Hurst Horse Show & Country Fayre

Can there be anyone in Hurst who has not heard about the biggest Annual fundraising event in the village? To anyone new to Hurst, please just come along, join in, see what it is all about, have fun and make new friends. This really is what village life is all about. The money raised all goes to support St Nicholas Primary School and several other, mainly local, charitable causes.

The pace is now really hotting up with preparations well under way for the 26th Annual Show. We would like to remind people that the event is a week earlier than usual this year, and will run over the weekend of 18th and 19th June. The decision to move from the traditional ‘last weekend in June’ was made because of the availability of the show’s Compere/DJ/Master of Ceremonies (call him what you will) Peter Head. He is a face, and certainly a voice, familiar to all regular show attendees as he has held the proceedings together skilfully for many years with his spontaneous easy style of commentary. Peter has moved away from Hurst to live in Devon, but has returned faithfully every year to host the show.

As usual there will be a full two-day schedule of horse riding events starting at 9:00am each day, including jumping, showing classes and a musical ride display by Hurst Riders Club. The schedule has been distributed widely and can also be downloaded from here. It is still not too late to enter and further details can be obtained from the events secretary Anne-Marie Peries on 0118 989 xxxx.

Arena attractions start at 10:30am on Saturday and 11:00am on Sunday, and continue until about 4:00pm. Food and drink are available all day from various oulets around the site.

The weekend’s fun-packed programme also includes Morris dancing, birds of prey, dog displays, tug of war and terrier racing. The Scouts will be providing entertainment in the form of a pioneering display and a swing band will add a musical touch. Once again the children from St Nicholas School will be Maypole dancing and singing. Following its resounding success last year, ferret racing will also feature on the programme and there are pony rides for the younger children. Adding an authentic rural feel to the show will be the country corner with farm animals and displays of traditional country crafts including pottery and willow sculptures.

Bustling side shows and stalls including face painting, a large bouncy castle and 30 foot high mega slide (suitable for both children and teenagers) will feature along with a bar and refreshments to ensure entertainment for all the family.

Topping a long list of attractive prizes in the Grand Raffle Draw this year is a Wide Screen TV so make sure you buy your tickets either from the Village Shop, Scouts, Guides or St Nicholas School in advance, or from ticket sellers at the show.

There will also be a World Premiere at the show! It will be the first time the newly-formed DBarc’rs Fly Ball Team has given a public demonstration of their skills.

The five dogs, Chewie, Frisbee, Flik, Jabba and Fidget, are all connected with the Diana Brimblecombe Animal Rescue Centre in Nelsons Lane, Hurst. And were brought to the centre as rescue pets.

Fly ball is a fast developing sport for dogs and their owners. The centre manager Janet North describes it as “... a relay race for dogs. The dogs jump four fences to grab a ball perched on top of a box. They then race back over the fences to the start line. All the while the other members of their team are barking like crazy, desperate for their go!”

Janet hopes that the Hurst Horse Show and Country Fair display will lead to more demonstrations in the future as it would be good publicity for the centre, as well as showing people what fun dogs can have, while still being very well trained and behaved.

Another first for the show is the Scarecrow Competition

Entries are invited - in fact positively encouraged - for the inaugural staging of the Hurst Scarecrow Competition. Completed scarecrows should be brought to the country corner of the show by 10.00am on Saturday morning where entry forms will be available. There will be separate categories for adults and children and, depending on the number of entries, the children’s competition may be judged by age groups. A local celebrity will be on hand to judge and present the prizes. It is hoped that the proud owners will allow their handiwork to be displayed throughout the show. As an incentive to encourage folk to enter, anyone accompanied by a scarecrow will gain free entry to the show on Saturday!

For those who are now wondering what constitutes a prize-winning scarecrow - well the answer is “absolutely anything goes” - so go on, why not get creative and let’s make this a successful and fun attraction which will hopefully become an annual event.

**** Pitches Still Available! **** Sponsors Invited ****
**** Helpers Welcome ****

There are still a limited number of pitches available for hire by Trade Stall Holders which can be booked by calling Richard Hiles on 0118 934 xxxx. Also the committee are still keen to hear from individuals or businesses wishing to sponsor the show. Enquiries should be directed to Cathy Lochman on 0118 934 xxxx and sponsors will receive a credit in the show programme.

Finally, the success of the show depends on a huge amount of effort from many people. If there is anyone out there who is not yet involved but would like to be, then the committee would be delighted to hear from you. Please contact Cathy Lochman on 0118 934 xxxx.