Ron Hopkins has a long and distinguished career in the British Engineering Industry.

After finishing at university Ron is proud to have been part of the engineering and design team for Concorde, which he still sees as one of the pinnacles of his career and, of which,  he is rightfully proud .

He went on to become the international sales director of the UK's largest specialist commercial vehicle manufacturing company.

His success in that field has resulted in successful books on international trade and selling methods and others on persuasion and negotiation techniques.

His personal sporting interests were directed mainly at weight lifting where he competed at all levels until a repeating knee injury forced his retirement'. 

New to the league

WITH the start of the Bath Pétanque Thursday Boules league, boules players in Wiltshire can now play on a piste at the Tollgate Inn in Holt after its installation has finally been completed.

Owner Mark Hodges, first came up with the idea after playing a game of boules in Queen Square in Bath with a group of friends a couple of years ago and since being finished, he has seen a number of teams come forward and use the newly-refurbished pitch.

Mr Hodges said: "The feedback has been brilliant and some of the locals have even gone out to buy a new set of French boules ready to play."

A standard, 12x9m, size of a boules pitch allows for three games to be played at a time, although the piste at the pub has been extended to 14 x9m to allow players extra room.

Mr Hodges said he hopes the new feature of the pub will offer visitors an added attraction to visit the Tollgate Inn and he will soon be installing flood lights to allow teams to play in the evening.

The village attracts a buzz of boules every Boxing Day for the annual match and Mr Hodges, who has been owner of the Tollgate Inn for two and a half years, believes that the tradition should be carried on throughout the year.

Results to date ( May 29 2015)

For the full results go to bouleuk.co.uk

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The Club is planning a tour to Alkmaar in the Netherlands from 2nd to 6th October.  Alkmaar is one of the 4 cities that are twinned with Bath, and is a beautiful city well known for its cheese market, canal-side walks, and windmills, with plenty plenty of cafes  and bars to sit and enjoy the scenery.  The trip is timed to coincide with the liberation celebrations (music, parades, fun and games in the market square)  that take place over that weekend and on the Monday. The open doubles competition that attracts players from far and wide is on the Sunday and we have been invited to take part in a friendly melee at a local club on Saturday. There are regular KLM flights between Bristol and Amsterdam, and a good train service between there and Alkmaar.  We plan to stay in a hotel the city centre.  If you are interested in joining the tour, or would like more information, please contact diana@bathboules.co.uk 

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Every Wednesday morning 11.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. Queen Square.

The regular Wednesday morning boules has now returned to Queen Sqaure. New members welcome

Every Monday evening commencing at 5.00 p.m at  Alexandra Park

Starting on Monday 30th the regular Monday sessions will commence. One or more of our coaches will be available from 5.00 p.m. to provide coaching for all members who would be interested. The initial session will focus on beginners and from 6.00 p.m. we will start to focus on game awareness. 

These sessions will continue throughout the summer and also include any bank holidays that may fall due.