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Pig racing to boost sport pavilion fund
From the archive, first published Thursday 29th Jul 2004.
PIGS will be racing in a Wyre Forest village next weekend to raise cash for a new community sports pavilion.
The Far Forest show is taking place at Callow Hill showground on Sunday, August 8 and will feature a range of unique activities, such as pig racing and comic sumo wrestling by 13ft costume-clad Battling Cumberland Giants. A demonstration of tree cutting by Adam's Axemen will also take place, while live music will be provided by Rod Stewart tribute act, Stan Terry and rock band, The Bar Flies.
More routine activities such as a funfair, horticultural and craft marquees and a classic cars show will also be under way.
Chairman of the Far Forest Society, John Simmonds, who has been helping to organise the event for around 50 years, said he intended to call his racing pigs The Four Aces.
"How I train them is a trade secret," he said, "but sugar comes into the equation and there's also a lot of luck."
Adding he had spent the morning chasing his pigs around the field after they broke out of their run, he laughed: "They've just done a runner so I think I might have been training them too well."
Mr Simmonds's son, Rob, who has been helping to organise the event for nine years with fellow Callow Hill resident, Ray Attwood, said the cash raised would be used to build a new pavilion on the showground, including changing rooms.
"If all the grant applications go well then we're looking to start building at the end of this year, in readiness for the start of next season's sports activities."
Mr Attwood, whose late father, Derek, was also a member of the society which has been in existence for more than 100 years, added almost £70,000 had already been raised for the new building, which is expected to cost about £400,000.
More information on the event, which has been running for around 60 years and starts at noon, can be obtained by calling 01299 266525.
