Method Toolboxes for ringers

3. Covering Toolbox

What is covering?

Covering, also known as ringing behind, means ringing in the same position, continually at the end of every row, whilst the other bells ring a method. Usually, the tenor covers to methods rung on an odd number of bells. When a tenor bell is covering, it helps to provide a steady, rhythmic pace to the ringing and an accurate tenor provides a point of reference for the working bells as they lead.

If you are unable to ring the tenor in your tower, then you can still cover using another bell which is called into the last place in the row. It might sound a bit funny but it will allow you to develop all the other skills that covering helps to build.

Successful covering

Covering requires good bell control, an ability to ring steadily in one place, good listening skills, and ropesight. Most ringers use a combination of listening skills and ropesight to strike the tenor accurately when covering. These skills might develop together, or you might start off with one sense doing most of the work.

Ringing steadily and listening skills

Practising ringing the tenor bell steadily is a good preparatory exercise, in rounds and call changes. Develop listening skills by counting your bell striking in the last place, hearing whether it is either late or early, then adjusting.

Try this exercise with your teacher. Stand behind the tenor whilst it is ringing rounds. The tenor ringer will adjust their speed to ring more slowly, or ring more quickly. Try to spot what happens to the ringing generally and how the other ringers adjust. Notice just how much the pace of the tenor can affect the ringing.

You can also stand behind someone who is covering to a method. The tenor will always be the last bell down, but see if you can notice any pattern to the bells that are being followed. Ask to see a diagram of the method afterwards, and compare this to your observations.

Developing ropesight

If you are ringing the tenor to call changes, you can maintain a steady rhythm using your listening skills, but try to spot the bells changing below you. Do you notice any pattern? Start with trying to spot the last bell down. As you get comfortable with this, you may find you increase the number of bells you’re able to spot and the order they fall. Don’t worry if this is not immediately apparent, most ringers develop this skill gradually over some time as peripheral vision develops.

Remember that even very experienced ringers don’t always know in advance which bell they will be ringing over at the back, they will ring steadily and just have an awareness of which is the last bell down.

Learning using a simulator

If you have access to a ringing simulator you can practise covering in two ways: by watching to help develop your ropesight, and by listening to develop your sense of rhythm. The video demonstrations use the Abel software, however other ringing simulator packages can be used just as easily.

Covering by watching using Abel

Covering by listening using Abel

Calling from the tenor

Once you’re comfortable ringing the tenor behind to Plain Hunt or simple methods, try calling some call changes, or saying go and stop to something simple like Plain Hunt. Listen out for it coming into rounds and make sure you get that’s all in the right place. Don’t worry if this doesn’t go according to plan the first time you try it. It’s amazing how much extra brain power even saying go and stop can take, but like all skills, it usually gets much easier once you’ve tried it a few times.

You can even conduct from the tenor. If you're covering to Plain Bob Doubles, look out for a particular bell which is about to make long fifths and call a bob. This is a great way to start developing ropesight – looking for one of the bells.

You will need to say go, call three bobs for a touch of 120 and call that’s all at the end. It’s a great introduction to using your voice whilst ringing.

Jargon

Some of the ways people might try to help if you get out of place can vary from tower to tower. Here are some of the words of advice you might hear…

Wider please (leave a larger gap after the bell in front of you)
Closer please (close the gap and ring a little nearer to the bell in front of you)
You’re drifting in (you’ve got a little too fast, try to slow up)
You’re upside down (you’ve ended up on the wrong stroke)