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PRODID:-//The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association Northern Ireland Branch - ECPv6.15.14//NONSGML v1.0//EN
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X-WR-CALNAME:The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association Northern Ireland Branch
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://rspbani.org
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association Northern Ireland Branch
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20260822T110000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20260822T180000
DTSTAMP:20260816T190324
CREATED:20260323T130946Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260812T225308Z
UID:12752-1787396400-1787421600@rspbani.org
SUMMARY:Heart O' Down Pipe Band & Drum Major Championships (inc. CoC)
DESCRIPTION:Admission & Carparking \nEvent Admission \n\nEntry is free\n\n\nGeneral Parking \n\nGeneral parking is available at Donard Park main car park and on the hillside\nBoth these areas are not pre-bookable and are on a first come\, first serve basis\nPlease park considerately and legally within these areas. Any vehicles parked wrongly or illegally will be asked to move by Police\nThe hillside area will be closed at 7pm and will not be open again until Council are contacted on Monday morning.\nIt is your responsibility to ensure you have vacated this area before closing or your vehicle may be locked in\nThere is a one way system in operation on the hillside – You must only exit via Shan Slieve Drive\nIf parking capacity is reached at Donard Park main car park and the hillside area\, you will need to seek alternative parking around the town centre\n\nAccessible Car Parking \n\nProvision for 120x pre-bookable car parking spaces for Blue Badge holders is available at the designated parking zone between the hillside and the event arenas\nPlease pre-book using the Parking Pass Application Form Click Here\nYou must complete the application form fully for your application to be processed\nIt is recommended that you apply for your pass as soon as possible as the application system will close when all available accessible car spaces are allocated\nYou will only gain entry to this accessible parking zone if you present the unique accessible parking pass together with a valid blue badge\nThis blue badge must be for an occupant of the vehicle on the day\nEntry to will be denied if you do not present both parking pass & valid blue badge for the occupant\nPasses will be issued to you by e-mail\, at least ONE day before the event\nPlease be aware that there is a vehicle height restriction to this area\n\n\nBand Coach / Minibus Parking \n\nProvision for pre-booked band coach/minibus parking is available within the designated coach parking zone within the Donard Park main car park or where Officials direct you to.\nBands should pre-book this by using the Parking Pass Application Form Click Here\nBand coaches/minibuses must only park at this designated coach parking zone\nPasses will be issued by e-mail\, at least ONE day before the event\n\nMotorhomes \n\n\n\nProvision for 12x motorhome day parking spaces are available withing the designated motorhome parking zone located at the hillside area\nPlease pre-book this by using the Parking Pass Application Form Click Here\nMotorhomes must only park at this designated motorhome parking zone.\nThere is strictly no overnight parking available within Donard Park\nOvernight accommodation information is available here.\n\n\n\nBand Information \nBand Gazebos \n\nGazebos must only be erected within the designated practice areas\nYou should ensure that your band gazebo is not erected too close to interfere with band/drum major arenas or final tuning\nYou may only erect a band gazebo at this event if you have applied for a Season2026 Gazebo Permit\nIf you have already applied for a Season2026 Gazebo Permit for this event\, and your band is entered\, a gazebo parking pass will be emailed out to you automatically ONE day before the event. You do not need to apply again\nIf you need to apply for a Season2026 gazebo pass for the first time\, please see Gazebo Application Form\nIf event organisers request gazebos to be taken down during the event for safety reasons\, this must be complied with\n\n\nPractice/Tuning \n\nWhen your band is practising/tuning\, you must be aware of your proximity to any band/drum major contest arenas and must ensure that you do not get too close as to cause interference with them\nFinal Tuning will be clearly identifiable. Your band practising must also not interfere with the final tuning areas\nDo not proceed to final tuning areas too early as this can cause disruption for bands in front of you\nBands should only sound within the final tuning area to ensure there is no interference with any contest arenas for bands or drum majors\nBands should follow any requests from RSPBA Directors\, Stewards and Branch Officials regarding this and this must complied with\n\nEnd of Season Parade \n\nAt the conclusion of the finale and prizegiving\, there will be a parade for bands\, drum majors and trophy carriers\nThis