T
Grounds
Trial Day Grounds Hire
Trial day grounds hire gives a club the full field for a single sanctioned or informal trial day. The hire covers the mown lanes, the marked start line, the parking apron, and the trail bay for the duration of the card. The lanes are cut in advance to a consistent width so that each brace can be followed on foot, and the rough margins are left standing so that flag crews can work without crossing the running line.
On the morning of the hire, the field is walked for hazards and the lane markers are checked before the first cast. The kennel run is swept and the drain is checked. Stewards confirm the draw with the trial secretary and show the judges the lanes and the finish. By the time handlers arrive, the ground is ready and the order of the day is settled.
A trial day hire is usually the right choice for a club that is running a full card with prizes and rosettes. It includes access to the rosette board in the trail bay and to the hunt bench where handlers wait for their brace. Clubs that need a smaller session for conditioning or introductory work are better served by a training run booking.
R
Training
Training Run Bookings
A training run booking holds a morning or an evening on the training run for conditioning and introductory work. Young hounds are walked in short braces on clean ground before they are asked to hold a line in front of a judge. The work is deliberately simple: a clean start, a straight lane, a steady follow, and a quiet finish.
Training runs are booked separately from trial days so that the field is not worn and so that a young hound is not thrown into a full card before it is ready. A typical booking is two or three hours, with the lane set for the number of braces that the club intends to run. We will suggest a plan if the club is unsure how much ground to use.
The same kennel run, water, and shade are available as on a trial day. A steward can be present to hold the finish and to record the times, or the club can run the session itself if it prefers. Many clubs use a training run in the weeks before a trial so that handlers and hounds meet the field in a calm setting.
S
Field craft
Scent Line Setup
Scent line setup is the work of laying a line to the order of the club. Before the ground is closed, we agree the line length, the direction, the age of the line, and the position of the flags at both ends. The line is then laid along the lane and marked so that the start and the finish are clear to the steward who holds the brace.
Flags are placed at the corners and at the end of the drag, and the route is walked once the line is down so that nothing on the ground will confuse the hound. If the club needs a particular distance between casts or a particular order for the lines, that is agreed in advance and recorded on the card for the day.
A late change to the plan may be possible after the ground has been closed, but we cannot guarantee it. Where a late change requires extra work or a delay to the card, an additional fee may apply. The club is responsible for making sure that its handlers understand the line that has been laid.
J
Officials
Judges and Steward Support
Judges and steward support supplies the people who keep a trial day moving. Stewards marshal the field, record times, hold the finish, and keep the rosette board. They arrive early enough to walk the field before the first brace, and they follow the directions of the club and the judge, provided that those directions are consistent with safety.
Stewards do not decide the merit of a hound. That remains the responsibility of the judge appointed by the club. The support is there to give the judge a clear view and a quiet field, so that the judge can concentrate on the work of the hounds rather than on the paperwork and the crowd.
A steward may stop a brace if the safety of a hound or a person is at risk. The club remains responsible for appointing qualified judges and for making sure that the trial is run under the rules that apply to it. Where the Company is asked to supply a judge as well as stewards, that arrangement is set out in the written confirmation.
C
Season
Club Season Passes
A club season pass holds a set number of trial days and training runs across the calendar year. The pass sets out the number of days, the services that are included, the period for which the pass is valid, and the fee. It is issued to a named club and gives that club priority over new requests for the same dates.
The value of a pass is consistency. A club that returns month after month receives the same lanes, the same start line, and the same stewards, which lets handlers coach their hounds against a known standard rather than a field that is different every time. The written card for each day is kept so that the season can be reconstructed at its close.
Pass days must be booked in advance and are subject to availability. Unused days do not carry over to the following year unless the pass says so. A pass may be suspended where a club has not paid its fee, has repeatedly broken the grounds rules, or has acted in a way that puts safety at risk.
G
Upkeep
Grounds Maintenance Days
Grounds maintenance days are scheduled between trials to keep the mown lanes true, the fences tight, and the kennel run drained. The work includes cutting the lanes to width, checking the flag posts, repairing the pen panels, clearing the drain, and walking the field for hazards. It is the quiet work that makes a trial day look effortless.
Clubs may join a maintenance day to learn how the field is prepared between trials. The Company directs the work and decides what is safe for volunteers to do. Tools and equipment remain the property of the Company, and a volunteer must not operate machinery without express permission and instruction.
A maintenance day may be postponed because of weather or because the ground needs to be rested. We give as much notice as we can and offer a new date. Clubs that join a maintenance day often tell us that it changed the way they read a field, because they see the lanes as work rather than as a stage.