The day the Ug lived up to its name

On Sunday, 13 May, we held our active exercise day in the form of the infamous Umborne Ug run and walk around the Umborne Valley. What we weren’t reckoning on was the torrential rain that fell from 10am to 1 pm - we had over an inch of rain in those crucial 3 hours!

The Ten Tors may have been cancelled, but the Umborne Ug battled on through the storm! Sixty runners and walkers tackled the course, which had inevitably become muddy and slippery. Of the runners, 23 of them were from the Axe Valley Runners club, and we should like to thank them for their support and encouragement.

The race was won by Garry Perratt in 43 min. 47 - not bad for 10k in those conditions! The moment the last walker, Janet Curtis, walked through the door of the hall, the rain stopped and the sun shone.

People were very generous with their donations and their magnificent cakes, much enjoyed by the runners/walkers after their exertions and by their supporters. We thank them all.

We should also like to thank the 20 marshals who stood at strategic points on the route for about 2 hours in those awful conditions, as of course did the water station organisers. We should also like to thank Millers Farm Shop for rewarding all finishers and marshals with a banana and also all the landowners who kindly allowed us to go across their land.

The first local runner home was Bernard Fry from Colhayne. Bernard would like to thank all the locals who sponsored him in his London Marathon run last month. His brother suffers from Motor Neurone Disease, and Bernard raised over £1,700 for this cause. A fantastic achievement.

With the support of Bernard and all the other participants, and with the help of so many people, the Ug raised about £500 for our new hall fund.

Our next event is our annual Steam-Up at Penventon in Shute, home of Liz & Tony Gosling on Saturday, 16 June, at 2.00pm. This family occasion is extremely popular and successful. It offers you the chance to ride around the gardens on Tony’s miniature steam train and to be bored by his stories of all the other vehicles he is currently restoring! There are stalls selling produce, plants, books, a raffle, teas and cakes (yes, those infamous cakes again!) and ice-creams. We look forward to seeing you all there. It can’t rain again as it did for the Ug, can it?

One further date for your diary is Saturday, 28 July, when we can enjoy the annual Summer Barbecue at the hall - more details later.

The 12th Night Supper on the 6th of January was another very popular evening with the hall almost full to the brim. The picture quiz organised by Liz was again a huge success and the table quiz on the events of 2006 had people scratching their heads. Thanks to Tony’s infamous persuasive powers, the amazing sum of £153.00 was raised on the raffle. In recent years it has become a tradition that this event is not a fund raiser as such, as any money raised from the raffle is sent to good causes. This year it was decided to donate the money to a scheme which provides people in developing countries with a water purification system they can carry around their neck - they look like penny-whistles! Dangerous bacteria in the water are destroyed as it passes through the disinfecting resin in the LifeStraw. The device filters out many of the micro-organisms responsible for causing waterborne diseases like diarrhoea, dysentery, typhoid and cholera. Our thanks to all who donated prizes and to all who brought delicious food with them for the central table.

The AGM was held in the hall on Tuesday 16th of January and was well attended by trustees and interested parties from the local area. Maybe it was the attraction of free cheese and wine that helped boost the attendance numbers! You may be interested to know that the current Trust Deed is being updated as the Charity Commissioners advise that a successful organisation should have a governable and up to date working document. Thanks to our Chairman’s efforts - he pointed out that the Deeds were the original ones from 1949 - the whole area of appointments, voting etc. is being rewritten. The changes should be in place in time for the next AGM in January 2008.

Our Big Lottery Fund application for money for a new hall is currently going through the first phase process. We have - or rather Kimmo, with the help of Geoff - had our telephone meeting with the Lottery, when they ask follow-up questions on our lottery application. Fingers crossed! In 2006 we held 8 fund-raiser events at the hall, raising over £3,000 in the process, so our thanks to all our loyal supporters and helpers.

