HUNDREDS of travellers have descended on a tiny village for a huge pony and trap “drive” which is the biggest of its kind in the UK.
The massive two-day event in the New Forest has come at a cost for locals with all but one pub shutting down in Lyndhurst, Hampshire.
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The sole bar manager has boasted about owning the “bravest pub in the village” as he opened his doors this weekend to the travellers.
Nearly every pub for miles around the village have closed signs plastered outside other than The Stag Hotel.
Manager Jake Ellis said: “I don’t know if we are brave, or mad!
“To be honest I feel it’s no different to a large group of stags, or hens, turning up.
“You can have all sorts of trouble with them, and we have a simple rule here, if you’re lairy you leave.”
Owner of the popular high street pub, Maria Harris, said one main factor behind her staying open was because a “task force” being set up around this year’s event.
Comprised of the local council, the police and Forestry England, dozens of people kept a close eye on the drive to keep everyone safe.
It comes after the 2024 pony and trap drive in the New Forest was described as “complete carnage”.
Maria said: “If it wasn’t for the task force, we would be shutting like most pubs.
“There have been meetings with all the businesses where they outlined the plans, they had to keep control of it, what was being done to ensure the welfare of the ponies and what support we will have if any trouble starts.
“The drive is a heritage event which should keep going. But respect is a two-way thing.
“I am giving my trust to the travellers by saying they are welcome here, but I am also asking them to behave – hopefully they will.”
Many travellers heading down for the annual get together were left upset by the lack of pubs open – especially the one they normally congregate at.
The Happy Cheese – just up the road from the The Stag Hotel – won’t be open for business across the two days.
Their owners have plastered big signs saying “No tethering of horses” to fences surrounding the establishment as an extra message.
In response, the travellers carried out a drive by the pub in their pony and carts.
Some even left piles of horse manure behind as a calling card.
Organiser of the drive Tracy Cooper – which the event is named after – slammed the pubs which have shut as “being guilty of disgusting racism“.
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She said: “It is total discrimination. We have so much hate directed at us. It’s ignorance of our ways.
“To be honest I am so sick of the abuse I get over this I think this will be the last one. I just can’t take it anymore.”
Last year’s gathering was marred by the death of a horse that was driven over a cattle grid.
Witnesses said the animal had “died in agony” and there were calls for the drive to be banned.
Tracy responded: “That pony and trap wasn’t even part of our drive. It was nothing to do with us.
“We care for our animals; anyone can see for that themselves.”
She was also happy over the introduction of the task force and welcomed them to patrol the event.
She said: “We have been working closely with it. We are glad the police are around, it shows people we are doing nothing illegal.”
Part of the police initiative includes the involvement of a “Gypsy, Roma, Traveller Liaison Officer”.
PCSO Steve Hull, who is part of a travelling fair community, is visiting all major traveller and Gypsy events in the UK, including the world famous Appleby Horse Fair.
He wants to “help break down barriers between us and them”.
Pointing at his uniform he said: “The biggest problem is this, they see it and think ‘Oh police’ and the mistrust comes in.
“But then the see the sign on my back which states what I am, and they start opening up.
“My aim is to build links between us and them and educate the police about what their communities are about.”
Steve, who is a member of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight police force, gives talks to police bosses about Gypsy, Roma and traveller communities.
He said: “They are an ethnic minority like any other. The more trust we can gain with them the easier it is to police events like this.
“We can work together to ensure they run safely and without incident. I am not saying they are all law abiding but a lot of what is said about them on social media is false.”
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Apart from Steve other new measures this year include tall temporary yellow CCTV towers which have been placed on Lyndhurst high street and at “hotspots” where the travellers gather.
These include beside a river near the Balmer Lawn hotel in Brockenhurst where they go to wash their horses after a drive.
Last year angry locals scattered glass and metal screws on the riverbanks to stop the travellers doing it.
The area then had to be closed for over a week while a clear up operation to prevent harm to wild animals was undertaken.
Some residents of the New Forest, while not agreeing with that action, can understand why some locals have been driven to it.
Local Evelyn Warren explained: “It’s a shame because the drive is actually wonderful to see with all the ponies and the carts.
“But then they go to a pub, get drunk and do all sorts. I don’t think the drive should be banned but it needs to be controlled more.
“There are so many travellers it can get scary at times.”
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