News

The Association’s AGM 2025

The Association’s AGM 2025

Marcus Bicknell

We had a very productive meeting on Wednesday 12th November with about 30 members present.

Read the minutes at https://hodgemoor.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/agm2025.pdf

The meeting opened with an excellent talk by Ruth Dunkin, Head of Community & Events at Thames Valley Air Ambulance. What makes their rescue service different from the NHS is their highly equipped helicopters and road ambulances bring an A&E capacity to the location itself. Time is of the essence, with heart attacks being the most frequent call out. CPR, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, is a life-saving emergency
procedure that involves chest compressions (and, for trained individuals, rescue breaths) to keep blood flowing and oxygen moving through the body when a person’s heart and breathing have stopped. If you encounter an unresponsive person who is not breathing normally, immediately call emergency services (999 or 112), and then begin CPR, which includes hands-only compressions for untrained rescuers. We have put the map of defibrillators closest to Hodgemoor on the last page of these minutes.

Support the Thames Valley Ambulance with their lottery https://www.tvairambulance.org.uk/support-us/lottery/

Having had a few moments of silence at the opening of the AGM to give some thoughts for Geoff Gudgion, our friend and long-time Treasurer who died of cancer on 3rd August, we made two decisions:
a)   A proposal to name a trail or entrance after Geoff Gudgion was fully supported. It was decided that “Geoff’s Jolly” for the Western Bridleway was the best, as Geoff used to love having a good old canter up it!
b) A bench in memory of Geoff was also discussed. The committee will progress on alternatives, maybe in the raw-hewn style of Frank Everest’s at Waylands.

We urge members to have a look through the useful topics in the minutes and to plan on coming next year.

 

Christmas Dressage at Waylands 28 Dec 2025

Christmas Dressage at Waylands 28 Dec 2025

Marcus Bicknell

Hodgemoor Riding Association

In memory of Geoff Gudgion, who was based at Waylands with his horse Ida.

A Between-Christmas-and-New-Year Dressage

Waylands Equestrian Centre, Indoor Arena, Seer Green HP9 2RQ

Sunday 28 December 2025, from 9.30

Download your entry form here: schedule_dressage_waylands_28_december_2025

Prizes for best Xmas or New Year’s Eve outfits! Photos will be taken on the day of any outfits (horse or rider or both) and posted on the Hodgemoor Facebook page. Prizes will be awarded on the number of Likes after a week and the judge’s assessment. However, dressing up is not obligatory, just correct dressage attire is fine. Mulled wine. Special Rosette and gift for those who take part and also at the Hodgemoor Dressage at Windmill Farm on 7 December (for which the entry procedure is via MyRidingLife.com not Susie, see poster below).

  •  Class 1: Intro 1
  •  Class 2: Prelim 1
  •  Class 3: Novice 1
  •  Class 4: PYO Novice 2  or Elementary 2

Young riders (two age groups; 11 years and under; 12 to 16 years on the day of the event) will be classified with the adults and also judged separately, so give your age on the entry form. Cost:  £15 per class, £20 if you are not a member of the Hodgemoor Riding Association.  Entries close: 6 p.m. Tuesday 23rd December.  Numbers will be limited.

Download your entry form here: schedule_dressage_waylands_28_december_2025

Geoff Gudgion – his life

Geoff Gudgion – his life

Marcus Bicknell

We thought you might like to read more about Geoffrey’s life, in fact several in the riding and writing communities have asked to know more.

I cooperated with Geoff’s family, Cambridge friends from 50 years ago and more recent writing friends to bring together details of his terrific life which will interest you. This is not so much an obituary as an account of his life which serves as a long-lasting online tribute to a good friend of Hodgemoor, the community and those who knew him.

With thanks to James Gudgion for coordinating the family’s input; to Graham Wiltshire, James Wrigley and Charles Style for inputting from the perspective of Geoff’s Cambridge friends; and to writing friend Clare Christian clare166@gmail.com   www.clarechristian.co.uk

The account of Geoff’s life… click on  https://hodgemoor.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Geoffrey-Nigel-Gudgion-his-life.pdf

Geoff’s funeral, order of service… https://hodgemoor.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Geoffrey_Gudgion_order_of_service_8Sept2025-1.pdf

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
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Visit the Roman Road in Hodgemoor 27 July

