We’re excited to welcome Sydney who has started to learn our ancient and traditional skill of bell ringing.
Sydney is quite small at the moment (she’ll grow!) so most of her learning for now is on our small “Wombel” simulator but she is already controlling that very satisfactorily. Once comfortable with that, she’ll graduate to one of our smaller “big bells”.
If you fancy learning this historic art, come along on a Thursday evening and suss us out.
Back in 2016, the small band of ringers decided to leave. Chris alone was left and, with a lot of help, particularly from Jane and David, a new team was recruited and taught. We hoped that the fact that we (nearly) began on April Fool’s Day wasn’t a harbinger of doom!
Nine years later, and the band is still ringing, still learning, still growing. Some ringers have come and gone, but a core of people, young and old have grown to a state where it’s not only possible for Chris to hang up his Captain’s Hat – but it is important for the growth of the band that he does so.
At this year’s AGM, Gill Berry was elected Tower Captain and Ed Askew has taken on the role of Ringing Master, while Theresa Clark continues as Tower Secretary. Chris isn’t disappearing into the sunset – and will continue to act as Treasurer as well as helping with some of the teaching.
It’s exciting to be entering a new era for the Kildwick Ringers!
St Andrew’s Church is closed throughout July and August while the roof is repaired. There will be no ringing!
In addition, if you tried ringing just now, you would hear little apart from the clatter of the ropes because the bells have no clappers – they are on their way to the bellhanger for refurbishment.
(Fun Fact: All together, the eight clappers weigh almost exactly the same as I do – just under 100kg.)
During July and August, the Kildwick band are delighted and grateful that the people of St Andrew’s, Keighley have welcomed us – so come along at 7:30pm.
(If you’ve not been before, be sure to notice the amazing peal boards, some carved in stone!)
This Thursday (9th May) is Ascension Day and there is a service in church.
There will, therefore, be no practice that night
(The Parish Annual Meeting is on Thursday 23rd. Depending on just who is available, it is possible we’ll need to cancel the practice that day)
From 1st July, the church will be closed for two months for roof repairs. There will be no ringing until the beginning of September
The Kildwick Ringers’ website has moved from one server to another. I hope that no one will really notice the difference – but my bank balance will benefit from the lower costs!
Now to sort out the emails…
As the church is holding an All Souls Day service this evening, there will be NO PRACTICE tonight.
From 5th October, we will be holding our practices from 7:00-8:30pm instead of
half an hour later. It seemed to work well tonight, so that will continue for now.
But…
The ringers are all going to a party next Thursday, so there will be no practice on 12th October. Sorry!
The bells will ring on the morning of Saturday 14th when we are pleased to host members of the Yorkshire Association Training Course for one of their practical sessions.
Stays are the one part of a bell that are designed to break! They are there to rest the bell when it is perched upside down and ready to ring – but they mustn’t be so strong that they would let anything more expensive break if the ringer pulls too hard.
They do say that, if a learner breaks a stay, it is the teacher/supervisor’s fault. Last night, a stay was broken. It was a learner. I was the teacher. But I want to ditch that word, “fault”. Stays are designed to break. Last night, it all worked exactly as designed and, though it is a right pain to have to go out, make a new one and refit it (especially in today’s weather!), that is how the system should work.
Bad luck, ****** (name suppressed to avoid shame!) – but that’s what happens. You’ve learned something new!
We’ve had some quite busy days recently.
For the Western Branch Quarter Peal Day, two of our ringers took part in a significant performance when 14 year-old George very ably conducted his first quarter peal. It was a relatively simple composition of Plain Bob Doubles (… but then all compositions of Bob Doubles are relatively simple!) but he called it confidently and correctly. No one could ask for more!
We heard that morning that he has been chosen to call the changes for the Tykes entry into the Ringing World National Youth Contest that is to be held in York in early July.
At the beginning end of the scale, we have a number of new learners, just getting to grips with all of these flying ropes. We have big hopes of good things to come.
When a number of folk are missing, it often makes for a rather “thin” practice.
On Thusday, there were just five of us – but that meant we could do some quite heavy-duty touches of Bob Doubles for George.
A bit awkward, with no cover bell, but that was good practice in itself. By the end of an evening of quite hard work, George was ringing touches “unaffected” as well as one where he made the bob. And he was ringing them confidently! Just the running in and out to do now!
Not only that, but there was some pretty impressive treble-ringing too.
