The Rye and District Country Show is this Saturday August 13 kicking off (not literally, hopefully) with the three ring horseshow from around 8-8:30am, and finishing at 6pm. But do not head for Rye Foreign as the show has moved. This year it is at Elm Tree Farm off the A259 as you approach Icklesham from Rye. Car boot sale enthusiasts will know the site well. Others will have to hope it is well signposted.
As before, the show includes dogs racing as well as horses jumping and Rye’s former Mayor, Councillor Bernie Fiddimore, will be among the doggy judges. The show officially runs from 9am to 6pm with a £5 entry – but children 15 and younger can go in free.
As well as the dogs and horses there is a Pimms Tent (usually very popular), a craft fair, a country living tent, refreshments stalls and possibly even some music – and it is in aid of St Michael’s Hospice for whom it raised £16,463 last year.
Two other rings will feature doggy events including gun dogs and a ferret tent alongside the three rings of horsey stuff – and this week’s Olympics have no doubt raised your interest in these (but the fences may be a lot lower).
If you want to get to the show at Elm Tree Farm, Icklesham by public transport, the Stagecoach 100 service leaves Rye at 44 minutes past the hour and Rye and District Community Transport (RCT) are running a free bus service leaving Rye train station at 12:15 pm and 1:15 pm – and it can also be caught at the well signposted Tilling Green bus stops for the RCT service at around 12:10pm and 1:10 pm.
The return journey can be made by the 100 service, but the community bus will also be available if there is sufficient demand, says RCT manager Pat Hughes. Elm Tree Farm is on the A259 on the site where the regular boot fairs are held and, if the bus drivers are as helpful as First’s down in Devon, buses will stop by the farm turned into a showground for the day.
Earlier in the week the Government’s weather forecasters were predicting a cloudy, but dry, day on Saturday – and the show does include a number of tents !
Photo : Seana Lanigan