IT WAS an event which attracted hundreds of spectators – and many complaints. The annual duck racing at Grove, near Wantage, a tradition going back more than 200 years, created great excitement in the village.
Large crowds would gather along the Letcombe Brook on the last day of Grove Feast and watch as competitors jumped in and tried to catch the ducks.
A report in the Oxford Mail in July 1956 described how the races were organised.
“A blast from the whistle of the starter, Percy Cook, was the signal for the competitors, who lined up at the bridge, to jump into the water and race for the duck that Mr Cook had put into the water about 30 yards downstream.
“Competitors splashed through the water after the duck, the one catching it keeping it as a prize.”
Crowds line the bank to watch the 1955 races.
That year, there were 12 ducks and 12 races. Winners were Bryan Holt and John Neale, of King Alfred’s School, with three ducks each.
Organisers insisted that the ducks did not suffer cruelty, but the RSPCA took a different view.
An official said after watching the 1956 races: “We strongly deplore these races. We have received many letters of complaint about them, not only from people living in Grove but from all over the country.”
Mr P J Owell, treasurer of the organising committee, said: “So far as I can see, there is no cruelty and that is the view of many other people. Spectators come for the fun of watching the competitors falling over in the water.”
Fellow organiser Mr O V Knight said: “Our races are not terrible like stag or fox hunting. The difference seems to be that our races are the poor man’s entertainment while stag and fox hunting are rich men’s sports.
“Competitors are always told to be careful in handling the birds and we do all we can to see that none of them is hurt.”
Roger Weeks, one of the winners in 1957.
But concern was clearly growing among some supporters, particularly over the threat by the RSPCA to take legal action if the races continued.
The warnings were heeded and the last races appear to have been held in 1960.
The Feast continued, but duck racing was consigned to village history.
Memory Lane:
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