Thanks to everyone who made it such a good day.
They came from Glasgow and Devon, and everywhere in between. Attendance was increased on last year, with a number of absolute beginners turning up to have a go and, we hope, going away firmly bitten by the bug.
Thanks must also go to to all the willing hands who helped set up the targets, run the workshops and competitions and especially man the reception desk. Some of these folk don't throw whips, so they win lots of kudos for sitting through all that noise!
The venue was impressive, too: a comfortable temperature with about twice the space compared to previous years all in one room.
The overall standard of whip cracking was, once again, noticeably improved; with more complicated multiple cracking routines (and more people doing them) being evident - some of these heavily influenced by poi moves and having quite a different feel to the normal Aussie style two-handed work.
There's quite a heavy circus-skills influence in British whip cracking; and no one demonstrates that better than Graham Benson with his fluffy bunny swatting, rolla bolla riding, one handed juggling whilst whip cracking ...thing. There's a man who can multi-task!
Jo and Dave from English Whips drove up from London with their stall featuring a selection of bull, stock and snake whips - as well as DVD's and all the other bits and pieces a whip cracker needs; and were on hand throughout the day to undertake minor repairs and help people to tweak their whips to get the best from them. And it turns out that Wolverhampton has it's own whip maker in the shape of Kevon R. Trusselle, a local saddler who specialises in braided gear and also makes cow and kangaroo hide whips to order.
The day finished, as usual, with a series of light-hearted competitions. This year, we had a multi-target competition and (very informal) multiple cracking comp, in addition to the traditional target cutting. The winners were as follows:
Spaghetti Cutting Competition
Beginners: Tony Lozell
Intermediate: Roger Sawyer
Expert: Graham Benson
Multi Target Competition
Beginners John* from South Wales
Intermediate: Nigel* from Manchester
Expert: Graham Benson
* Apologies for lack of surname
Best Multiple Cracking Routine: Winner chosen by the audience - Major Horton.
As with previous years, the winners chose their prizes from the Prize table. Photos of the winners with their prizes will soon be posted in our Myspace photo album, and on the convention website.
The day was rounded off by a barbeque hosted by Major and Sue Horton. The awful July weather held off for an evening of warm sunshine, excellent food and fire whips.
And that's it for another year! It only remains to thanks this year's sponsors:
Adam Winrich - www.winrichwhips.com
Bernardo del Carpio - www.delcarpiowhips.com
Blue Gum Whips - www.bluegumwhips.com
Coyote Whips - www.coyotewhips.com
English Whips - www.whipstore.com
Lightspeed Whips - lightspeedwhips.com
Screaming Master Whips - www.screamingmaster.com
Steve Huntress -Steve can be contacted at jabahutt@msn.com
Happy Cracking!
The Organisers