Some of my proudest moments….
SES Challenge Bisley
I was part of a celebrity team on the winning day. The team compromised of Bernard Cribbins, Pippa Hunt, Elaine Page, the Chairman of Sparks Charity now of Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital.
The work that has gone into this trophy is remarkable and its one of the best that I have won, such a great day and 40/40
Meeting HM The Queen
All guns who took part in the Sandringham Cocker Spaniel Championship Fieldtrial were given a memento of the day by Her Majesty. Here I am being presented with my cocker spaniel fieldtrial tie.
NGO Golden Pheasant
It has always been an ambition to win this trophy and I finally managed it at Lampton Castle. The Golden Pheasant is a 100 bird felt wads only clay competition run by the National Gamekeepers Organisation for their keeper members alongside many other categories inc supporters of the NGO. I then went on to repeat my success a few years later at Castle Hill , Devon and my son Justin won the under 21 keepers comp.
Some more of my best achievements...
Exmoor Gamekeepers Challenge Trophy
Brian Mitchell set up this challenge for all the keepers in the Exmoor area. The Golden Pheasant competition was held the day before this particular year. Because we were travelling down for the Golden Pheasant, Brian invited us to put a team in to shoot the Exmoor Challenge. So myself, Gary Salmon, James Lacey and Scott Shuckford took on the Challenge. It consisted of….a 70 bird clay shoot (ex 280 as a team of four), target rifle shooting, KNATT shooting, a model aeroplane with thunderflashes underneath its wings and finally, a thirty question general knowledge quiz!
Lo and behold, much to Brian Mitchell’s dismay, our team from Essex - we came, we saw, we conquered!
Gamekeeper of the Year 2020
This was at the British Shooting Show. I was initially asked to read out and present a category prize. Having done my duty and sat back down, I was gobsmacked to realise I had won Gamekeeper of the Year. Here I am receiving my prize from Glynn Evans at BASC. I would like to thank everyone who voted for me on that day.
Above is a close up of the trophy.
Jack Pyke/Sporting Targets
I was in a rich vein of form in my clay shooting and having shot the Jack Pyke Competition for a few years I returned in 2014. Shooting in A class meant 114/120 was good enough to take first place in A class. Sporting Targets is a clay ground in Bedfordshire and its a ground that I enjoy shooting.