Claire – handling improving so well done. We then had a touch of Plain Bob Doubles before it was time to ring down.

A really useful practice for the Caversfield band – exactly what a branch practice is for – several firsts (that we cannot manage on our own yet, but having done it once, we can now start working on it ourselves) so thank you to all that attended.

The next branch event is the ringing up and down course on Saturday. Please take a look at the course notes beforehand if you are attending – see you in Bicester at 2pm .

The next practice is the special practice at Islip on Tues 21st July – Grandsire Doubles and Kent TB Minor if we get enough.. plus other things of course!

Please also start practising for the Branch Striking Competition – it is rapidly approaching – Sat 5th Sept at Islip (with BBQ)… reminds me I need to find a judge….