Christopher Ward Magazine - Spring 2015

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TRIDENT REDEFINEDCHRISTOPHER WARD’S BEST-SELLING COLLECTION

IS REINVENTED FOR 2015

Investing in a fine Christopher Ward watch means you will enjoy a lifetime of support and service from us, starting with our famous 60/60 Guarantee which even today, ten years on, is still the most comprehensive guarantee

in the world of watchmaking.

6 0 - D A Y F R E E R E T U R N S

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Investment. Guaranteed

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It’s very difficult to improve on classic design.

Which is why when we decided to overhaul Christopher Ward’s Trident range of diving watches – our best-selling series – we did so knowing that the new versions had to be, not just better than the originals, but in a different league altogether. Happily, thanks to hard work, inspiration and a dedication to raising our standards even higher, we can say that the new Tridents are perhaps the best watches we’ve ever made, able to take on and beat the best comparable timepieces that the Swiss super-brands can produce. And, as ever, at a fraction of the price.

You can read exactly why they’re so good on page 10.

The success of our company is a sign that British watchmaking is on the rise, but Christopher Ward co-founder Mike France isn’t convinced that we’re entering a golden age just yet. In a passionate opinion piece, Mike lays out the reason why hype is playing too big a part in this so-called renaissance.

See what he has to say on page 36.

Away from watches, we talk to The Times’ Chief Sports Photographer, Marc Aspland about what makes a great sports picture. Using some of his most stunning photos as illustration – wait until you see the Ricky Hatton one – we’re taken into a hugely competitive world where reputations can be made, and destroyed, with a click of a camera.

Talking of sport, there’s a chance to catch up with Olympic skeet shooter Amber Hill, the latest athlete to benefit from the Christopher Ward Challenger Programme, as she looks to qualify for next year’s Olympic Games in Rio.

Another young person with plenty of talent and an obsession with getting things right is Christopher Ward’s Manager of Movement Assembly, Frank Selzer. Originally from Germany, Frank now works at Christopher Ward’s Swiss atelier, overseeing the production of our watches. Find out how your timepiece goes from design studio to wrist in a fascinating interview on page 44.

Enjoy the magazine,

Mike, Chris and Peter

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Front cover: C60 Trident Pro 600

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Christopher Ward (London) Limited, 1 Park Street, Maidenhead, Berkshire SL6 1SL, United Kingdom. [email protected] Customer Services: [email protected] Editor: Anthony Teasdale Design and art direction: ToyasO’Mara Colour reprographics: JP Repro

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CW | CWORLD

Chocks away for NEW C8 Pilot CollectionCHRISTOPHER WARD IS LAUNCHING A NEW LOOK

TO ITS C8 PILOT RANGE FOR AUTUMN 2015. The company is coy about showing the design yet, but it’s

believed to have a closer connection to British aviation than the current B-Uhren-inspired look.

As well as utilising the ETA 2824-2/Sellita SW200-1 movements of the current range there will also be a hand-wound, Unitas 6498-based model together with an entry-level quartz version. A very special 75 piece limited edition to commemorate the Battle of Britain in 1940 is also planned.

C11 Elite swims the Channel – TWICE! Swimming solo from England to France is the kind of challenge most of us wouldn’t manage in a lifetime – but it’s something CW customer Mark Johansen has managed twice, raising over £20k to beat blood cancer.

Mark wore the C11 Titanium Elite Chronometer throughout his training and for the swims, which he described as “14 hours and eight minutes of sheer freezing, painful hell”. He added, “It was ultimately the most amazing, humbling and life-changing experience imaginable.”

All proceeds went to Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.leukaemialymphomaresearch.org“It was ultimately the

most amazing, humbling and life-changing experience imaginable”

christopherward.co.uk

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C7 Rapide Mk 2 gets chronometer treatment The classic motorsport watch will be available from April 2015 as a chronometer for the first time. The new thermo-compensated ETA 251.264 movement will be used for this 500-piece limited edition, with prices from £599.

CHRISTOPHER WARD HAS OPENED ITS FIRST SHOWROOM IN THE

USA AT NASHUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE, 45 MILES OUT OF BOSTON.Run on an appointment-only basis by CW forum moderator Kip

McKewen, the first customer was Paolo Incampo, who popped in on December 10.

