Ringing Forums

The plump-nosity of a sally seems to be related directly to the manufacturer's quality control and rope specification. Our original ropes made in 1972 by the late Peter Minchin have retained their plumpness rather better and are still wearing better than a spare set that we bought from another supplier about a decade ago. I guess the shape and firmness of the sally is determined by the density of the wool spun into the rope.

Perhaps you have hit on a potential commercial opportunity for some entreprenurial TC or steeple-keeper. Where & when does the research begin?

["they became too stiff to use."[/quote]

. . . ah, that would have been in the days before 'fabric softeners' ;-)

I would add a cautionary note on the potential perils of rope-cleaning. Many years ago, we rescued a set of old but re-usable ropes from a dusty belfry. Without giving any thought to the probable outcome, one of the ladies in the group dumped them in her washing machine. THIS IS DEFINITELY NOT AN OPTION! The result was a set of soft limp ropes that stretched like bungee ropes - and the sally colours merged into one another. They were hung with weights for several months as we tried to eradicate the stretch.

On a subsequent occasion we patiently scrubbed the sallies and the grubbiest part of the tail end with minimal amounts of soapy water and a nail brush. It was tedious but worth the effort.

What is actually happening 'on the ground' in respect of this 'Ringing 2030' scheme? I see it mentioned in this forum from time to time but that's all. I have seen and heard nothing at the local towers where I help and tower leaders seem to be unaware of the scheme.

I don't rcall polyester being widely available in 1970 when we bought the ropes for our new bells. We have since had all the top ends (from 1 metre above the sallies) replaced with polyester on our spare set and are gradually introducing them as the old ones are replaced.

When fitting new ropes, I set them so that the elusive 'average' ringer catches the sally about two-thirds of the way up the sally. Then as the ropes start to wear over the months at the garterhole, I can draw the weakened section of rope an inch or so inside the garter hole so that is is no longer flexed at every stroke. We are still using the ropes (by Peter MInchin) bought when the bells were installed in 1972 - that's 52 years of weekly service ringing and practice nights.

It appears to be 'long-waisted', that is, the height* is greater than the diameter. As a general rule, most modern bells are slightly wider than they are tall. This might imply that your bell somewhat older than it is modern.
(* Height being measured from the 'crown' of the bell - beneath the bracket to which it is attached - to the rim.)

I hate to say, but the purpose of a church is not to provide a venue for bellringers to practice their art, nor is to waft our mathematical melodies across the countryside. If the demographics of the area have changed and the church no longer receives viable support from its locality, then it is likely to be declared redundant.
Of late I have been helping a neighbouring church to re-establish its ringing team. It is a large Victorian sandstone structure seating about 500 or more, with a 23cwt ring of eight by Taylors from 1884. BUT as we came out of the tower one week recently, there were more ringers coming out than there people attending the service for which we had just rung. Redundancy must surely be on the horizon.

That's rather magnificent! Whoever made it was a skilled woodworker!. Ours are rather more crude - a length of board with end blocks that fit inside the mouth of the bell and a simple metal lever held in place with a wing nut.

". . . in the many towers where there are no competent method ringers to start with and the standard is at best wobbly PH by-the-numbers."
Absolutely! Currently I am trying to help at one such tower where the tower-leader can't plain hunt the treble to PB-5. Luckily we have persuaded the two newest recruits at the tower to visit a neighbouring tower as they progress from basic bell control to r&cc. I like a challenge!

As John said, "If they are surrounded by ringers of low skill, low ambition and limited horizons then that is the culture they will absorb."

The would-be ringers are limited by the abilities of those in charge of the tower or responsible for their introduction to ringing. I would guess that a great many of those who are teaching newcomers suffer some or all of the following limitations:

• Not been taught by a competent ringing tutor themselves
• Have limited experience of ringing outside of their 'home' tower
• Don't know or have never considered how to break ringing down into 'bite-size' elements
• Have only one way of explaining PH which they repeat like a mantra each week, rather than looking for other explanations or different forms of words

Another aspect of well-structured tuition is the difference between positive and negative tuition. There are towers where learners are routinely told "Don't do that" rather than what they should do. I prefer to see persistent errors (such as always striking late at backstroke or clipping other bells in a PH) not as a fault but as a point for improvement.

". . . very few people have any awareness of Ringing 2030."
I have seen occasional references to this but despite having been a ringer for 60+ years, I confess I have no idea of the purpose/objectives of the scheme. It has never been mentioned in the towers where I ring. I guess it is connected with recruitment and is focused on the major conurbations. That's the elephant in my room!

It may be partially due to the ability and willingness to learn. At a tower where I used to teach, there was a core of long-established plain hunt ringers and no matter how I tried I could not find a way to lead them forward and away from ringing by numbers.. It was a bit like children learning to swim and being reluctant to let go of the edge of the bath! Eventually I gave up! Give me open minds and enthusiasm every time!

What is th effect of charging for weekly practices? In the past some have argued that we mustn't charge for tuition or the weekly practice night for fear it deters new blood; others have said that many people don't appreciate things that are free.
On the other hand virtually every other voluntary group makes a charge, be it the meal at a Rotary Club or a weekly subscription for Scouts, Guides, WI or a local history society. Would a weekly subscription strengthen our ranks?

In my early ringing days in the 1960s & 70s, we were blessed with two territorial associations whose boundaries were almost contiguous - the Cleveland & N.Yorks Assoc and the North East Branch of the YACR. Each organised monthly meetings but they were cunningly arranged to be 2 weeks out of sync with one another, resulting in us enjoying fortnightly meetings.

In those days when communication was by written letter or word of mouth we were all in close touch with other towers and the branch committee. Attendance at the fortnightly meetings was usually around 30+ ringers on each occasion.

Perhaps I'm a digital dinosaur but it seems to me that the proliferation of communication channels - FaceBook, WhatsApp, email, Skype and all other other channels seems to have dissipated the communicatons and unless one subscribes to them all, then communications get lost in the ether.

However, my main point is that frequent well-run meetings that rang from PH methods to Surprise-8 are almost guaranteed to create greater involvement than the occasional meeting every 2 or 3 months.

Twenty years ago, our local 'star' tower - 4-spliced and 8-spliced was the starting pooint on practice night - took the same view. Now it is limited to ring rounds & call changes and PH on 5. The writing is on the wall for so-called 'elite' towers that shun regular recruitment.

Robin sums up the reality of the situation very succinctly.

What is the risk of some associations/guilds, especially the smaller ones, disassociating themselves from the CCBR rather than meet the demand for higher affiliation fees? Out here at the grass roots of ringing I reckon only one-in-ten local ringers (if that) is even aware of the CCCBR.

Yes, Jason is absolutley right. I should have mentioned that we promoted each our sequence of events on the local FB pages too. Incidentally, our next 'Teddy Bear Death Slide' is in mid July - see poster attached.