TomW42 0 Posted June 28, 2009 Report Share Posted June 28, 2009 What a FAIR! Bill Beckett and Derek Lutton eat your heart out. There really did appear to be over 200 stands and the best Gunmakers's Row I've seen in years. The Terriers & Lurchers in the main ring and central location in the show, fab prizes, English judges . Well done Shamie and Matt . Great range of stands with everything for dogs and two lurchers in the Pup Idol final ! Speaking to Albert Titterington with straw hat & TV crew - what an organiser. No tight aislres here to make it look like a crowd - he says Moira only have these to make it look busy - he believes in leaving plenty of space for the crowds to fill. Saturday was busy but Sunday must have broken records. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tassa 64 Posted June 29, 2009 Report Share Posted June 29, 2009 The terrier show was poor, up in the north theres not many working dogs at the shows which is for obvious reasons but the dogs that are winning rossettes aren't workers. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
true countryman 0 Posted June 29, 2009 Report Share Posted June 29, 2009 What a FAIR! Bill Beckett and Derek Lutton eat your heart out. There really did appear to be over 200 stands and the best Gunmakers's Row I've seen in years. The Terriers & Lurchers in the main ring and central location in the show, fab prizes, English judges . Well done Shamie and Matt . Great range of stands with everything for dogs and two lurchers in the Pup Idol final ! Speaking to Albert Titterington with straw hat & TV crew - what an organiser. No tight aislres here to make it look like a crowd - he says Moira only have these to make it look busy - he believes in leaving plenty of space for the crowds to fill. Saturday was busy but Sunday must have broken records. The show was similar to previous years, certainly nothing record breaking about it - average in fact, unless I was at a different show in Shanes?? I don't really see anything new each year at Shanes but Moira always manage to pull new ideas out of the hat. Don't know about the 200 trade stands, certainly didn't look like it to me. Wife and kids wanted to leave early. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
true countryman 0 Posted June 29, 2009 Report Share Posted June 29, 2009 The terrier show was poor, up in the north theres not many working dogs at the shows which is for obvious reasons but the dogs that are winning rossettes aren't workers. Agree but then there appears to be more effort going into running down other shows in the north. Moira show must be a serious threat if it hurts other organisers so much that they have to keep running it down in stead of focusing on improving their own shows. Don't know Bill and Derek personally, but keep up the good work at Moira guys!! Above comments just sound like sour grapes to me! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lakeman 12 Posted June 29, 2009 Report Share Posted June 29, 2009 just got back from shanes castle. judged the lurchers. good turn out and strong classes. a big THANK YOU to seamus and all his 'crew' for their hospitality. think this will now be an anual pilrgimage. good effort everyone Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TomW42 0 Posted June 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2009 (edited) What a FAIR! Bill Beckett and Derek Lutton eat your heart out. There really did appear to be over 200 stands and the best Gunmakers's Row I've seen in years. The Terriers & Lurchers in the main ring and central location in the show, fab prizes, English judges . Well done Shamie and Matt . Great range of stands with everything for dogs and two lurchers in the Pup Idol final ! Speaking to Albert Titterington with straw hat & TV crew - what an organiser. No tight aislres here to make it look like a crowd - he says Moira only have these to make it look busy - he believes in leaving plenty of space for the crowds to fill. Saturday was busy but Sunday must have broken records. The show was similar to previous years, certainly nothing record breaking about it - average in fact, unless I was at a different show in Shanes?? I don't really see anything new each year at Shanes but Moira always manage to pull new ideas out of the hat. Don't know about the 200 trade stands, certainly didn't look like it to me. Wife and kids wanted to leave early. What new ideas have Moira ever had other than a couple of planes that frighten dogs? Everything else including the medievalfest which didn't happen this year is mainly a copy of Shanes. Record crowds at Shanes both days in big wide aisles not the tiny aisles that Moira have to give the impression of a crowd - more people on Sunday than Moira had in 2 days. What about the best Gunmakers row seen in Ireland in many a year - Moira had 2 small gun stands. More stands at Shanes than Moira - did anyone really see 206 stands at Moira? No Tat at Shanes - Moira had a 'Nutts Corner type market' in the lower field. Nice tidy food hall at Shanes with Game Pies and all - Moira had the guys from St Geoirge's market. Biggest terrier, lurcher and whippet show at Shanes this year with the best prizes and us being given a central part in the Fair. Moira small show hidden away. Clay shooting at Moira was the wirst of the three Fairs and so were the prizes. Need I go on - would you True Countyman have some connection wiuth Moira? Edited June 29, 2009 by TomW42 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
twiggy 12 Posted June 29, 2009 Report Share Posted June 29, 2009 shanes was crap getting worse every year and no way was there 200 stands. plus 3quid an entry into the rings for a fooking shitty plastic trophy that non working lurchers and terriers won. Fooking Joke Quote Link to post Share on other sites