Already the owner of three CW watches, forum member Paolo got his hands on a C11 Extreme as soon as Kip declared the showroom open. Since Paolo’s visit, Kip has been busy welcoming other visitors and there will no doubt be healthy competition between him and UK showroom manager Declan Strange as to who tops the sales table in 2015.

The new online booking service will help both but with the UK having just delivered a record-breaking performance in 2014, Kip is going to have to perform to depose Declan.

The new showroom is at 402 Amherst St, Nashua, New Hampshire.

CHRISTOPHER WARD IS SHOWING ITS

COMMITMENT WATCHMAKING IN THE UK

BY GIVING TWO HOROLOGY STUDENTS

FROM BIRMINGHAM CITY UNIVERSITY WORK

PLACEMENTS AT THE COMPANY’S HQ IN

MAIDENHEAD. The final-year undergraduates, Andrew Law and

James Harris, have been working with CW’s team in the watchmaking and service workshop. They’ve also been given quartz and mechanical movements to help improve their skills.

Jeremy Hobbins, Horology Course leader at Birmingham City University said:

“If there’s to be a vibrant future for British watchmaking it will depend on the quality of the young watchmakers we develop and the opportunities they have to develop their skills after completing their formal education.”

Chris Ward stressed how important the fostering of talent in the industry is.

“It’s been a pleasure to have Andrew and James working in our business,” he said. “If watchmaking is to grow in the UK it will need increased levels of cooperation between seats of learning and the industry. We’re ready to play our part.”

BCU students at CW

“If watchmaking is to grow in theUK it will need increased levels of cooperation between seats of learning and the industry. We’re ready to play our part”

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Hi Joshua, when did Watch it All About start – and why?

Watch it All About (WIAA) – a blog about affordable watches – launched in January 2013, when I started to get serious about my watch collection. I traded so many watches during that time I thought it would make sense to start reviewing them, and collating everything on a blog. As a web designer, it was easy to set up, so I just did it. Two years on, I’m getting well over 20,000 visits a month.

What got you into horology?When I was young, I loved gadgets.

This spread into gadgety watches. There was a particular Databank Casio watch in the Argos catalogue for £50. I was still very young so I saved for months to buy it. When I finally had enough money, the watch wasn’t there any more! I was devastated, but my obsession had taken hold.

I owned a variety of digital watches before I got into mechanical watches in my early 20s. Needless to say, it was about that time I found the original Casio that had

escaped me, on ebay. I bought it. And I wore it. And it was good. It’s broken now, but I still have it.

Is WIAA a full-time job? If not, how long do you spend doing it a week?

I wish it was full-time! I’m still a web developer, but WIAA takes up a lot of my spare time. I usually spend around an hour every day writing my reviews, then it’s an extra few hours taking and editing pictures, and a video of each watch I review. I try to release a new review every two weeks, so it’s fairly time-consuming.

What are your overall impressions of the watch industry?

I can’t comment too much on the luxury watch side of things as I dedicate my time to the more affordable segment. But in that regard I can say that there’s a lot of new boutique brands popping up at present, mainly thanks to crowd-funding websites such as Kickstarter and Indiegogo.

How would you change the industry?Let’s get an affordable fully British-

made watch out there! Of course, there are fantastic UK brands such as Christopher

Ward and Harold Pinchbeck, but they still use Swiss movements and some parts from outside of the country. I know it will be a long time coming, but things are starting to be put into place to bring the art of watchmaking back.

What trends are you noticing in watches at the moment?

In the area I’m most interested in, there’s always going to be a high number of homages or vintage-inspired watches. But it seems that imagination and creativity has JOSHUA CLARE-FLAGG, EDITOR,

WATCH IT ALL ABOUT

“I don’t likeugly and overly-extravagant watches. Or designer brands that charge way too much for an average quality watch”

THE SPEAKING

CLOCK”‘‘

INTERVIEWS

WITH HOROLOGY’S TOP

INFLUENCERS

CWORLD | CW

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gone down a little – it’s not very often that the design of a new watch really knocks my socks off. Which is why it’s great to follow a brand like Christopher Ward that creates original designs.

