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Hen Races
* The Bonsall World Championship Hen Races are held every year on the first Saturday in August *
2010 WCHR to be held 7th August !
The event has won international acclaim and has been featured in many TV documentaries in this country and abroad.
It has been televised live on Sky TV and the BBC “Country File” report of the hen race has been screened three times.
If you have never winessed the awesome spectacle that is The World Championship Hen Races, please check out this video !
Click Here To View Video !.
Chicken Links
Campaign For Free Range Chicken Farming
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The area has a long history of hen racing, the most famous race being the Ible Hen Race. The races at the Barley Mow began 16 years ago when former landlord and chicken guru Alan Webster decided it was time to revive this wonderful old tradition.
David & Colette are following in this fine tradition and this years Hen Races are anticipated to be bigger and better than ever !
The Hen Races are free to watch and anyone with a hen can take part.
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2006 World Championship Hen Races |
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Jukka Nordman, a Husky Farmer from Finland came 1st in his heat to Qualify for a place in the 2006 Bonsall World Championship Hen Races final. Unfortunately Jukka found racing hens very different to training and racing husky dogs and only managed to achieve 5th place in the final race. Jukka was undoubtedly the furthest travelled competitor this year and made the races a truly international event. Other well-travelled competitors came from as far away as Devon, Essex and Sheffield.
In first place and achieving the title “The World’s Fastest Hen” was last years winner “Wendy”, a local hen trained and raced by local lads George and Andy. They must be now hoping to win again next year and achieve a record three consecutive wins.
In second place was “Pecky”, raced by Skye who also won the prize for the hen with the best deportment. Young Skye was awarded a heavy painted iron hen for her prize which almost weighed more than she did.
First place in the Fastest Losers race went to "Nibor the Terrible” owned by Jill Rickards, winner of the 2004 final. Jill also won the prize for the Best Turned Out Hen, a huge pottery version of the real thing, donated by Jane Gilman and surprisingly still in perfect condition.
A previous winner of this trophy is Ric Allen, who is regarded in hen racing circles as a true professional. Ric, from Matlock Bath, takes his racing very seriously and his entrants for this year’s races, “Sue”, “Half Beak”, “Bismark”, “Bob” and “Lucky” showed their fellow competitors what racing is all about with “Sue” and “Bob” winning their heats to gain a place in the final and “Bismark” coming second for a place in the losers final, Unfortunately Ric’s hens were beaten into third and fourth place in the final but I’m sure he will be back next year to fight another day.
Young Mathew, from Bonsall raced the beautiful white Silky “Snoopy”. Unfortunately “Snoopy” was intent on racing the wrong way and as fast as Mathew put her onto the track she turned around and ran back towards him. “Snoopy” obviously felt safer with Mathew than with the crowds of cheering spectators. Mathew resorted to launching her off (an illegal action, strictly against racing rules) but it made no difference, she still turned around and headed straight back to him and was eventually disqualified. There was some good news for Mathew however, as “Snoopy” was awarded the prize for the “Hen Who Ran the Straightest” - “Snoopy had certainly done that, even if it was the wrong way.
Alan, did not race a hen in the Championship this year but tried his hand at the Individual Timed Trial event. His hen, named after his previous favourite, “Chicken”, the super fast white hen that Alan used to launch this event 2 years ago, did not, unfortunately, live up to it’s predecessor’s reputation. The white “Chicken” was trained with bits of tomato and the occasional slug to race across the car park at great speeds and Alan had managed to achieve a good time in the competition. The new, brown “Chicken” was slow out of the box and distracted by the crowds and only managed a barely credible 3 minutes and 2 seconds. Despite being slow this was infinitely better than Rick’s attempt. His hen stayed sitting down in the starting box for at least five minutes, ignoring all attempts to get her out and when she was finally persuaded to get to her feet and move she was so slow and distracted that she was disqualified before reaching the half-way point.
As always the Bonsall Hen Races proved to be great entertainment. There was the occasional battle between competitors with three hens receiving the yellow warning card for fighting on the track. One of the hens took the warning to heart and reformed her behaviour but two ignored it, got the red card and were sent off. It was like watching World Cup Football all over again – and all the races were being filmed for German television. I’m not sure what they’ll think about so many red and yellow cards being awarded. There was great commentary from Alan, John, and Ric with plenty of jokes and lots of laughs and special commentary from race sponsor Sally Foulds, who runs an animal and pet minding business.
At the end of the day a collection was made on behalf of a registered charity which aims to provide a comfortable retirement for battery hens and this raised £31.00. A cheque for this amount will now be sent to the “Battery Hen Welfare Trust”. (For more information on this charity please see their website. (www.thehenshouse.co.uk.)
All in all it was an excellent day and, even now - as I write this report - I know training will have started in earnest for next year’s races.
Anne Falconer
Pictures from this years races are shoen above, click to enlarge. |
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2005 World Championship Hen Races |
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The 2005 hen race was held on a really fine day with the going dry, but not too dusty. As usual there were the comic antics of commentators John Barry and Alan Webster, egged on by the largest crowd ever, as well as a flock of TV cameras for Sky TV, who showed the event live. The final race final was won "Wendy", a first year entrant to the race.
Pictures from this years races are below, click to enlarge.
Photos by Anne Falconer, accredited hen race photographer
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