by Megan Canning | Aug 13, 2013
Shotts competed at the Scottish Pipe Band Championships in Dumbarton on Saturday, 27 July, 2013
The contest was the band’s fourth competition this year, and the third major championship of the season. Continuing in the vein of the previous two major championships, the weather at Dumbarton provided an excellent opportunity for bands to compete in the sunshine, providing a level playing field in terms of equal conditions for preparation and competition. The contest was a March, Strathspey, and Reel event, and the band drew its number two set on the line, which includes the Links of Forth, Atholl Cummers, and MacAllister’s Dirk. In the end, the band finished just outside the prize list at 7 overall. Our Drum Major Iona Burns also fell just outside the list, only missing the final by a few points, but still warm in the glow of her previous win at the Balloch Highland Games a few weekends previous The Scottish Championships was also the first day of the band’s in-house fundraising team putting some of their recent brainstorming to work. The Shotts band has put together a special fundraising committee of volunteers who are committed to inventing fun and inclusive ways to raise money. Saturday’s activity introduced a blind sweepstakes, where participants paid £2 to draw the name of a band and drum corps in both Grade 1 and Grade 2, where the winner was the participant who drew the winning band. Shotts’ own David Anderson drew “Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band” as winner of the overall award and FMM’s Chris Pollock drew “Boghall and Bathgate” as winners of the Best Drum Corps, and each won £20 for their successful draw.
The Grade 2 prize went to Shotts piper RJ Houston who drew the Lomond and Clyde Pipe Band, who donated his winnings back to the band. The band also conducted a general raffle for a donated bottle of wine and vodka. The fundraising was a fun team effort, and the band hopes to continue with similar ideas in the future.
The week was also a big occasion for band Chairman Sandy Bell, who turned 70 a few days before the championship. The band presented Sandy with a cake in his honour, which he kindly shared with band members.
The band’s next public appearance will be in North Berwick, followed by the World Pipe Band Championships. Stay tuned for more information about Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia during the week leading up to the World Pipe Band Championships!