What sort of watches do you dislike?I really don’t like ugly and overly-

extravagant ones. Or designer brands that charge way too much for an average quality watch.

So you think a lot of the big brands overcharge then?

The big boys have to cover their sponsorship deals somehow! With the likes of Rolex, OK, their watches cost thousands of pounds, but I always think of the amount of time and money that has gone into developing them. Not one part of a Rolex is outsourced. They can get away with charging £5,000, but a watch costing thousands which has a stock movement doesn’t sit right with me.

What do your friends and family think of your obsession?

They’re very supportive. My wife and mum are quite proud of me (I think), but my dad’s a little bemused by the fact that WIAA is becoming so popular. I’ll be honest, it does take a fair bit of my spare time, so I’m grateful my wife is happy with that!

You cover a lot of Christopher Ward watches. Why?

I honestly don’t think there’s another watch brand out there that provides that same value for money coupled with outstanding quality. Christopher Ward watches are all Swiss-made, the company has a one-of-a-kind five-year warranty and possibly one of the best customer service departments in the industry. It’s constantly releasing new models and pushing the bar even higher for all other watch companies. It’s an outstanding brand.

What are your favourite CW pieces?That’s a tough one, there are so many

great models. As a true lover of watches, I really think the new C9 5 Day Automatic is significant. I’ve reviewed it on Watch it All About, and it’s just such an important model. The timepiece itself is gorgeous, but the SH21 movement is the big deal. I can’t wait to see what Christopher Ward will do with it in the near future!

YOU CAN SEE MORE OF JOSH’S WORK ON HIS BLOG, WWW.WATCHITALLABOUT.COM

Sammi, a 19-year-old Scot, specialises in the T54 and Women’s 1,500m, and is currently ranked second in Europe. Following two gold medals at last year’s IPC Athletic European Championships and a debut in the Commonwealth Games, she’s targeting a place in the ParalympicsGB squad for the Paralympic Games in Rio next year.

The CW Challengers Programme takes an artistic turn with the arrival of 46-year-old London-born filmmaker Chris Loizou. His first movie, Untitled, in which the cast wear some very stylish watches, will be an homage to the film noir thrillers of the 1950s.

You’ll hear more from Sammi and Chris over the next few months.

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Challenger Programme expandsTHE CW CHALLENGERS PROGRAMME ENTERS 2015 BY INTRODUCING TWO DIFFERENT BUT EQUALLY FASCINATING NEW CHALLENGERS: WHEELCHAIR RACER SAMMI KINGHORN AND FILMMAKER CHRIS LOIZOU.

CW | MAP MAKERS

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THE GREAT

WATCHWEARERS

BUZZ ALDRIN

FORGET STEVE McQUEEN AND PAUL NEWMAN, WHEN IT COMES TO HEROES OF THE 1960S, BUZZ ALDRIN

TAKES SOME BEATING…

Alongside Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins, Aldrin was the third member of the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon, which launched on July 20, 1969. All three were given Omega Speedmaster Professional watches for the trip, but only Aldrin actually wore his on the Moon. Armstrong left his in the Lunar Module as backup because the craft’s electronic timer had stopped working.

NASA had been using Speedmasters since 1965’s Gemini mission. Looking for a watch that could survive the most extreme conditions, it trialled timepieces by Rolex, Longines and Omega. After four months of testing, only the Omega Speedmaster – familiar to the test pilots who were joining NASA – passed the stringent examination.

While the watch itself was a regular model, the Apollo crew’s Speedmasters had long nylon straps, fastened with Velcro – the only way they could be secured around the wide arms of a spacesuit.

“Few things are less necessary when walking around on the Moon than knowing what time it is in Houston, Texas,” said Aldrin. “Nonetheless, being a watch guy, I decided to strap the Speedmaster onto my right wrist around the outside of my bulky spacesuit.”

Bulky or not, the watch, and Aldrin, looked out of this world.

Lunar Module pilot Edwin E. Aldrin Jr on board the Lunar Module during the Apollo 11 lunar landing mission, 20th July 1969.

