SCHHA Ploughing Championships - 1999

Robert Sampson's eight horse 'hitch' - ploughing

The Southern Counties Heavy Horses Association enjoyed a tremendously successful day for the 28th annual 'Great All England Horse Ploughing Championships' on Sunday 17th October 1999. Although there was a chill to the air, the sun shone in cloudless skies all day and such queues formed at the gates in the morning that an alternative entrance had to be hastily opened up as traffic was tailing back to the main Alton road.

An estimated 3,000 people were attracted to the venue (in addition to the Society's own members) which was held at Manor Farm, West Worldham by courtesy of Mr and Mrs Thomas Brock. The enthusiastic supporters of this event were rewarded with a wonderful spectacle of many teams of horses ploughing a vast field set in the rolling Hampshire countryside, plus well-contested classes of heavy horses in the show ring.

Sharon Macey - the youngest competitor in the ploughing classes

Competition was of the highest standard and it was very gratifying that some contestants had travelled from as far afield as Penzance, Durham and East Anglia, confirming the high esteem in which this event is held by dedicated horsemen all over the country. In fact, it is largely thanks to the efforts of the SCHHA that standards have remained so high and they introduced a set of rules that were drawn up by the top ploughmen of their day (in the early 1970s). Their main aim was to protect and preserve the tradition and time-honoured methods of ploughing which had all but disappeared when farmers turned to mechanisation after the Second World War. Fortunately there has been something of a revival of interest in using horses on the land again, although there is certainly no cause for complacency: much will depend upon generating interest among young people who must be encouraged to discover for themselves the joy of acquiring the skills required. Such must be the case with Sharon Macey from Kent who, at just 19 years of age, proved a winner, taking the Novice Ploughman Class. Another successful lady was Sue Darling who took the Single Horse Class.

This year the oldest competitor was Jack House, a Wiltshire man, who finished in second place in the Long Turn Furrow class with his horses Captain and Punch. Jack has competed every year since the Championships began. Sadly, one familiar face was missing - that of Tom Sampson who had also attended these Championships for years. He was a remarkable figure with a wealth of experience in handling heavy horses, but sadly he was too unwell to attend the Championships and passed away shortly afterwards. (We will be paying tribute to Tom in a future issue.)

These beautifully decorated horses wait patiently to commence ploughing......

One of the most spectacular sights of the day was, as usual, Robert Sampson's team of Percherons, an eight horse hitch this year but we understand that the team will be even larger next year as he is promising to bring a 12 horse team! It is a mystery to me how the team is turned so neatly, quickly and efficiently at the completion of each furrow - certainly it would suggest that Robert's handling skills are above average. Robert's was the winning team in the Two Furrow and Ride-on Plough Class from Norfolk man Joe Goderidge and his team of five Shires.

I have suggested in the past that ploughing matches are the perfect antidote to stress (for the spectators at least …). Life simply progresses at a different pace from that more usual in our frenetic world. It is easy to become totally absorbed as ploughmen set off to turn a new furrow, often stopping to make adjustment to their equipment, their horses standing patiently to command, gently moving off when required. It is rare, these days, to witness this level of understanding and communication between man and animal, working in total harmony. This, without doubt, is one of the great attractions from a spectator's point of view, allied to the timeless appeal of watching these great animals so willingly perform the tasks that have been required of them for centuries amid the peaceful setting of the countryside.

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