First Two Island Cluster Meeting in Christchurch, June 2026
The King's Birthday weekend saw some twenty ringers gather for the first Two Island Cluster meeting to be held in the Garden City. Ringers came from Auckland, Palmerston North, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch and Queenstown.
Four rings with different characteristics provided varied and interesting learning environments. Thanks go to the respective Ringing Masters and Owners for their warm welcome and hospitality. Fortunately good weather helped make moving between venues easy.
To meet the desires of ringers, a wide variety of methods were rung, from Gandsire Doubles to Surprise Major. There was less focus on quarter peals to give plenty of opportunity for everyone to practice. Everyone met their aims and in some cases far exceeded them. Two discussion sessions on Conducting and Learning Cambridge were an innovation for TIC meetings.
Coffee anyone?
Socialising during ringing sessions, morning coffee and dinners on Saturday and Sunday evenings enabled old friendships to be renewed and new friendships to form. A very successful weekend saw ringers leaving enthusiastic to attend the next TIC meeting in Wellington on Labour Weekend. We thank ANZAB for their financial sponsorship of the meeting: it makes a real difference.
Derek Williams