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IN DECEMBER, CHRISTOPHER WARD AUCTIONED A SELECTION OF 10 #1 SERIAL NUMBER WATCHES – THE HOROLOGICAL EQUIVALENT OF FIRST EDITIONS – TO RAISE FUNDS TO HELP BUILD BERKSHIRE’S FIRST CHILDREN’S HOSPICE.

The auction raised £7,123 with all proceeds going to support Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice Service, a charity local to our Maidenhead HQ. Of the 10 watches, the highest bid was £1,050 for Lot 2, the C80 Sector GB.

Jess Lamont, Corporate Fundraiser at Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice Service, said: “The auction has caused quite a stir and it’s been thrilling watching as the bids climbed higher and higher. Thank you very much to everyone who made a bid – and congratulations to those who won!”www.alexanderdevine.org

“The auction hascaused quite a stir and it’s been thrilling watching as the bids climbed higher and higher. Thank you very much to everyone who made a bid – and congratulations to those who won!”£10k

in donations raised for children’s charity

CWORLD | CW

Following the C9 5 Day Automatic, which encases the in-house Calibre SH21 movement, Christopher Ward has announced the release of a hand-wound version in the new C9 40mm case. It will come out in late spring.

The aesthetic emphasises the classic nature of the watch which fans of the no-longer-available but still much-cherished C1 Russell will be delighted to hear incorporates a small second hand dial. There will be an interesting new twist to the finish of the SH21 which will be visible through an exhibition back-plate.

C9 5 Day Small Second

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CW | TRIDENT REDEFINED

– OUR BEST-SELLING WATCH GETS A RADICAL OVERHAUL

TRIDENT COLLECTION 2015

NEW MOVEMENTS, NEW MATERIALS, SAME SPIRIT

Changing a best-selling model is a scary thing to do – especially when it’s become one of the pillars of a brand, but that’s exactly the

challenge Christopher Ward took head-on when deciding to introduce a second generation of Trident watches.

When the original Tridents were introduced in 2009 the storm of approval was as strong as the tsunamis Poseidon whipped up by stirring his three-pronged spear in the oceans of Greek mythology.

The Trident Mark I represented a new benchmark in value for premium quality watches and established the then-fledgling British brand as a force to be reckoned with. Improving on such an iconic collection was not something to be rushed into, as Chris Ward says:

“We started considering a new Trident collection in mid-2013 after we’d consolidated

our case production with a new manufacturer who was capable of taking the quality of the Trident case up to another level. We weren’t interested in merely improving the aesthetics of the Mark 2s, we wanted a more fundamental change. We now had that opportunity, and immediately set to work on the design.”

Before considering aesthetics, the structure of the collection needed to be fully determined. It was agreed early on that the Trident Pro and GMT should retain the same movements, but the in-house Calibre SH21 would replace the ETA 2824-2 for the new version of the top-of-the-line chronometer.

In a radical departure, however, it was also agreed that an entry-level quartz model be introduced using the Ronda 515 calibre. “Giving even more people the chance to share the genuine Trident experience became an obsession,” says Chris Ward. “Although there ➸

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We weren’t interested in merely changing the aesthetics of the Mark 2s, we wanted a more fundamental change

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C60 TR IDENT PRO 600 42m m

CW | TRIDENT REDEFINED

“If there was an award for‘the people’s luxury watch’ then the C60 Trident would win every time”

are obviously differences between the quartz and mechanical versions I’m convinced that from £299/$415 there’s no better value available anywhere than the C60 Trident 300.”

The new case, although architecturally similar to the original, has been comprehensively re-engineered and each facet is discernibly sharper and better-finished, as well as now being capable, in the mechanical versions, of withstanding water pressure at up to 600 metres (2000 feet). The quartz version has retained the aluminium bezel of the original but all the other models have been upgraded to Ceramic ZrO2 bezels.

Ceramic ZrO2 is extremely hard and fracture-tough as well as having a very fine sub-micron grain size which enables a superb surface finish and the ability to hold a sharp edge. Its ruggedness, perfect for dive watches, results from a tetragonal structure that expands on impact and absorbs energy. The downside is that it changes structure above 500°C so Icarus, should think twice about buying one.

