Page 20 - Ben Mcfarlane

When considering after-school activities, many lean towards the sporting world. This will usually come from a dream of being England's next top goal scorer. However, Archie Redford has taken his passion for Rugby one step further, as he took to the field and refereed his first match - something he hopes he will turn into a lifelong career.

How did Archie get involved in Rugby?

The Redford family from Halifax eat, sleep, and play Rugby. His dad is the chairman of the local club, Elland, whilst mum Gemma is the child welfare officer. It is no wonder why Archie has such a passion for the game.

When he isn’t playing Rugby for his U13’s team, you will find him helping out the club wherever possible. His spare time has always been devoted to the game, and it seems he would do anything and everything to get involved in training sessions.

For his mum, Gemma, it comes as no surprise. “I think he's seen how much we give, and he’s always wanted to get involved, whether holding a tackle bag, when we

Here at ACME whistles, we pride ourselves on being creators and innovators as well as the creative and colourful designs of our whistles.

Our newest addition to our whistle collection is our most extravagant yet - thanks to the 470 diamonds.

CME's Diamond Dog Whistle

We have created the world’s most expensive whistle, fit for royalty - and we know her majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, is a fan of ACME’s dog whistles already.

Handcrafted by our team of experts, the new whistle is made from solid sterling silver and covered in 12.75 carats of diamonds. Each diamond is set by hand, taking 150 man-hours for our team to create just one whistle.

This is just one of the many reasons that our newest whistle is made to order, making each whistle one-of-a-kind.

The diamond dog whistle can be made using either the classic 210½ TM, 211½ TM or 212 whistles design, and maintains the same pitch, tone and quality of sound demanded by every whistle produced from ACME’s home in Birmingham.

150 Years of ACME

Here at ACME Whistles, we have invented many of the significant developments in whistle technology over our 150-year history.

Our innovators are always looking for ways to improve our range of products to ensure our customers get the best whistle experience possible.

We are proud to announce that our range of plastic whistles will now have SUPRA-GUARD antimicrobial additives, which are proven to protect against harmful bacteria.

From this point onwards, the new plastics will be included as standards in all of our plastic whistles, designed for everything from sports coaches to dog trainers.

What are Antimicrobials?

Antimicrobial plastic technologies can be found in more places than you’d expect. From healthcare to food, antimicrobials offer protection against potentially harmful bacteria.

The antimicrobials used in all of our whistles are safe, non toxic, fully compliant and can effectively inhibit the growth of microorganisms.

Our SUPRA-GUARD Antimicrobials keep your whistles clean and

Everyone dreams of the moment they can bring their first puppy home. It’s such an exciting step to take and a milestone moment that you are guaranteed to remember for the rest of your life. Although, you want to make sure you remember it for the right reasons, and not because your little bundle of furry joy has caused havoc...again!

You're not alone, as thousands of families are increasing by one every day yet don’t have a clue where to start on training. Luckily, all of your puppy prayers have been answered as we’ve teamed up with Jason Mayhew, a world champion gundog trainer. His expertise in training, alongside our insider knowledge will tell you everything you need to know about how to set your dog on the path to obedience and control.

Why You Should Use a Whistle to Train Your Dog

You may be thinking: why use a whistle to train my dog? There are many reasons why whistles are more beneficial than voice commands for dog training, with a consistent command being one of them. For many

Completing the Channel swim is one of the biggest challenges a swimmer can face, and for some, a life-long dream. The Channel stretches out, at its shortest, 21 miles between England and France yet the path the swimmers take can increase in distance depending on the current.

As one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, the Channel provides many challenges for those attempting the swim. And last week, a team took on the challenge in order to answer one question: Which ACME Whistle is the best or the English Channel Swim?

With many boats and ferries crossing the Channel as well as the swimmers, it’s important for any team to have a clear way of communicating with the swimmers. Not only keeping them safe, but allowing for the swimmers to keep to a rhythm until instructed to stop.

The swimmers’ ears were put under scrutiny to find the best methods and tools for the swimmer and support boat to communicate with during the challenge.

‘R’n’R’ endurance sports coach, Ryan Bowd, who led the

Netball World Cup 2019

Gary Burgess’ dedication and passion for sport has shown throughout the years. Starting as a PE teacher in Bedfordshire, Burgess has since gone on to umpire at some of the worlds greatest international Netball matches.

He left his teaching job with the dream of becoming the Head of Officiating at England Netball and is now one of the most recognised figures on the side-lines of Netball courts, thanks to his signature gold ACME whistle.

Iconic ACME Whistle

The golden whistle was awarded to him after his 50th international umpiring cap in 2013, and has since been at the forefront of his on-court identity.

With a career spanning 20 years, he has achieved multiple career defining milestones such as umpiring at 2 netball World Cup finals, 10 consecutive Vitality Netball Superleague finals and 2 Commonwealth Games gold medal matches.

Burgess continues to volunteer his spare time as an international umpire, with this dedication being the key to his success.

Dedication To

The Visit

My name is Ajay and on the 30th September I had the pleasure of visiting the J Hudson & Co ACME Whistle factory, along with my classmates from Queen Marys Grammar School. In coordination with our Design and Technology A-level course we visited the factory to see some of the various metal and plastic manufacturing processes in action, such as stamping, nickel plating and injection moulding.

After a short ride to the factory we were greeted by the factory managing director (Simon Topman) who proceeded to give us the tour. He started off by showing us to the room which held Joseph Hudson’s desk where he created the first prototype of the police whistle. He told us about the history of the company and how it all started with the police whistle.

J Hudson had presented his prototype to the police and was promised that he would be contacted in the near future. Days and weeks went by and J Hudson had heard nothing so he decided to contact the metropolitan police. To his misfortune the

My name is Colton Thompson. I own and operate Thompson Working Dogs here in the states. From the infancy of my time as a handler and gundog trainer, I have had an ACME whistle. The UK methods of training resonated with me early on. The common sense and straight forward approach just made sense to me. Most importantly the dogs. As I poured my time into researching the methodology, I started gathering every piece of training equipment the winners were using. I noticed one commonality. An ACME whistle. “If it is good enough for them...” was my mentality. An ACME 211.5 TM was bought and it was history ever since

Photo Credit: Element Six Media

Fast forward to today, I fancy the 211.5 TM whistle, along with the 212 Pro Trialler. I use the 211.5 TM for up-close training exercises. With its mellow tone and ability to produce sound at a low volume, it is a staple in my puppy training and started gundog work. As I work to longer distances, I switch to the 212 to maintain meaningfulness in my commands.