The Ancient
Society of
College
Youths
Est. 1637

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THE MASTER'S CHALLENGE

Saturday 20th May, 2006 in the City of Bristol

The Master set up 4 challenges:

The 12 bell challenge - 4 leads of maximus – (anything you want to ring) or a course and a half of cinques, 192 changes of which were be judged. This was judged by John Warboys.

6 bell challenge - 15 minutes minimum ringing - to be judged from first to last "bong". Teams rang up, rang 60 on 3rds and rang down again. This was marked entirely on artistic impression, provided the call change pattern was properly executed. This was judged by David House.

8 bell challenge - each band was presented with sufficient copies of the place notation, grid and blue line for a DIFFERENT treble-dodging symmetrical major method as they entered the ringing chamber. Each band had 25 minutes in order to ring a plain course of the given method. The challenge was marked according to the excellence of execution but additional bonus points will be available for teams that successfully complete their piece more quickly than other teams. This was judged by David Dearnley.

A Quiz - was collated by and marked by The Librarian, Chris Ridley.

Six teams rose to these challenges and rang as follows:

TEACHERS PETS
(Captain: Dinah Reed)
12 bell 8 bell 6 bell
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Dinah E Reed
Mark R Eccleston
John Hill
Lester Yeo
Andrew P Digby
Robert C Hawtree
Terry J C Streeter
Mark A Humphreys
Richard I Allton
David I Bassford
Robert C Kippin (C)
Andrew J Mitchell
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
D Annabel Preston
David Matthews
Mark R Eccleston
Stuart Heath
Mark A Humphreys
Terry J C Streeter
Richard I Allton (C)
Robert C Kippin
Method: 36x56.14.58x12.36x14x58x36x18
lh 18
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
John Hill
Lester Yeo (C)
Andrew P Digby
Stuart Heath
Richard I Allton
David Matthews
Method: Bristol S Maximus
EASTERN PROMISE
(Captain: David Pipe)
12 bell 8 bell 6 bell
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Cecilia E C Pipe
Tessa K Beadman
Simon P Griffiths
Rosemary H K Brooke
Leigh D G Simpson
Richard A Smith
Richard J Munnings
Nigel J Newton
David E Rothera
Oliver R Hall
Philip J Earis
David J Pipe (C)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Tessa K Beadman
Rosemary H K Brooke
David J Pipe (C)
Nigel J Newton
Leigh D G Simpson
Richard J Munnings
Philip J Earis
Oliver R Hall
Method: x38x18x12.58.36x34x18x1456x58
lh 12
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
David J Pipe (C)
Simon P Griffiths
David E Rothera
Oliver R Hall
Philip J Earis
Richard A Smith
Method:
LINFORD BUILDERS
(Captain: Simon Linford)
12 bell 8 bell 6 bell
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Simon J L Linford
Christopher J Poole (C)
Bernard H Taylor
Christine Broadley
Katherine Sloman
Edd Colliss
Matthew Jones
Henry D Coggill
James Clatworthy
Alan Reading
Mark A Bells
Philip R Goodyer
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
James Clatworthy
Mark A Bell
Christopher Woodcock
Matthew Jones
Edd Colliss
Alan Reading
Bernard H Taylor
Simon J L Linford (C)
Method:
x56x1456x12.58.36x14x38x16x58
lh 18
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Bernard H Taylor (C)
Christine Broadley
Christopher Woodcock
Henry D Coggill
Christopher J Poole
Edd Colliss
Method: Stedman Cinques
WILBY'S WONDERFUL RINGERS
(Captain: Michael Wilby)
12 bell 8 bell 6 bell
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Victoria J M Halliwell
Thomas W Griffiths
Susan E Marshall
James A Forster
Barbara Foster
Graham Nabb
Tim R Palmer
John M Thurman
Anthony M Daw
Michael P A Wilby (C)
Andrew W R Wilby
Christopher J Pickford
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Barbara Foster
Victoria J M Halliwell
Susan E Marshall
Tim R Palmer
Anthony M Daw
John M Thurman
Thomas W Griffiths
Michael P A Wilby (C)
Method: x34x18x12.58.36x14x18x1456x38
lh 18
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Christopher J Pickford (C)
Graham Nabb
James A Forster
Anthony M Daw
John M Thurman
Andrew W R Wilby
Method: Stedman Cinques
PATERNOSTER SQUARES
(Captain: Andrew Graham)
12 bell 8 bell 6 bell
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Edward Hughes-D'Aeth
Joanna M Ainsworth
Rebecca Sugden
Charles W G Herriott
Dickon R Love
John P W Taylor
Martin J Cansdale
Andrew J Graham (C)
David J Baverstock
Eleanor J Linford
Nigel J Bailey
Paul N Mounsey
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Rebecca Sugden
Eleanor J Linford
David J Baverstock
John P W Taylor
Martin J Cansdale
Paul N Mounsey
Andrew J Graham (C)
Nigel J Bailey
Method: x38x14.58x12.38x34x38x14x78
lh 12
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
David J Baverstock (C)
Cathy Hughes-D'Aeth
Joanna M Ainsworh
Edward Hughes-D'Aeth
Dickon R Love
Eleanor J Linford
Method: Spliced Cambridge, Ariel, Bristol, Phobos S Maximus
FINEST UNIVERSAL CAMPANOLOGISTS KNOWN IN TOWN
(Captain: Roy LeMarechal)
12 bell 8 bell 6 bell
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Hugh Routh
Benjamin Carey
Ian Carey
Tony Smith
Graham Wright
John Colliss
Rhiannon Matthews
Barry Pointer
Roy LeMarechal (C)
David Weir
Matthew Higby
Martin Hough
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Hugh Routh
Rhiannon Matthews
Roy LeMarechal (C)
Tony Smith
John Colliss
David Weir
Benjamin Carey
Ian Carey
Method: 38x38.14x58x16x14x58x34x18
lh 12
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Roy LeMarechal (C)
John Colliss
Graham Wright
Barry Pointer
Benjamin Carey
Martin Hough
Method: Cambridge S Maximus