Our next social event is the ever popular “Theme Night” which will be held Saturday 24th March at 7.30 pm. The theme this time is “A Night at the Oscars” so you can come dressed as a star of stage and screen, or a character from any film or just as one of the by-standers hoping to catch a glimpse of someone famous - or even as a member of the paparazzi ! Tickets will cost £8 and will be available from any Trustee. For this small sum of money, you will be offered a 3 course meal and plenty of fun and entertainment. There will be a bar serving famous beers and wines and a most welcoming and convivial atmosphere. So please get your tickets early as there is a numbers limit and they usually do sell out.

Looking further ahead we are hoping to hold the 10k run called the Umborne Ug on Sunday May 13th at 11.00 am at the Hall. There will also be a 10k walk along the same route but starting at 10.30 am. Please come along and participate or help with the marshalling and catering (lots of cakes and drinks available) or just simply applaud the efforts of the participants along the route.

The Children’s Christmas Party, held on Saturday 2nd December, was a great success and, as our young population grows (46, yes 46, children this year!), must have been an exhausting afternoon! An enormous “thank you” to Sheila, Angela & Gillian for all their organising - we really do appreciate all your hard work. This is the fourth year they have run this event at the hall. There is also one other very important lady without whom this annual party would not be as special - many thanks to Pat Lambert who again generously donated money for all the crackers, Christmas party tableware, decorations & sweets - everything looked wonderfully Christmassy! Thanks also to Father Christmas who came to give gifts to the children, and to Mrs Sprague who produced, as she has done every year, an enormous, decorated chocolate cake! Thank you to all others who contributed to this wonderful party. Will there be even more children next year?

Our next event is the 12th Night Supper on Saturday 6th of January 2007 at 7.30 PM. In the Hall. This is an occasion for all the families in the area to get together and share a finger food buffet where everyone brings a dish (savoury or sweet) - no knives or forks are used so please think ahead!! Please also bring your own drinks and have your brain fired up for a quiz or two. The AGM will be held in the Hall on Tuesday 16th of January at 7. 30 PM. To encourage us all to attend and as a thank-you to the whole community for their support, the Trustees have decided to make this event a cheese and wine evening, combining business with pleasure. Please come along and offer your ideas and opinions if you want to or just listen to the progress being made with our new hall. I understand that the Lottery bid has now been submitted for approval for the first phase. More details of this will be available at the AGM.

Just to remind you that there will be another theme night(”A night at the Oscars”) at the end of March (date to be announced soon) and the answer to last month’s anagram of “vicars themes” was of course Christmas Eve. A very happy and successful New Year to you all.

Our Autumn Supper on the 21st of October was a huge success attended by about 80 locals of all ages. It is interesting to note how the numbers of children and young people have increased in recent years. This bodes well for the future of the hall and for the valley in general. The magnificent sum of £485 was raised for the Hall funds. Our thanks must go to Liz Gosling for organising the whole event with her usual efficiency and to hubby Tony for “selling” the raffle so expertly. Also many thanks to Suzette and other willing helpers for their fine contributions.

Our next event is the annual Children’s Christmas Party in the Hall on Saturday 2nd of December from 3 -6pm. This is a party organised by Sheila and Angela for all the children in the valley - and if the Autumn Supper is anything to go by, then it promises to be a busy and noisy afternoon with a festive atmosphere. Unfortunately I seem to be unavailable to help with this event!

And so, after Christmas, we head on into the New Year and celebrate with our 12th Night Supper on Saturday 6th of January 2007 at 7.30pm in the Hall. This is a finger food buffet where everyone brings a dish (savoury or dessert) for all to share on the central communal table. You also bring your own wine or whatever takes your fancy. There is a picture quiz and a table quiz to get your brains working after the holiday lethargy!

Looking further ahead, by popular demand, there will be another theme night at the Hall in March when the theme this time will be “A night at the Oscars” - more details in future magazines.

The AGM will be held in the Hall on Tuesday 16th of January at 7.30pm. Last year’s AGM was extremely well attended and we look forward to a similar turn out this year. Incidentally, last month’s “Rob fine thing” anagram was of course “Bonfire Night”. This month’s is “Vicars themes”. A very Happy Christmas to all in the valley.

Welcome to the new Umborne Community web site. The new WordPress based system is being rolled out over the next few weeks and should be live soon.

Bill Corr.