leegreen 2,150 Posted June 29, 2009 Report Share Posted June 29, 2009 shanes was crap getting worse every year and no way was there 200 stands. plus 3quid an entry into the rings for a fooking shitty plastic trophy that non working lurchers and terriers won. Fooking Joke Did you not win anything then? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TomW42 0 Posted June 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2009 shanes was crap getting worse every year and no way was there 200 stands. plus 3quid an entry into the rings for a fooking shitty plastic trophy that non working lurchers and terriers won. Fooking Joke What about the £400 Barbour coat for top dog and the prize money on offer for racing and show - people who entered the ALL IRELAND TERRIER & LURCHER CHAMPIONSHIPS had the opportunity to win these prizes - where else can you get prizes like that in Ireland? Are you saying all Irish shows are a joke? As for Shanes getting worse - the many thousands who filled three large car parks , traders and virtually all the competitors would disagree. Plus where else in Ireland this year could you see such a range of sporting stands including a 150 foot long Gunmakers Row! As for 200 stands - I didn't count them but I was going on the fact that if Moira had 206 stands as claimed by Beckett then Shanes had many more and bigger and better country sports stands not a lot of small craft stands. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
twiggy 12 Posted June 30, 2009 Report Share Posted June 30, 2009 im saying that the people that own the show/racing lurchers r putting them into lamping/hare classes and working terrier classes and winning thats the joke them dogs have never seen a rabbit in there life never mind been out on the lamp. or dug to a fox.WHO did win this super barbour coat i didnt stay long enough to find out.i bet u it wasnt a true hunter. What was the winning dog. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
true countryman 0 Posted June 30, 2009 Report Share Posted June 30, 2009 shanes was crap getting worse every year and no way was there 200 stands. plus 3quid an entry into the rings for a fooking shitty plastic trophy that non working lurchers and terriers won. Fooking Joke I was talking to ones who said they paid £4 quid per entry - could they have paid for the barbour coat? I was asked by TOMW42 (or is it Albert?) if I am connected with Moira. I have nothing to do with the Moira show but at least their prizes were worth having and entry was not overpriced. On top of the dog food, trophies and rosettes there were leather leads, massive dog beds etc - what good is a barbour coat to a working lurcher, terrier or whippet? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
twiggy 12 Posted June 30, 2009 Report Share Posted June 30, 2009 thats why the entrys were 3 & 4 quid to pay for that stupid £400 COAT. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlbertJ 569 Posted June 30, 2009 Report Share Posted June 30, 2009 shanes was crap getting worse every year and no way was there 200 stands. plus 3quid an entry into the rings for a fooking shitty plastic trophy that non working lurchers and terriers won. Fooking Joke I was talking to ones who said they paid £4 quid per entry - could they have paid for the barbour coat? I was asked by TOMW42 (or is it Albert?) if I am connected with Moira. I have nothing to do with the Moira show but at least their prizes were worth having and entry was not overpriced. On top of the dog food, trophies and rosettes there were leather leads, massive dog beds etc - what good is a barbour coat to a working lurcher, terrier or whippet? True Hunter I should be delighted to know your true identity and debate the merits of Shanes and Moira with you man to man. I don't need anyone to stand up for Shanes and I don't hide behind an alias. Anything I have to say to you, Derek or Bill or perhaps you are Derek or Bill , I will say under my own name. If you are Bill or Derek or a close associate, you will know the reason why Tommy and our terrier and lurcher team are aggrieved at the guys from Moira due to an incident some time ago. I hushed this up because it would have been totally detrimental to country sports but I can undertand our team's residual anger. On a personal basis I speak to both Bill & Derek but because of this incident I do not feel I could ever work with them. Debate about the shows on a forum such as this is healthy and I am sorry I do not have more time to get involved but running down other shows in the wider press is not helpful nor is making wild and unsubstantiated claims. I have always tried to report objectively on the Moira Fair in the magazine and praised it where it deserved praise. For example the gundogs at Moira used to be very good with US teams etc now they are not so good with only North/South competitions and have a poor course overlooking a housing estate. All the gundog guys including the Scottish team who have run at both Fairs assert that Shanes site and competitions are the best in Ireland. The clay shooting used to be OK at Moira but not as good as Ballywalter, which probably has the best layout other than Birr which makes superb use of natural ground. This year Moira's clay layout was the worst of the three Fairs. Shanes on its new site was better and will be even better next year. Terriers & lurchers are rather hidden away at Moira where we at Shanes give them a central focus. Shanes Castle has the best prizes for all events and Birr comes second, then probably Ballywalter and lastly Moira whose organising team appear to put very little into the prizes themselves. This years crowds were best at Shanes (by far) and I think Ballywalter may have edged past