Following a week of heavy rain, the 71st British National Ploughing Championships took place on the Chatsworth Estate, in Derbyshire, over (what turned out to be) the sunny weekend of October 8 and 9, as almost 250 competitors ploughed their way to championship titles, plus European and World Ploughing Contest selections.
The wet-weather, the week prior, followed by brilliant sunshine, made near-perfect ground conditions for the competitors. Although trade stands arriving to the site may not have said the same as they awaited a tow onto the field.
Awarded points for their skills and abilities in the field, Michael Chappell from South Yorkshire, was the highest point scorer of the competition, winning the Reversible plough-off final with 330 points. This was the third time Mr Chappell has won the title; he performed with his Ford tractor and Kverneland plough combination to get ahead of former British Champions Ian Brewer (2nd place with 326 points) and Peter Alderslade (3rd with 307 points).
Mr Brewer, from Wadebridge, Cornwall, and Mr Alderslade, from East Bolden, Tyne and Wear, have now been selected to represent England in the European Reversible Championships.
As the Reversible plough-off Champion, Mr Chappell has been chosen to represent England in the 2023 World Ploughing Contest, held in Latvia. There, he will perform alongside the newly crowned Supreme British National Ploughing Champion and Conventional plough-off Champion, James Witty.
At the British Championships, Mr Witty, from Malton, North Yorkshire, claimed the Conventional ploughing title with 270 points, beating second placed Evan Watkin (on a score of 263), from Newtown, Powys. In an extremely close third place, Nigel Vickers from Malpas in Cheshire fell just one point behind Mr Watkin, for a score of 262.
The winners of the vintage plough-off finals, John Crowder from Sturton by Stow, Lincolnshire, Richard Ingram of Atherstone, Warwickshire, and Graham Sutton from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, have also each qualified to represent England in the 2023 European Vintage Championships in the Netherlands.
A full list of the Championship’s ‘plough-off final’ winners can be found in the table below:
| Reversible plough-off final (points) | Vintage trailing plough-off final | Classic plough-off final | Conventional plough-off final | Vintage hydraulic plough-off | Classic reversible plough-off final | |
| 1st | Michael Chappell, Doncaster, South Yorkshire (330) | John Crowder, Sturton by Stow, Lincolnshire (261) | David Thomlinson, Escrick, North Yorkshire (266) | James Witty, Malton, North Yorkshire (270) | Richard Ingram, Atherstone, Warwickshire (267) | Graham Sutton, Nuneaton, Warwickshire (303) |
| 2nd | Ian Brewer, Wadebridge, Cornwall (326) | Trevor Johnstone, Wigton, Cumbria (246) | Jon Cole, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire (264) | Evan Watkin, Newtown, Powys (263) | George Black, Earlston, Berwickshire (244) | Stephen Watkins, Maltby, South Yorkshire (296) |
| 3rd | Peter Alderslade, East Bolden, Tyne and Wear (307) | John Milnes, Sheffield, South Yorkshire (244) | Nick Morley, Lowdham, Nottinghamshire (262) | Nigel Vickers, Sarn, Malpas, Cheshire (262) | Ian Berriman, Driffield, East Yorkshire (238) | George Sutton, Nuneaton, Warwickshire (273) |
For the full list of Championship competition results, please visit: www.ploughmen.co.uk.
The 72nd British National Ploughing Championships will be held on October 14 and 15, 2023, at Bishop’s Lydeard near Taunton, Somerset.