12 bell Results

Position Team Striking Score
(out of 20)
Complexity Score
(out of 10)
Total
1st Paternoster Squares 15 8 23
2nd Eastern Promise 13 9 22
3rd Wilby's Wonderful Ringers 17 4 21
4th Teachers Pets 14 6 20
5th Linford Builders 15 4 19
6th Finest Universal Campanologists KIT 12 5 17

8 bell Results

Position Team Score
1st Wilby's Wonderful Ringers 26
2nd Eastern Promise 25
3rd Paternoster Squares 24
4th Linford Builders 22
=5th Finest Universal Campanologists KIT 16
=5th Teachers Pets 16

6 bell Results

Position Team Raise Changes Lower Total
=1st Paternoster Squares 7 8 8 23
=1st Wilby's Wonderful Ringers 7 8 8 23
3rd Linford Builders 8 7 6 21
4th Finest Universal Campanologists KIT 6 7 7 20
=5th Eastern Promise 5 7 7 19
=5th Teachers Pets 6 6 7 19

Quiz

Position Team Score
1st Paternoster Squares 10
2nd Linford Builders 9
=3rd Teachers Pets 8
=3rd Wilby's Wonderful Ringers 8
5th Eastern Promise 5
6th Finest Universal Campanologists KIT 1

TOTAL SCORES

Position Team Score
1st Paternoster Squares 80
2nd Wilby's Wonderful Ringers 78
=3rd Eastern Promise 71
=3rd Linford Builders 71
5th Teachers Pets 63
6th Finest Universal Campanologists KIT 53

Photographs
(with thanks to Roy LeMarechal who provided some of them)

A welcome from Ian Hill. The Master sets out the challenges. A welcome from the Rector.
The Paternoster Squares working on the quiz.
Chris Pickford studies the quiz. A different sort of quiz - on the trivia machine.
St Stephen's (12 bells) The Cathedral (8 bells) Lord Mayor's Chapel (6)
Jim Clatworthy - is that a quiz answer received? Whilst the members competed,
the Master went shopping.
The Linford Builders glowing in the Lord Mayor's chapel. The 12 bell results from John Warboys.
The 6 bell results from
David House.
The quiz results from
Chris Ridley.
The 8 bell results from
blime Dearnley.
Andrew Graham, captain of the Paternoster Squares, holds up his silver medal.
Photo Roy LeMarechal Photo Roy LeMarechal
The Master with Derek Carr. The Paternoster Squares working on the quiz.
Photo Roy LeMarechal Photo Roy LeMarechal
Photo Roy LeMarechal Photo Roy LeMarechal
The Finest Universal Campanologists Known In Town (happily not living up to their name) One sheepish looking team captain, Roy LeMarechal.