Moira in terms of overall attendance. I heard Bill Beckett state on radio that he had 206 stands I have been organising fairs for over 30 years and I couldn't see them unless he counted all the food and ice cream stands and individual rides in the fair ground. I thought the layout at Moira was better but the car parks were a mess. The guys at Moira do well with a site that I looked at some years ago and rejected, and I have complimented them on this, but at the end of the day the best venue for a Game Fair is a traditional estate not a public park or football pitches. Our stand base approached 200 genuine stands ( and that included us filtering out any stands we did not want) and certainly had more ground space covered in stands than Moira. We also had a better gunmakers row ( by far); a better collection of fishing stands and certainly a richer mix of country sports stands with little tat. Our Foodhall was also staged in a better tent and had a much smarter appearance. Regarding your ( or Bill & Derek's) opinion on the merits of the two Fairs I prefer objective opinions by traders, competitors, and the main country sports bodies and most of all by the public who vote with their feet. This year they appeared to desert Moira in droves. When I was leaving Moira at 2.45 on Sunday there was no one going in. At 2.30 - 4.00 I had to leave our TV crew to help open up a third car park to deal with a record breaking crowd as the cars were backing up on the motorway and back to Antrim. Don't take my word for it see the photos of wide ( not narrow aisles) filled with people and the photos of packed car parks and/or the PSNI reports. However I think one of the best comparisons happened when Moira and Shanes went "head to head" for a tourism award judged by unbiased marketing and tourism professionals and to see who won see www.irishgamefair.com/award.asp Regarding prizes at Shanes Castle for terriers and lurchers there was NOT ONLY A BARBOUR coat ( sponsored by Barbour and myself) but I put up £100 each for terriers and lurchers and £50 for whippets and there was considerable extra money put up for the racing plus dog meal for both and other prizes. The ENTRY FEE for classes was £3 NOT £4 AND I GAVE TERRIER & LURCHER enthusiasts a two day entry for the price of 1. The entry fees went towards club funds and the expenses for two UK judges, rosettes and class trophies and prize money for the racing. As I understand it the prize fund at Moira did not approach this. If Twiggy entered his dog he had a shot at the big pot ( Coat , £100 and other prizes) and it appears to be "sour grapes" that he didn't win the coat AND the £100. Regarding the show and people claiming that working dogs did not come to the fore, I cannot comment as regrettably I was too busy co-ordinating handling very large crowds on both days, but all we can do is to bring in judges who work their dogs. I have sympathy with guys showing working dogs who get beaten by dogs mainly used for showing but such is life even in the pedigree gundog world where a show is not a test of work but a beauty contest. I have had dogs all my life and shown and judged various breeds since a lad. I showed golden retrievers which were good enough to win at Crufts but yet won tests, ran in trials and were used for shooting. In order to compete more successfully in trials and have better working dogs I decided to move over to working lines which to be frank I realise are not "show standard". I have managed to breed some that are decent looking and good workers and as Chairman of the Golden Club I do bring them out at club shows to show people what a real golden coloured and actual retrieving dog looks like. I have had some surprising awards but generally I like Twiggy am beaten and often quite badly beaten by show bred animals. Does it fuss me? No because I know it is a beauty contest and expect tobe beaten for beauty. However I try to get good ideas from even the most uncontructive criticism and next year I have the thought of trying to design a working terrier test so more working focused dogs can be tested on working ability rather than looks. I hope you gentlemen reading this will forgive me for the fullness of my reply but I do not really intend to enter further into this debate although I am happy to continue it through my column in Irish Countrysports and Country Life. I will be rather busy over the next month or two helping ensure the success of Ireland's second greatest fair at Birr ( behind Shanes of course). Anyone wanting to discuss this with me is welcome to do so over a pint at Birr. Albert J Titterington Quote Link to post Share on other sites
helloboss 1 Posted June 30, 2009 Report Share Posted June 30, 2009 any place to pull up a carvan in birr like a camp site... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AlbertJ 569 Posted June 30, 2009 Report Share Posted June 30, 2009 thats why the entrys were 3 & 4 quid to pay for that stupid £400 COAT. I have answered "True Countryman" fully and you can see my opinion. I sympathise with working dogs having difficulty in competing with more "show focused" animals but at the end of the day all shows are beauty contests where confirmation is more important than working ability. I will see if Shamie , Matt and I can work up some idea to test working ability at the Fair. Your ideas are welcome. One thing I will say is that entry fees for the terrier & lurcher event are much lower than for all the other sports and I did offer you guys 2 days for the price of one. Clubs take the entry fees to help cover expenses and towards funds, I supply most of the prizes in association with sponsors. Albert J Titterington Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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