On the 25th February I made the journey across the Solent to the Isle of Wight Hedgelaying Competition. I had been wanting to enter this competition for several years but without much success. This was due to the competition not having been held in 2019, 2021, and 2022 for various reasons including Covid.

Three of us from the South of England Hedgelaying Society entered and, because pitches were limited in number, there were only four of us in the Open Class. Myself and Matthew Beard were up against two Island regulars in Tom Murphy and Kingsley Hollis.

The hedge was a good one for the competition, very well planted and consistent and was a mixture of hawthorn, dogwood and hazel. The weather was cool and dry, ideal for hedgelaying.

As usual we had five hours to complete our work, so there was no time to waste. What was slightly unusual was the amount of spectators that turned out for the event. It felt almost like the Nationals with the number of people present, and there were plenty of questions forthcoming whilst I was working. What was also unusual was the variation in styles being cut. Tom to my left was cutting South of England style, but with Midland binding on the top, whereas Kingsley to my right was cutting Midland style. I stuck to SoE, which is the style I know best.

Almost before we knew it, the hooter sounded for the end of the competition and we headed to the barn for refreshments and the prize giving. To my delight, I won the Open Class beating Matthew into second place by 5 points.

It was very satisfying to win not only the Open Class, but also the prize for the best staking and binding as well. I received the lovely trophy from my former boss Matthew Chatfield who is one one of the co-organisers of the event. Matthew used to head up the Countryside Department of the Isle of Wight Council and I worked for him when I was a ranger on the Island some twenty-odd years ago.

Being a mainlander, I unfortunately was not allowed to take the trophy home, which is also understandable. However, I had a wonderful day at a very well organised competition where everyone was so friendly, and we were made incredibly welcome. Will I go back next year to defend the title? You bet your life I will!