Island Life Magazine Ltd June/July 2012 | Page 102

COUNTRY LIFE

Carriages
on Show
David Biles and Malcolm Salter are re-introducing the British
Driving Society carriage driving classes into the main ring at
this year’s Royal IW County Show on Saturday, June 16.
Entries have been flooding in from as far away as Potters
Bar, Gloucestershire and Tunbridge, and am amazing array
of carriages will provide a real spectacle.
Julie Elliot is coming from north Tunbridge with her
Morgan horse, imported from the US, that was the over 13.2
champion in the 2011 Horse of the Year Show, driven to a
stick back gig by Fairbourne Carriages – a modern replica of
a vintage vehicle.
Andrew Hamilton-Rhodes from Berkeley in Gloucestershire
is bringing his Irish part-bred Hackney horse Brookeborough
Duke that has won many County Shows; been a National
Driving Society supreme champion and also Hackney Horse
Society national private driving champion.
David Biles said: “Sammy Moul, the butcher from St
Helens, was a great driving man. He owned a governess
cart and it will be coming back to the show for the first time
in 50 years.” Owned by David’s son Sam Biles the cart will
be loaned to Gill Radforth from Knighton with her Dartmoor
‘Fred’ (Watts Dragonfly). Robert Young will be bringing one
of his wedding horses, a section D Welsh Cob, in a spindle
back gig.
Judges will be Mrs J Halnan-Blackwell and John
Townshend and the prize money, sponsored by the West
Bay Club, will be £200 for the champion with reserve £50.
Sponsors of individual classes include Sophie Adkins,
Robert Young, Emma Booth, Phil Madgwick and Stag Lane
Motors.
The Biles family have been in carriage driving for three
generations and David’s daughter Sophie Adkins has written
a book on the subject and will also be driving at the show.
“I was driving home from market one night and there was
a lady leading a pon