Roger to step down from chairman’s job

He followed in his father’s footsteps to lead the Common Riding

THE chairman of the
Common Riding members has announced he will step down from the post in April next year.
Roger Maxwell told the members at their February meeting in the Crown Hotel that he would also stand down from the committee.
However, he would continue as officiating magistrate if he was asked to do so.
Roger has been chairman since 2002 and his father, Jimmy, was chairman for 25 years before him.
He said: “I very much enjoy it and, if I’m going to step down, I want to do it while I still am enjoying it. It’s been great fun.”
John Elliot, treasurer, produced a comprehensive spreadsheet detailing all prize money for every event going back to 1970.
Clearly. some events had lagged behind others, many staying the same for a long period. This would be reviewed by a sub-committee in March.
Extensive clearance work had been carried out on the top part of the Kirk Wynd which had become particularly overgrown. This had made an enormous difference and the area now looked very tidy.
It had been hoped to carry out work on an uneven area at the start of the sprint track.
This would ideally be done immediately after the cricket season. A quotation would be sought for the work.
New high jump mats, stands and pole would be bought for this year’s Common Riding on July 31.
Traffic
Problems with traffic parked on part of the Common Riding route, namely, next to Ashley Bank House and at the
Kilngreen, had been encountered last year.
At this year’s police liaison meeting a plan of the town would be produced to highlight the route and the points beyond which traffic should not proceed.
Roger and Tommy Morrison, vice-chairman, had attended a meeting about the sale of Langholm Moor.
They were pleased to report that the Common Riding was at the forefront of the minds of the people involved.
The pipe band had made it known they were seeking to raise funds to help with buying new uniforms.
The treasurer pointed out that the members had previously given £2,500 to the town band to help buy new instruments. They agreed a similar sum would be made available to the pipe band.
The cattle show committee were aware of the damage caused to the Castleholm at last year’s event and had confirmed they would deal with it as and when the weather improved.
Buccleuch Estates would also be involved and the show committee said they had formulated a plan to do work on the field as soon as it was dry enough.
Members agreed that a meeting should take place between all Castleholm user groups at the start of the year to discuss the various issues and try to set out a workable plan.
It was mentioned that organising and running the Common Riding was a job which grew every year and recruiting new members was very important.
Any member of the public, who wished to join, would be made very welcome and would enjoy the great satisfaction felt by all members on the completion of another successful day.