 

Report that appeared in the Ringing World.

The ASCY Master issued four challenges to members of the Society. Six teams of ringers agreed to meet these challenges and met in the City of Bristol on Saturday, 20th May to battle them out. The teams met at a coffee reception at St Stephen’s church where the Society was welcomed by Ian Hill and the new Rector, and the Master gave out the instructions. The six teams came from all over the country, each bearing their own name and identity. Notable amongst them was Simon Linford’s team, the Linford Builders, each of whom wore fluorescent yellow jackets with their team name on it.

Rather than conducting an ordinary striking competition, the Master wanted to assess a number of different skills in ringing.

The first challenge was a 12 bell challenge where the teams had to ring 192 changes of maximus or cinques on the bells of St Stephen’s. Judged by John Warboys, marks were not only awarded for excellence in striking, they were given for the complexity of the method(s) chosen. The best striking was achieved by Wilby’s Wonderful Ringers during their course of Stedman Cinques. However the Spliced S Maximus from the Paternoster Squares and Eastern Promise meant both overtook Michael Wilby’s team, with the Paternosters coming out on top.

The second challenge was on 8 bells and held at the cathedral. On entering the ringing chamber, each team was given a different treble-dodging symmetrical major method, instructed to ring a plain course of it and was given 25 minutes to learn, ring and leave. David Dearnley judged the quality of the striking, giving bonus marks to those who completed their pieces more quickly. In announcing the results (“I had better be brief”, he said “as I know that Dickon Love needs to get away to watch Eurovision”), he awarded first place to Michael Wilby’s team.

The third challenge was on 6 bells at the Lord Mayor’s Chapel. This tested ringers’ skills in raising and lowering bells, as well as ring call changes (the set piece was 60 on Thirds). The judge for this challenge was David House. (“I have enjoyed my day today and even listened to some of the ringing”, he announced.) David gave separate marks for the raise, the call changes and the lower, with each team instructed to take no less than 15 minutes over the whole exercise. The best raise of the day was from Linford’s Builders, however so keen were they to complete the raise and the changes, they found themselves having to chime the bells for a long time at the end in order to complete their 15 minute slot. In the event, joint first place was awarded to the Paternoster Squares and Wilby’s Wonderful Ringers.

The fourth and final challenge was a quiz devised by the Society’s Librarian, Chris Ridley. Teams completed this during the day as they travelled between towers or sat in the pub, and given the relaxed rules for the quiz, members happily looked for answers in the new edition of the History of the Society. Simon Linford was spotted arriving at the competition with his laptop, so Dickon (the ASCY Webmaster who was ringing for a rival team) managed to slip away from the group and take the ASCY Website off-line to foil any attempt to access it! Alas this was not entirely successful as Simon’s team eventually managed to find an archive version of the site with the relevant answers on it. Nonetheless, the Paternosters managed to secure victory in the Quiz with 10 out of 10, beating the Linford team into second place. True to their name, Roy LeMarechal’s team, the Finest Universal Campanologists Known In Town didn’t bother too much with the quiz and scored just the one point.

The bands returned to St Stephen’s at the end of the day to hear the judges’ deliberations and the results. The Paternoster Squares (led by Andrew Graham) were judged to be the overall winners, closely followed by Michael Wilby’s Wilby’s Wonderful Ringers. David Pipe’s Eastern Promise came joint third with Linford’s Builders, followed by the Teacher’s Pets led by Dinah Reed. The Finest Universal Campanologists Known In Town came a magnificent last and had the biggest smiles of everyone. The Master awarded each member of the Paternoster Squares with a silver medal cast as facsimiles of the Senior Steward’s 1837 badge and engraved with the title of the challenge.

The day was a splendid occasion where good company mixed merrily with sheer fun and humour. One of the most amusing moments occurred when Philip Goodyer, wearing his fluorescent Linford yellow jacket, realised that the other fluorescent yellow jacket he was following round Bristol City Centre was actually a council worker on the streets rather than a member of his team (at least, that was his story). It then took him some time to work out where he was and find the rest of his teammates.

The Master, Stephanie Warboys, must be congratulated on a marvellous innovation and a thoroughly good day out, as well as the generous provision of the medals to the winning team. Likewise, thanks go to the Bristol ringers, who as expected were efficient and excellent hosts. At the end of the day the bands made their merry ways back home, some in the company of the rugby supporters also travelling home from Cardiff, and the website was soon operating as usual again…

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