Abingdon Silver

Abingdon Silver
The Abingdon Silver Club recently held their annual summer barbecue. They are a small friendly group who meet every week during term time at John Mason School, in Abingdon, to work in silver, copper and gold.

Creating jewellery and other pieces from sheet and wire is very satisfying and not expensive.
Abingdon Silver
They will be running their usual ‘Introduction to silversmithing’ course in October. Five of the eight places are already taken! Read about it here – https://www.abingdonsilvergroup.org.uk/beginners/

The silver replica of the Vale of White Horse is by John Huddleston and can be seen on the Abingdon Silver Group facebook page/.

Preston Cup

Preston Cup Day
At Abingdon Bowling Club teams were competing for The Preston Cup. The cup was given to the club by Alderman Preston in 1920 and first competed for in 1921. It is a challenge cup for visiting teams, and Abingdon teams.
Preston Cup Day
In previous years, elimination rounds were held beforehand, with the winning teams competing on Finals Day. This year, for the first time, shorter preliminary rounds and the finals all happened on the same day to encourage more teams to compete. The day was kicked off by the Mayor of Abingdon, Cllr Charlie Birks.
Preston Cup Day
Multiple matches happened simultaneously, throughout the day, to determine who would go forward to the finals.
Preston Cup Day
A smaller yellow ball, called the jack, is thrown first. The other balls are designed to follow a curving line, and the team with balls nearest the jack win the end.

It was windy day, with occasional showers and so I expect extra concentration was needed.
Preston Cup Day
The Duchess of Sussex  (Meghan Markle) reportedly takes a interest in bowls so others may follow. Abingdon Bowling Club has details about how you can have a go. Friday afternoons / evenings sound the best time to try.

Planning for Natural Flood Defences on the River Ock

Natural Flood Defences
The Vale of White Horse District Council agreed last week to put £68,075 towards Natural Flood Management upstream on the River Ock.

Natural Flood Management aims is to hold back flood water so that important settlements, like Abingdon, do not get it all at once. The Environment Agency will be able to use the money to employ a project manager to work with land owners along the River Ock catchment. They will identify natural ways to slow down the flow of flood water after a big downpour. This could involve tree planting so the ground can absorb more water, or allowing the river to meander naturally so the water has further to travel.

Presumably this is just the first payment. Once measures have been identified, more money will be needed.

The picture shows the River Ock flowing through Abingdon earlier today.

Shop selling Southeast Asian ingredients

Udon Thai Market
The Udon Thai Market opened three days ago. It was previously a shop selling ingredients for Southeast Asian cooking. That has not changed but the layout has changed and it feels more open.

There are now three businesses in West St Helen Street that are proud of their Thai connection: Chaba Thai (restuarant), Abingdon Thai Massage, and Udon Thai Market.