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New World Record at the TIMBERSPORTS® Championship

June 18, 2025/in News, Press Release/by Admin

New World Record at the TIMBERSPORTS® Championship: The original extreme sport lived up to its reputation at the 2025 British TIMBERSPORTS® Championship this weekend. Returning to the Royal Three Counties Show in Malvern, Worcestershire, the competition was back with a bang as Rachel Ferrington from Hay-on-Wye produced an awesome display on the Stock Saw to […]

Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest

June 18, 2025/in Events, News, Press Release/by Admin

Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest: GroundsFest 2025 is revving things up with one of its boldest and most exhilarating attractions yet — Lawn mower racing and the inaugural GroundsFest Cup. Taking place across both days of the event, this professionally run spectacle promises edge-of-your-seat action, heart-pounding excitement, and a whole lot of fun. This […]

New World Record at the TIMBERSPORTS® Championship

June 18, 2025/in News, Press Release/by Admin

Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest

June 18, 2025/in Events, News, Press Release/by Admin

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

New World Record at the TIMBERSPORTS® Championship

June 18, 2025/in News, Press Release/by Admin

New World Record at the TIMBERSPORTS® Championship: The original extreme sport lived up to its reputation at the 2025 British TIMBERSPORTS® Championship this weekend. Returning to the Royal Three Counties Show in Malvern, Worcestershire, the competition was back with a bang as Rachel Ferrington from Hay-on-Wye produced an awesome display on the Stock Saw to secure a new Women’s World Record.

But the edge-of-your-seat action extended throughout the whole weekend with the first competition, the Pro Qualifier, taking place on Friday 13 June. Featuring 14 competitors, including four from Ireland, it was designed to sort the best from the rest with the top 6 qualifying for the British Pro Championship on Saturday.

New World Record at the TIMBERSPORTS® Championship

The high stakes certainly delivered an exciting competition with 32 new personal best times, a new Irish National Record for Daragh Clogher and a new British National Record for Gerald Lloyd, both in the Stock Saw. This discipline, where competitors have to saw two discs or ‘cookies’ from a log using a STIHL MS 661 chainsaw, produced personal best times for 28 athletes across the weekend, including Ferrington’s World Record.

Ultimately though, consistent times across all the disciplines is what is needed to reach the top of the podium and all three spots in the Qualifier were taken by the Irish athletes, Gav Thompson, Daragh Clogher and Seamus Ryan. The remaining three to qualify for the Pro Championship were Osian Williams, Martin Price and John Lewis.

Glen Penlington was looking to retain his Pro title for the fourth year in a row on Saturday, but he was anything but complacent about it; “You never know what could happen on that stage. Even the best athletes can make mistakes and I’ve had plenty of issues with my Hot Saw before,” said Penlington.

There were plenty of other competitors looking to take over the top spot, including the 2024 Team GB athletes, Rob Chatley, George Spencer, Graham Turner and Tom Redmond. Spencer produced personal best times in all of the first three disciplines, the Underhand Chop, the Stock Saw and the Standing Block Chop, but his competition was derailed when he received a disqualification in the Springboard after his axe head became loose. He managed to keep his cool and deliver a new National Record in the Hot Saw though, which meant he secured third place overall.

Going into the final Hot Saw heat of the whole competition, Chatley and Penlington were neck and neck on 60 points each, meaning that whoever won the heat would take the title. Athletes are given 60 seconds to warm up their saws before the start of the heat and Penlington looked increasingly worried as his saw failed to start at all during the warm-up period.

When judge Andy Hall issued the starting call of “Athletes ready”, Penlington had no choice but to get into position and pray. But as the whistle sounded his saw started on the first pull and he delivered a blistering time of just 8.73 seconds. Joy turned to panic again though when the judges called a video review in order to check that he had cut three complete cookies giving Penlington an anxious wait. But minutes later, Hall announced that both of the cuts were good giving Penlington the title, much to the delight of his nervous family, including sister Zoe Penlington and girlfriend Georgia Lewis, who were competing in the Women’s Championship on Sunday.

And the Women’s competition continued to deliver the drama, when Rachel Ferrington, who only took up the sport in 2023, achieved a new Stock Saw Women’s World Record in the first heat of the competition, cutting two cookies from the log in 8.82 seconds. That dominance continued throughout the event, recording impressive times, including a new National Record in the Single Buck.

“I actually can’t believe it,” said Ferrington afterwards, “I’m still in shock! I’m never confident that I can win, but I guess I can start to believe in myself more now!”

Georgia Lewis and Cat Eccles rounded out the podium in second and third places. Eccles, from Ayr in Scotland, was particularly pleased after recovering from a serious injury in 2023 to return to the sport and credits her performance to the training she had been doing with her son Logan McCubbin, who was competing in the Rookie competition too.

The Rookie Championship was another fiercely-fought battle, and without the 2024 Rookie champion Jack Morris to defend his title, there were plenty of athletes looking to step up. Rowan Luxton and Zac Powell had been training hard ready for the competition but with six competitors making their TIMBERSPORTS® debut, it was hard to predict who would finish where in the results.

Once the competition started though, Luxton, from Llandrindod Wells in Powys, revealed his strength finishing with the fastest times in all five of the disciplines. Guest athlete Nicola Trecarichi from Italy pushed hard but could only achieve second place in the standings, followed by Jake Bufton in third place.

For full results from the weekend’s competitions, visit the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® database.

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

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Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest

June 18, 2025/in Events, News, Press Release/by Admin

Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest: GroundsFest 2025 is revving things up with one of its boldest and most exhilarating attractions yet — Lawn mower racing and the inaugural GroundsFest Cup.

Taking place across both days of the event, this professionally run spectacle promises edge-of-your-seat action, heart-pounding excitement, and a whole lot of fun.

Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest

This is no gentle ride around the garden. These are specially modified racing mowers, stripped of their blades but supercharged with adrenaline, skill, and competitive spirit. Expect high speeds, roaring engines, tight turns, and a field of elite riders battling it out on a custom-built track in front of a live crowd.

Organised by the West Midlands Lawn Mower Racing Association, some of the UK’s most experienced lawn mower racers will be competing for glory and the honour of becoming the first ever winner of The GroundsFest Cup. It’s fast. It’s furious. It’s fiercely competitive – but above all, it’s seriously good fun.

And there’s more to it than just the thrill of the race. GroundsFest visitors will get to see a range of lawn mower brands in action, used and pushed to their limits by the pros. It’s a unique chance to witness these machines in a whole new light — not just as tools of the trade, but as vehicles of pure entertainment.

Lawn mower racing is guaranteed to turn heads and create excitement at GroundsFest 2025. It’s just one more way GroundsFest continues to break the mould and deliver something truly different to any other trade event.

Think you’ve seen everything a grounds management event has to offer? Think again. This is lawn mower racing. This is GroundsFest.

Who will take the chequered flag? Join us on 9 and 10 September at Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire, to find out.

You can also follow GroundsFest on X, Facebook and Instagram @GroundsFest for much more news, reviews and insightful views

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.

Half Sized Blog Element (Single Author Style)

Half Sized Blog Element (Multi Author Style)

New World Record at the TIMBERSPORTS® Championship

Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest

New World Record at the TIMBERSPORTS® Championship

Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

New World Record at the TIMBERSPORTS® Championship

Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest

Lawn Mower Racing Roars into GroundsFest: GroundsFest 2025 is revving things up with one of its boldest and most exhilarating attractions yet — Lawn mower racing and the inaugural GroundsFest Cup.

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