It was a double header for ploughing enthusiasts over the weekend with two days of competition at Oxford.
On Saturday the Oxford Working Mens Club (Vintage section) held their annual ploughing match at Woodbine Farm near Oxford.
On Sunday the North Canterbury Ploughing Association held their annual ploughing competition on the same property to find regional qualifiers for the New Zealand nationals in April 2023.
President Peter Mehrtens says it was and ideal weekend for ploughing and he was happy for the 22 entries on both days.
‘‘The weather was ideal and the ground conditions were also perfect, that makes all the difference,’’ he said.
Mr Mehrtens finished third on Sundays Ploughing Match. and now qualifies for the New Zealand Ploughing Champs in Milton on April 23, 2023. The weekends events covered vintage tractors and ploughs, a silver plough competition, Clydesdale horses and modern tractors with reversible ploughs.
Mr Mehrtens says each competitor was trying to achieve evenness, straightness, effective weed control, leave no holes and maintain a good appearance in their runs up and down their section of the competition course.
‘‘In the two hours you have to complete your entry, it’s all about concentration, finesse and how you set up the plough which determines how your first split looks and then the following lines.’’
Woodbine Farm owners John and Sharon Chynoweth took the reins of their Clydesdales Blue and Flash, and entered the Rural News Horses competition. Mr Chynoweth says it’s all about “how you set up the plough, how it’s hitched to the horses and how they do their part.”
The couple have been competing for about seven years and Mr Chynoweth said their interest spawned from his interest in vintage cars and Sharon’s love for horses.
The pair won on both days of the competitions.
Bill Ward of Rangiora, didn’t come from a farming background, he’s a retired engineer, but he loves ploughing.
‘‘It’s a lot of fun and the people involved are great, there is a lot of camaraderie and fun here each meeting,’’ he said.
Driving the 1951 Allis Chalmers 1951 tractor and 1940s era plough, Mr Ward said he loves the desire for finesse one gets when sitting on a tractor trying to make the furrow as straight as possible.
