My early involvement with country sports could hardly be described as a great success and it seemed unlikely, to say the least, that they would provide me with as much fun as they have in later years.
Apart for the frequent attendance of doctors )after falls from ponies I could not control), my clearest recollections of learning to ride centre round a large spinster lady, to whom my parents had entrusted my tuition and whose loud, frequent and publicly expressed opinions of my ability probably gave me the idea that shooting might be a more congenial sport. The subsequent change of allegiance thus induced did not get way to a happy start when the very first two shots I ever fired missed my toes by about three inches. T hey also removed two divots for my uncle’s tennis court and caused his already ruddy complexion – and his language – to turn a deep purple. As to fishing, I discarded that at an early age when I discovered, after long hours of eager expectancy, the only thing my bent pin ever gathered was rust.
These early disappointments and a number of later mishaps notwithstanding, I have since derived an enormous amount of pleasure from participation in most branches of country sport. So that we can enjoy country sports, those who organise them put in many hours, days and weeks of very hard work, but this book does not touch on such weight matters. It is intended to reflect the fun of our traditional sports – hence its title – Vive le Sport!
Paperback.