How time flies. It doesn’t seem that long ago when grass mowing was in full swing. Now we are at the end of the year and getting ready for Christmas.

2019 has been a challenging year to say the least. I hope you and your business had a good trading year and that 2020 will see an improvement in trading.

What can we look forward to in 2020? To start the new year there are many trade shows and exhibitions happening. For example, there is the LAMMA show at the NEC in Birmingham from the 7th to the 8th of January. This show caters for the agricultural machinery sector. LAMMA ’20 will, for the 38th year, showcase a host of UK and global machinery and product launches, as well as plenty of innovative technology from smaller agricultural, engineering and machinery companies. The event regularly attracts more than 40,000 visitors.

From the 19th to the 23rd January there is the very popular BIGGA Turf Maintenance Exhibition (BTME), held in the Convention Centre in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. BTME is like Cheltenham for turf professionals. It’s an event which attracts many Irish visitors. As well as showcasing whats new in the industry, there are many educational seminars. One of the attractions for me when visiting BTME is paying a visit to Bettys Tea Room for a “real” cup of tea. This world renown establishment celebrated its centenary this year.

For those of you who like to travel further there is the Golf Industry Show (GIS) in Orlando. This is organised by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) and takes place from the 25th to the 30th January. Again, it is a popular event for the Irish who are involved in sportsturf management.

As you can see there are plenty of shows to attend in January. They give good opportunities to catch up on the latest equipment and innovations, as well as to meet friends and colleagues and perhaps even forming new friendships.

In the conclusion of my last Blog for 2019. I would like to reflect on the season that is Christmas. It is this time of year when we think of the less well off. Many fundraising events have taken place over the last few weeks but one which caught my attention, in particular, was the recent ‘Light up the Night’ road run which saw over 300 vintage tractors from the Oylegate Vintage Club in Co. Wexford take to the road to raise money for Pieta House, a charity which helps prevent suicide and self harm.

It was a wonderful sight seeing so many tractors intricately decorated with festive lights on route from Oylegate to Enniscorthy. So far over €12,000 has been raised and the money is still coming in from late donations. The participants really pulled out all the stops to make the event as visually spectacular as possible and it was a fantastic sight to witness the vehicles travelling along the road.

There may have been over 300 vehicles taking part but there were a lot more people involved in the fundraising event – the stewards; bucket collectors, motorbike marshals, volunteers in the community centre serving food. It is very heartening to see so many people give up their time to help the less fortunate. Christmas really does bring out the best in us.

You can get a flavour of ‘Light Up The Night’ by watching the video below:

I wish you and your families a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year.