Five Cumbria-based young ringers made the trip down to Exeter on the first weekend in July to participate in the Ringing World National Youth Contest.
Ringing for different teams, their commitment to get involved and travel to the other end of the country was impressive. Iwan and Jayden ring in Barrow whilst Matthew is from Kirby Lonsdale, and all rang for Lancashire Lads and Lasses. Bethany and Paisley ring in Penrith and were given permission to leave school early to travel and ring for the Durham and Newcastle team.
The Lancashire Lads and Lasses chose to ring method, and did amazingly well to be placed 2nd out of 7 teams, with a score of 8/10. Bethany and Paisley’s D&N team rang call changes and were placed joint 8th out of 16 teams, with a score of 7/10.
In addition to the contest, there was a tailored tour of a number of towers around Exeter, with the highlight being the opportunity to ring on the enormous bells at Exeter Cathedral.
It would be interesting to see whether the Guild has enough eligible youngsters to field our own team next year. It will be in York on 8 July 2023.