Visit the Roman Road in Hodgemoor 27 July

Marcus Bicknell
Those of you who attended Nigel Rothwell’s talk in Seer Green on the Roman Road between Verulamium (St Albans) and Silchester in April may be interested to know that he will be leading walks around Hodgemoor Woods, including visiting the road, on 27th July. This is part of the Council for British Archaeology’s Festival of Archaeology and is in conjunction with the Buckinghamshire Archaeological Society. Booking is essential as the number of attendees is restricted. However, the walks are open to the public and can be booked either from the Festival website at https://www.archaeologyuk.org/festival/festival-event-listing/hodgemoor-woods-heritage-and-wellbeing-walk.html, or directly with Buckinghamshire Archaeological Society at https://bas1.org.uk/bas-outings-july-2025. There is a small charge for non-BAS members of £5 – cash or card (assuming the technology doesn’t let us down).
The walks are 3.5 km and 3 hours, on woodland paths. All information is also all provided at the Festival booking site.
E-bikes not allowed in Hodgemoor

E-bikes not allowed in Hodgemoor

Marcus Bicknell

Further to recent incidents in Hodgemoor Woods and enquiries from members of the public, we publish here the law which prohibits e-bikes in these Woods.

Section 34 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (as amended by Schedule 7 Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000) states that it is illegal to ride or drive a motor vehicle on common land, moorland, Forestry Commission land or any land that is not forming part of a road without authorisation. There are a range of penalties available including heavy fines, and the power to confiscate vehicles and bikes which are used off-road in a manner which causes ‘alarm, distress and annoyance’ in s59 and s60 of the Police Reform Act 2002.

This applies on Forestry England land whether the bike is an ‘electrically assisted pedal cycle’ (EAPC) or not. Users of e-bikes are reminded that you must know the specification of your e-bike and whether it is an EAPC or not before setting out anywhere, including roads and pavements. Not certain? Check it out. Until the new bill comes out classifying e-bikes as motor vehicles for all legal purposes, the follow is the definition of an EAPC:

An EAPC (electrically assisted pedal cycle’ (EAPC)

  • must have pedals that can be used to propel it
  • can have more than 2 wheels, for example a tricycle
  • It can be propelled up to 15.5mph without pedalling but only if it’s been approved.
  • must have an electric motor with a ‘continuous rated power’ output of no more than 250 watts and
  • which must not be able to propel the bike at more than 15.5 miles per hour (mph)
Hodgemoor donation to Thames Valley Air Ambulance

Hodgemoor donation to Thames Valley Air Ambulance

Marcus Bicknell

On Saturday 10th May the Thames Valley Air Ambulance, at their Stokenchurch HQ open day, received a donation for £500 from the Hodgemoor Riding Association, Frank Everest, Susie and Marcus Bicknell. Our photo shows, Nicola Bishop (Community Fundraising Manager) and Ruth Dunkin (Head of Community & Events) of the Thames Valley Air Ambulance with Marcus Bicknell (chairman) and Susie Bicknell (secretary) of the Hodgemoor Riding Association. £300 of the donation was from Frank Everest whose fee for maintenance work in Hodgemoor Woods he wanted to give to charity. Frank at Waylands Equestrian is a great support to the riding community. £200 was from Susie and Marcus.

We can strongly recommend you attend one of the open days of the Thames Valley Air Ambulance (Open Days 15 Aug & 12 Dec https://www.tvairambulance.org.uk/hq-open-days) where you can get to understand the extraordinarily high medical skills deployed by the organisation across Berkshire Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire on an average 9 times a day by helicopter and by car. Their objective and specialisation now is to co complete as much treatment as possible on the scene of the incident including surgical operations, setting wound fractures and administrating advanced drugs. Of their 3000 interventions per year 65 are equestrian related. We horse riders remain grateful for the knowledge that they can come to help if required.

The charity is totally funded by the community it serves, receiving no government or lottery funding – there are lots of way you can support from making a donation, taking part in an event or even leaving a gift in your will. In addition volunteering is a huge help to the charity, whether as a one-off or more regularly. The team would love to hear from you to discuss any of the above further and can be reached via fundraising@tvairambulance.org.uk

The Hodgemoor Riding Association has raised over £300,000 since 2000 to encourage horse-riders away from busy traffic and into the woods and horse trails in the Seer Green, Jordans and Chalfont area. www.hodgemoor.org.uk

Look at the media release or forward it in pdf: Thames Valley Air Ambulance Hodgemoor donation 10May2025

Pay by standing order

Marcus Bicknell

If you pay your membership by bank transfer please consider making it a standing order. This greatly reduces the work to be done by the Hodgemoor Riding Association secretary, work done since 2000 by Susie Bicknell. We have put the standing order form on our website now, to encourage you to download it, fill it out and get it back to us (email or post). The form is in MS Word so you can type in your details easily…

https://hodgemoor.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/so_standing_order_mandate_hodgemoor.doc

We confirm that the Association will reimburse you any monies paid on a standing order after you notify us of your leaving the area and the Association.

By the way, if you pay be PayPal then setting up a PayPal annual payment to us is even easier. Then the secretary does not have to remind you and chase you every year.

