Belle Meade First whipper-in Barbara Lee organizes the hunt’s annual Foxhunting Seminar for all new members. / Bella Vita Fotographie photo
Individuals interested in joining the Belle Meade Hunt (GA) quickly learn what they need to know in the hunting field, and they also learn what is expected of them as members. The hunt holds an annual Foxhunting Seminar that all new members are required to attend, whether or not they have hunted elsewhere.
New members learn that they are expected to have fun and to be contributors. “Mandatory Volunteerism” is the principle, and every member must subscribe to it. From that institutional expectation, the unique Belle Meade culture has developed.
It all began with the hunt’s founder, the late Master James Wilson, an inspirational leader who believed in teamwork. According to the seminar handout explaining the principle of mandatory volunteerism, “Master James knew that it took every member chipping in to make Belle Meade the place we have all come to love. As a member you were expected to respond with a willing, ‘Yes, sir,’ to anything you were asked to do. Most of us would have jumped through hoops of fire if the man asked us to! One of the unique things about our hunt that drew all of you here was the tradition of working as a family for the good of the hunt.”
Epp Wilson, Master and huntsman for the past thirty years, has carried on his father’s concept of the Belle Meade family. / Reflected Glory photo
It is Belle Meade’s good fortune that Master James’s son Epp Wilson, Master and huntsman since 1985, has possessed the drive and charisma to carry on and grow with that tradition. I cannot think of any foxhunter who, after visiting Belle Meade for the first time, didn’t return time and again…not only for the hunting but for the feeling of just being there.
Notice of workdays in the hunting country are sent via email to all members, and every riding member is required to make five of those workdays or pay for any days missed. Members are also required to co-host an after-hunt supper in the Fox’s Den, the warm and attractive clubhouse where most of Belle Meade’s renowned hospitality is dispensed.
Belle Meade’s annual Foxhunting Seminar is open to any interested party—Pony Club, 4-H, and local showing and riding stables. While not all participants will go on to foxhunt, the hunt hopes that they will leave with a new appreciation for the sport and a good feeling for the respect that foxhunters have for the land over which they hunt.
The seminar was instituted about twelve years ago, and was patterned after a similar program developed by the Casanova Hunt (VA). Participants pay a minimal fee and get a kennel tour, verbal instruction by First Whipper-In Barbara Lee with helpful discussion from the Masters and experienced members, a video, and an afternoon of cubhunting. Non-riders follow in a Tally-Ho wagon. Everyone receives a packet of information to keep for reference.
Among the subjects covered in the talks and in the information packet are: what foxhunting is; the quarry and how hounds hunt; the composition and duties of the hunt staff; attire and etiquette; a glossary of foxhunting terms; the points and conformation of the foxhound; how to tie a stock tie; mandatory volunteerism; a description of the fields offered and the proficiency needed in each; types and costs of membership; and Belle Meade’s Top Ten Rules customized for riding in their hunt field across their country.
Recognizing that the majority of mounted foxhunters in North America today did not grow up in hunting families absorbing the nuances of the sport, foxhunting seminars like Casanova’s and Belle Meade’s are a valuable way of educating new hunt members to the courtesies and conventions of the hunting field and to the unique culture of the hunt.
Posted November 3, 2015