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Ireland’s two ploughing competitors, Dan Donnelly and Liam O’Driscoll are in Russia for the European Ploughing competition this weekend. The team left home for Russia last Sunday morning.
They sent their equipment to its destination three weeks ago and it too landed on the day that the men arrived.
Dan Donnelly from Blackwater, Wexford, is told the Irish Farmers Journal that the heat and the flies are two things the team must adapt to.
"Hitting 33 degrees today, the soil conditions are favourable," stated Donnelly but added that they are slightly dry; almost a peaty soil. "The field that the competition is taking place in is over 1000 acres. I can’t see the end of the field, it’s that big."
Team-mate Liam O’Driscoll from Cork was happy to get off to a good start practising at the beginning of the week, the soil is ‘ploughing up nicely enough’.
They are out there with their coach, DJ McHugh, the president of the National Ploughing Association James Sutton and Irish judge Joe Slattery.
In terms of competition, they said that David Rice from Northern Ireland is one of the biggest threats as well as competitors from Switzerland.
The event takes place in Russia from the 23rd to the 24th of this month. The European Competition takes place in Ireland next year with a venue yet to be announced. The NPA president, James Sutton is acting as the Irish delegate at this year’s event to learn the ropes and bring the event home for 2019.
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