Thanks in advance, Marcus

Trail works in Hodgemoor, July 2024

Trail works in Hodgemoor, July 2024

Marcus Bicknell

Following the decisions of the Hodgemoor Riding Association’s AGM of November 2023 (see footnote [1]) we have received and accepted contractors’ quotes. Forestry England undertakes the works at the cost of the Hodgemoor Riding Association under the contract of 2016 (see footnote [2]) under which horse riders have the right to use the permissive trails in Hodgemoor and the obligation to fund maintenance. Since 2001 we have raised over £250,000 and have helped make Hodgemoor Woods into an amenity of such value to all users including walkers.

Cyclists are permitted to go on the bridleways (a statutory right) and the horse trails (a permissive right accorded by Forestry Englanbd and the Hodgemoor Riding Association) but are not allowed to ride on footpaths or anywhere else in the woods. Horse-riders pay and annual membership; cyclists are encouraged to contribute by joining (link at footnote [3])

Works start on Wednesday 31 July and will continue for about 10 days. The car park in Bottrells Lane will be closed during the works to minimise danger to walkers, cyclists, riders and dogs around the heavy earth-moving equipment. Work is done respecting the woods’ status as a Site of Special Scientific Interest and Natural England’s requirements including the use of pH-neutral hoggin. Each part of the work in the list below has an alpha-ident relating it to the map at https://hodgemoor.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Hodgemoor-trails-2023-needing-work-2024-MB-SAB-alpha-idents.jpg

D – Amber’s Trail link to Bracken Ride.  

Rebuild 10 metre section of the trail which has turned to mud – 250mm depth of 50mm limestone and 50mm depth of hoggin.

10T limestone and 2T hoggin.

E – Yellow Brick Road. 2 x 10 metre separate sections half way up trail- 250mm depth of 50mm limestone and 50mm depth of hoggin.

20T limestone and 4T hoggin.

F – Rawlings Corner. Build up the ground between the two southerly posts preventing vehicles from getting into the woods, puddle all year.

3T type 1 granite

I – The Mount. Break-up of surface on the slope due to uncontrolled flood flow. The solution is to install water bars or interceptor dykes, large stones or strong wood embedded diagonally in the trail at intervals.

5 x 2m length waterbars – made up of 150mm-300mm limestone rocks.

J – The Mount. 20m section of path. The tree roots at the top of the Mount are quite an obstacle now – raise the surface of the path with new material – 250mm depth of 50mm limestone and 50mm depth of hoggin.

20T limestone and 4T hoggin.

K – The Glade. The Glade needs 10 metre resurfacing as it has turned to mud over the culvert pipe. Second area further up needs 10 metres resurfacing – 250mm depth of 50mm limestone and 50mm depth of hoggin.

20T limestone and 5T hoggin.

 L – The Glade. Large puddle at the bottom of the Glade towards Widmer Corner, junction with the Dell – 2 x Culverts and 25m resurfacing required – 250mm depth of 50mm limestone and 50mm depth of hoggin.

25T limestone and 5T hoggin.

300mm diameter culverts – 10m and 3m lengths

M – Western Bridle Path (aka Old Bridle Path). break-up of surface on the slope at the Widmer end creating gorge. Install culvert and ditching.

300mm diameter culvert – 5m length.

Circa 15m ditching (300-500mm depth)

N – Western Bridle Path (aka Old Bridle Path). Some work needed one third of the way to join sections of surfaced track – 50m length – 250mm depth of 50mm limestone and 50mm depth of hoggin.

45T limestone and 10T hoggin.

Total Materials Required

140T 50mm limestone, 30T hoggin (locally sourced), 3T granite type 1, 18m 300mm diameter culvert and 10m length of waterbar (large rock/limestone)

 

Map at https://hodgemoor.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Hodgemoor-trails-2023- needing-work-2024-MB-SAB-alpha-idents.jpg  

 

Marcus Bicknell, chairman, Hodgemoor Riding Association

and voluntary Forest Warden, Hodgemoor, Forestry England

Susie Bicknell, secretary, Hodgemoor Riding Association

 

Hodgemoor Riding Association

A Charitable Unincorporated Association under the United Kingdom’s 2011 Charities Act.

Homefarm Orchard, Kirby Close, Threehouseholds, Chalfont St Giles, Bucks HP8 4FF phone 01494 872447 – Marcus mobile and WhatsApp 07748 111444 – Susie mobile and WhatsApp 07876 581144.

https://hodgemoor.org.uk     https://www.facebook.com/hodgemoorwoods

[1] https://hodgemoor.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/trail_works_2024_with_map_november_2023.pdf

[2] https://hodgemoor.org.uk//wp-content/uploads/2017/06/forestry_commission_hodgemoor_agreement_2016.pdf

[3] https://hodgemoor.org.uk/cycling/ and scroll down to payment options.