will commence from main Donard Park car park entrance at approximately 6:30pm and will progress on to Bryansford Road against the traffic\, left on to Central Promenade and then onto Beach Footpath and concluding at Donard Car Park Rear Entrance\nDrum majors must ensure safety when flourishing. Throws and bodywork should only be carried out when there is adequate space and the conditions allow\nThe Branch does not accept any liability\, and bands must have their own relevant public liability insurance to cover themselves\nAll bands and Drum Majors\, and other participants must take direction and instructions from Parade Marshals and Branch Officials at all times\n\nGeneral Information \nProgrammes \n\nWill be available to purchase from the Registration Tent at a cost of £5.00.  Cash\, card and contactless is accepted\n\n\nFood/Drink \n\nThere will be a selection of food and drink vendors at Donard Park on the day – some may only take cash\nThere is also a large selection of eateries and bars around the town\n\n\nBarbeques \n\nFixed and disposable barbeques are not permitted at this event\n\n\nToilet Facilities \n\nPortaloos will be available across the event site and will be detailed on the map within the programme\nPlease show respect to users of accessible facilities as not all disabilities are visible\n\n\nFirst Aid \n\nAccredited First Aid will be available at the event site and will be detailed on the map within the programme\n\n\nLost Persons \n\nPlease report any lost persons immediately to any Branch or Event Officials on duty\n\n\nDrones \n\nDrone flights are not permitted at this event. In the interests of public safety and compliance with UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) regulations\, the operation of drones or other unmanned aircraft is strictly prohibited\nThis restriction applies to all drones\, regardless of size and weight\nAny person found operating a drone on or above this event site may be asked to cease operations immediately\, and may be reported to the relevant authorities where appropriate\n\n\nLitter \n\nPlease dispose of all litter in the bins provided around the event site. This is a NMDD Council facility and normal bylaws apply\nAll bands are responsible for ensuring that clearing any practice space they occupy (gazebos / final tuning). This will be monitored throughout the day and at the conclusion of the event by Branch Officials\n\n\nDogs \n\nAssistance dogs are welcome at this event\nWell-behaved dogs are also welcome but must be kept under control and on a short lead at all times\nDogs must be able to cope with large crowds and noise\nEnsure any dogs barking are taken away immediately so as not to interfere with band or drum major performances\nOwners must clean up after their dogs and dispose of the waste in the appropriate bins\n\n\nSafeguarding \n\nSafeguarding Information can be found by clicking here\n\n\nUnacceptable Behaviour \n\nThis event is made possible with the help of our volunteers\, who are on duty to help and assist you – please demonstrate respect to them always.\nThe Branch Executive has a zero-tolerance approach to any abuse of our volunteers and this extends to our third-party event officials also\n\n\nRecording & Photographs \n\nVideo recordings\, audio recordings or photographs are not permitted without written permission from The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association Northern Ireland Branch prior to the commencement of the Championships\nBranch photographers will be on site throughout the day and photos will be available online after the event\n\n\nTourist Information \n\nFor other things to see and do around the wider Newcastle and NMD district area\, please see  Visit Mourne Guillion Strangford \n\n\nGeneral Queries \n\n\n\nplease email contests@rspbani.org \n\n\n\nBand Draw \nBand Draw is available here.\nClick on the document to view the controls. \nnewcastle-26-draw\nDrum Major Draw \nDrum Major Dress time is 10:30\nDrum Major Draw is available here.\nClick on the document to view the controls. \nnewcastle-26-dm-draw\nSyllabus \nThis event run under RSPBANI Local Rules. If you have any queries\, please e-mail secretary@rspbani.org.  \nPlaying Requirements \n\n\n\n\nGrade 1\nMedley (5 to 7 mins) [Submit 2 – own choice]\n\n\nGrade 2\nMedley (4 to 6 mins)\n\n\nGrades 3B & 3A\nMedley (3 to 5 mins)\n\n\nGrade 4A\n1 x 4 parted Marches or 2 x 2 parted Marches\,\n1 x 4 Parted Strathspey or 2 x 2 parted Strathspeys and\n1 x 4 Parted Reel or 2 x 2 Parted Reels\n\nfrom the RSPBA list of prescribed tunes\n\n\nGrade 4B\n4 x 2 parted Marches from the RSPBA list of prescribed tunes OR\n2½ – 4½ mins in Quick March (any time signature)\n\n\n\n\nResults \nResults will be published after the finale on the main 2026 results page.
URL:https://rspbani.org/event/heartodown26/
LOCATION:Donard Park\, Donard Park\, Newcastle\, BT33 0WR
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://rspbani.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/2026_heartodown_1600_website.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="RSPBANI":MAILTO:contests@rspbani.org
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