patrick martin CA article - Bicester Hunt with Whaddon Chase
Transcription
patrick martin CA article - Bicester Hunt with Whaddon Chase
FEATURE FEATURE HUNTING HUNTING Hunting’s great ambassador Baroness Mallalieu, President of the Countryside Alliance “Patrick’s love of, care for and rapport with his hounds is matched only by his outstanding ability to communicate with other people and to make the case for hunting. An articulate diplomat with the highest standards in all he does, he has been, and I hope will continue to be one of our greatest champions.” ➺ P A T R I C K M A R T I N is set to retire after 23 seasons as Huntsman of the Bicester Hunt with Whaddon Chase.An exemplary frontline ambassador through some testing times, P O L L Y P O R T W I N looks at Patrick’s career P atrick Martin’s working lifetime has been committed to service. His hunting career began when he started work in the Dulverton East kennels under huntsman Walter Perry as a 16-year-old. With no riding experience, it was a baptism of fire so Patrick joined the Kings Troop to improve his riding in 1975. It was here that his hunting career really took off as he began whipping-in to the Royal Artillery (RA) in 1978. As a young man, he went to the Linlithgow and Stirlingshire in 1979 as first whipper-in for two seasons before taking on the first whipper-in position at the Berkeley. During his time at the Berkeley, Patrick met his future wife Susannah, a local farmer’s daughter. “PATRICK IS RIGHTLY INCREDIBLY PROUD OF THE PACK THAT HAS... CLAIMED NUMEROUS CHAMPIONSHIPS.” 28 COUNTRYSIDE ALLIANCE l SPRING 2015 After 11 seasons at the Berkeley, Patrick’s next chapter began when the Bicester with Whaddon Chase (BHWC) were recruiting a kennelhuntsman to share the horn with Ian McKie MFH in their four day a week country. Patrick hunted the dog hounds two days a week in the northern parts of the Bicester country, whipping in to McKie in the formidable Thursday and Monday countries The role itself would have been challenging enough for most, however within the remit, Patrick had to oversee McKie’s introduction to hunting hounds. This was a task that Patrick relished and only a man of his special character could really have made it work as well as it did, showing utmost professionalism at all times, even when it was at its most testing.The relationship between the two huntsmen has created a lifelong bond and they share a mutual respect for each other. When McKie moved to hunt the “FAMOUSLY HE TOLD ALUN MICHAEL “WHAT WE HAVE HERE IN THESE HOUNDS IS LIKE A PRECIOUS ANTIQUE. WE’RE GOING TO CHERISH AND STORE IT UNTIL WE CAN BRING IT OUT AGAIN.” College Valley/North Northumberland in 2003, the hunt committee appointed Patrick to hunt both BHWC packs, hunting Mondays,Tuesdays,Thursdays and Saturdays. Aside from providing consistently good sport in the BHWC country for 23 seasons, Patrick has also been heavily involved in the breeding and development of the pack during his time at Stratton Audley.The distinctive “Bicester type” is larger than the average Modern English foxhound and they are extremely powerful, a quality that Patrick believes helps them cross the country as it is today, with plenty of wire. Success on the flags was not something the Bicester was familiar with and it was a steep learning curve for those involved when they first took their hounds - without success to Builth Wells in Patrick’s early days. Patrick is rightly incredibly proud of the pack that has since claimed numerous championships at all of the major hound shows including Peterborough. No doubt it was during his years in the Kings Troop that Patrick had instilled in him the discipline that would stand www.countryside-alliance.org.uk him in good stead throughout his career. Meticulous about standards, Patrick’s kennels have always been run with military precision and although those under his tutelage may not necessarily have appreciated it at the time, those who have gone on in hunt service themselves quietly credit Patrick for teaching them so well. Patrick was heavily involved in the redevelopment of their magnificent kennels and often advises other packs on improvements that can be made within their own set up. An eloquent spokesman, Patrick has become an ambassador for our sport throughout the campaign for hunting. A great moment of pride came when he blew Albert Buckle’s hunting horn on stage at the first Hyde Park Rally in July 1997, a time when most of us couldn’t believe that hunting was threatened quite in the way it was. Leading up to the enforcement of the ban, Patrick was interviewed by television and radio on a regular basis; he gave evidence to the Burns Enquiry and appeared before Alun Michael’s various www.countryside-alliance.org.uk select committees. He was also one of the plaintiffs in the legal challenge to the Labour government’s use of the Parliament Act. Famously he told Alun Michael “What we have here in these hounds is like a precious antique. We’re going to cherish and store it until we can bring it out again”. A natural and capable sportsman, there is no doubt that Patrick could have become a professional sportsman or a professional actor. Golf has become one of his releases from the pressure of hunting under the ban and he has played polo alongside the Prince of Wales, raising money for the Hunt Staff Benefit Society (HSBS). Patrick and Susannah’s son John is a professional polo player and enjoys great support from them both. A true showman and entertainer, Patrick has played a starring role in many of the hunt’s fundraising activities throughout the years and can be relied upon to act as MC at any event while Susannah has been a key player in the very active Bicester and Whaddon Chasers supporters club. Her catering skills are legendary. Patrick calculates that he has hunted an amazing 2,500 days since coming to the Bicester with Whaddon Chase – that is the equivalent of hunting every day of the week for seven years.That is truly a commitment to service. ● “PATRICK CALCULATES THAT HE HAS HUNTED AN AMAZING 2,500 DAYS SINCE COMING TO THE BICESTER WITH WHADDON CHASE.” Simon Hart MP, former Chief Executive of the Countryside Alliance “Ten years on and we forget the high drama which went with the hunting debate. We won the debate in the media because we had brilliant advocates who put our case with humility, humour, conviction and with passion. Patrick epitomised those qualities then just as he does now. Hunting’s survival is as much to do with his input as anyone’s” Tim Bonner, Countryside Alliance Campaigns Director: “Over years of passing journalists and television cameras on to Patrick I think there is only one word that I have never heard him utter, and that is ‘no’. However late the request, however obscure the newspaper or channel, Patrick made the case for hunting without complaint. He is one of the finest advocates hunting could ever wish to have” Robin Hanbury-Tenison, Chief Executive of the Countryside Alliance 1997-1999 “It’s all a long time ago now, but I well remember Patrick as the staunchest and most convincing voice for hunting back in those heady days of rallies and marches.” Patrick’s testimonial fund Former joint-master John O’Neill is coordinating the fundraising effort for Patrick’s fund to which any donations are most welcome. Please send cheques, made payable to “Patrick Martin Testimonial Fund”, to J G O’Neill Esq, Hall Farm, Stratton Audley, Bicester, OX27 9BT. SPRING 2015 l COUNTRYSIDE ALLIANCE 29