The Centre has again been busy running its now regular events of plain method and Stedman sessions once per month. These have proved popular in providing opportunities for ringers to concentrate on one method with a strong band around them. Elsewhere in this booklet you will see reports of the DDA's courses held at the Centre, but as well as these we continue to be the venue for Yorkshire Association training days. We have also run other ad hoc events that have included individuals and groups visiting the Centre to use its facilities. All ringers are welcome and only need to make contact with me to arrange a visit.
I would like to encourage everyone to make use of the simulator. As our experience has grown we have extended the uses this equipment can be put to. One particularly valuable activity is to let the simulator monitor your striking and allow analysis after a piece of ringing to definitively show where problems occur, if they have, or how even a pleasant sounding piece of ringing does in fact have ups and downs. Another valuable use of the simulator is for individuals to attempt a piece of ringing using the simulator to ring the other bells. This attunes your listening skills and emphasises the need to ring by rhythm to maintain your place. The piece rung may not be complex, indeed a great deal of benefit can be derived from say just covering to a doubles or triples method. But of course if you really want to you can ring Bristol Maximus, Bristol Surprise Sixteen or if you're feeling particularly ambitious Little Bob Twenty-two!
The Centre of course also encourages absolute beginners and this year a number of novices have used the Centre's facilities to help begin their ringing careers. These included a middle-aged couple from the Chester area that spent a Sunday afternoon being put through their paces and left at the end of the afternoon both being able to handle a bell on their own. I have kept in touch with this couple and they continue their progress with enthusiasm in their own locality.
Put the words "ringing centre" into Google and near the top of the resultant list of websites you will find a link to our website. Since the site was launched during April 2005 there have been over 800 visits to it. Was one of them you? Keep in touch with what is going on at the Centre by making it a "favourite" in your web browser. The Chester couple of course did just that. There are lists of activities, feed back from students, useful training notes and other items of interest posted on the site that is kept well up to date.
Whilst the website has been a significant development this year, those of you who have visited the "News" page on the site will be aware of another development in that we are well on our way to providing the two dumb bells for the Centre. I am grateful to our Bell Consultant; Mike Banks who designed these and is well on with their manufacture. I would like also to take this opportunity to thank Eayre & Smith for provision of much of the material at very advantageous prices and also Peter Browne Structures for providing most of the steel for the frame at no cost to the Centre.
The Centre is supported by numerous people in different ways and is your facility to use. Make 2006 the year you took advantage of an asset the DDA has that many other Associations do not. I look forward to welcoming many more of you this year at The Gordon Halls Ringing Centre
Don Jones
Website: www.gordonhallscentre.org.uk