Ponteland 41 Club has a record to its name!!
New Year’s Day every year is a special day for Ponteland 41 Club. Since the 14th Century (!!) the village has regularly staged a Wheelbarrow Race - apart from war years and, for just for one year only, a pandemic. Ponteland Round Table started to become involved in the annual Race from its inauguration as a Table in April 1968 and later offered and took over the full organisation of the event. Since Ponteland 41 Club was formed in 1978 it too assisted and supported its Table by becoming very actively involved.
When Ponteland Round Table closed in 2006 our 41 Club took over the full responsibility of staging the event, with the grateful help and support in recent years of members of Ponteland Rugby Club. This year the Race, watched by thousands of spectators, raised £3,800 for two local Hospices and over the years Table and 41 Club have been instrumental in raising hundreds of thousands of pounds for local charities, excluding other fund-raising activities, by organising this very Race alone. Three races (Junior, Open and Ladies) are held each year.
Contestants Competing (and enjoying the fun)
Ponteland 41 Club broke its own record in the last year! Marshalling, yet again, was 96 years young 41 Club Member, Neil Buchanan. Neil joined South Shields Round Table (No. 162) in 1954 and has now been a member of our ‘Table Family’ for nearly 70 years! At the age of 40 he became a member of 41 Club and has been a member of our great 41 Club organisation for 56 years!
Retired Chartered Civil Engineer Neil has been an avid attendee of numerous national conferences and also an international conference in Durban over his years as a member of the Association. Of his (safety) marshalling duties Neil says ‘I seem to have been doing it for as long as I can remember!’
Ponteland 41 Club will endeavour to keep on breaking records with, hopefully, Neil’s continuing involvement!!
