Wot no Rain?

The last May Bank Holiday Monday is always the Surrey County Show. It’s mammoth for a one day show (about 40,000 visitors or more) and it’s a lot of hassle for just one day. It also involves driving into Guildford which is not my favourite past-time on a Band Holiday Monday but at least it’s relatively quiet at 7am. One more thing – I normally know I’m at the Surrey County Show because it rains, but this year it was grey and dry, one might even say warm and muggy in the afternoon.

I demonstrate on the Merrist Wood College stand as a part of the countryside management team – and I get to share the stand with some of the college flock of (I hope I have this right) Badger Faced Welsh Mountain sheep.  A rare occasion when the Welsh name is both shorter and simpler – Torwen. It just goes to show that you can learn something new at every show.

I am at the show to work, but the sheep are only there for a hair cut. Not my idea of fun, a ride through town with your mates at 7am to have your hair cut in front of 40,000 onlookers. Understandably the sheep aren’t too keen either but Keith the college shearer copes admirably with the sheep the onlookers and the crowd and talks us through the process as well.

Rounders bats are always popular in Guildford and I was kept busy making more during the day as well as demonstrating the greenwood process by racing against myself to make a chair leg from a log. Not my best time as on the first occasion the pole fell over (thanks to Brian for carrying out running repairs -literally) and on the second attempt my perfect round of ash had a big knot in it and I ended up trying to work, talk and cope with the problems at the same time. Hopefully amusing for the large crowd that gathered if not so amusing for me.

This ash split out rather better and having used the main part for a rounders bat I was loathe to let the olive grain in the centre go for firewood.

So I took a risk on it working for a couple of honey drizzlers, one at each end and a simple bag handle from the centre section. I’ve learned to make the heads of the honey drizzlers as close to the end of the billet as the wood allows (some will split right at the end) and to make the cut for the head first – if it fails I can then work my way along and try again, but in the centre of the billet there is too much flex on a long piece to make the cut without splitting it off.

The finished pieces are very simple but by offsetting the blank slightly I’ve managed to retain a little of the pale outer wood, giving a two tone effect to the grain which should allow me to sell the pieces for a pound or two more than normal.

Meanwhilst I was learning to live with the ‘all day chainsaw carving’ only a few metres away as Henry and Catherine set about sculpting a squirrel and an owl from the logs.

Well it wouldn’t be right to finish without a photo of this ‘liquorice allsorts’ tractor lineup. Tractors and Guildford aren’t two words that naturally come together in my mind but the lineup at the Surrey County Show it always superbly organised.

It’s only a couple of days now before the next show – the Heavy Horses and working animals show at the Weald and Downland Museum which is always a great show  – but there is lots to do before then.

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