My Passion with Val Dobson: Experiencing the ups and downs of the art of bell-ringing

A LONG time ago, while attending girl guides, our local church group made a request for volunteers to learn the ancient art of campanology.

Little did I know that, 39 years later, I would still be ringing those same bells in the same church. The request was made owing to the declining numbers of ringers, which is still a problem today, with many churches lacking ringers.

The first thing I was taught was how to ring a bell up. This involved quite a lot of skill and quite a few months practise before I was able to do this on my own.

Ringing a bell, I discovered, required more than tugging on a rope; you have to master ringing the bell up, then pulling the 'sally' on the hand stroke and then pulling the rope down on the back stroke. If that wasn't enough, I then had to learn how to 'stand' (stop) the bell by resting the 'stay', a piece of wood attached to the headstock of the bell, against the 'slider', a piece of wood attached to the frame of the bell.

Pull too hard and it could result in the stay breaking, causing the rope to wrap around the bell's wooden wheel, sending the rope skywards – if you didn't let go, you would go up as well.

The rest of my time has been spent studying the many thousands of method combinations that can be rung on different number of bells, which can be very frustrating until they are mastered, but very rewarding when achieved. This all needs dedication and commitment as to achieve anything in bell ringing requires regular attendance at practise night so that you and your team can progress.

Ringing enables me to contribute to different community events, such as weddings, church services at Easter, Christmas and New Year and also celebrate the life of people at funerals.

These can involve short 30-minute rings or longer three-hour peals for special occasions. At weddings, the bells are 'fired' (all bells ring together at the same time for 14 counts) to wish the couple good luck as they leave the church grounds.

At New Year, the bells are rung half 'muffled' (a leather cap placed on one side of the bell clapper to dampen the tone). The muffles are rung up to midnight to ring the old year out, and removed after midnight to ring the new year in.

After 39 years of ringing I still class myself as a learner but am proud that I have stuck with my hobby as many people give up before they get to the interesting and rewarding part – and it's a far cry from my job.

If anyone is interest in learning this ancient art, please contact your local church; your attendance would always be welcomed.