The case-back hasn’t been ignored either. The Trident logo is deep-stamped into the 316L stainless steel plate producing a 3D appearance first seen in the C65 Trident Classic. Christopher Ward co-founder, Mike France explains: “Back-plates, like straps and buckles, are critical finishing touches which require the same care as any other detail. We’re delighted with the Trident back-plate.”

While all the new Tridents retain the iconic hands, ‘trident’ counter-balance and wave pattern guilloche dial of the original, the new

Ceramic ZrO2 is extremely hard and fracture-tough as well as having a very fine sub-micron grain size which enables a superb surface finish and the ability to hold a sharp edge

baton-style indexes of the mechanical versions are deep-filled with the best available lume to give brighter and extended luminosity. Wrists get looked after, too.

Mike France: “with re-designed natural rubber dive straps, a new leather NATo strap and alligator as standard on the SH21 chronometer version we now have 133 different Trident combinations when you consider the 8 dial and bezel combinations. And now, with the expanded price range, there is a Trident to suit virtually all lifestyles, occasions and bank balances. If there was an award for ‘the people’s luxury watch’ the the C60 Trident would win every time”

“At one level it’s a serious dive watch, at another it dresses up beautifully and looks good with a suit. Essentially, you get several watches in one. If there was an award for ‘the people’s luxury watch’ the C60 Trident would win every time.”

Much more than an upgrade then, this complete overhaul of the Trident collection redefines not just the model itself but also the value equations for an entire industry. It reaffirms the advantages of Christopher Ward’s unique business model and confirms that the pursuit of excellence doesn’t have to come with a price tag that’s out of reach of the majority.


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CW | TRIDENTS REINVENTED

7 models, 2 case sizes, 4 movements, 6 strap styles, 8 colour combinations - 133 options

TRIDENT_choice redefined

C60 TRIDENT PRO 600

PRO42mmFROM £599/$825

C60 TRIDENT GMT 600

GMT 42mmFROM £799/$1095

C60 TRIDENT 300

QUARTZ 42mmFROM £299/$415

C60 TRIDENT COSC 600

COSC 42mmFROM £1500/$2065

C60 TRIDENT PRO 600


C60 TRIDENT GMT 600

GMT 38mmFROM £799/$1095

C60 TRIDENT 300

QUARTZ 38mmFROM £299/$415 C60 TR IDENT COSC 600

CALIBRE SH21 | CW

orderline +44 1628 763040

“This is a watch thatcan be worn anywhere at any time. At one level it’s a serious dive watch, at another it dresses up beautifully and looks good with a suit”

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C60 TRIDENT PRO 600


C60 TRIDENT GMT 600

GMT 38mmFROM £799/$1095

C60 TRIDENT 300

QUARTZ 38mmFROM £299/$415 C60 TR IDENT COSC 600

C5 MALVERN SL IMLINE £399

Swiss movement, English heart

E X C L U S I V E L Y A V A I L A B L E A T christopherward.co.uk


3:31 JULY 6, 1972, DAVID BOWIE PERFORMS STARMAN

IN THE 1970S NOTHING DEFINED THE GAP BETWEEN TEENAGERS AND PARENTS BETTER THAN WEEKLY MUSIC SHOW TOP OF THE POPS.

Every Thursday night, families would be split along generational lines as the kids gazed at the likes of T-Rex and Mud, while mums made the tea, and dads (in an age when they looked like dads) shouted insults from behind their newspapers. “Just look at him,” they’d say, pointing at the latest glam rock incarnation. “He looks like a bloody hairdresser.”

Never was this better illustrated than on July 6 1972, when David Bowie performed his single Starman on the show. Few regular people knew much about Bowie, so when this red-haired sprite in a jumpsuit began singing into the camera, things took a decidedly weird turn in living rooms across Britain. Looking at the video today, it’s easy to see why.

TIM

ESPAN

As the first chorus comes in, Bowie starts to share the microphone with guitarist Mick Ronson, then – and this is the bit that really did “blow our minds” – puts his arm limply round his shoulder and looks into his eyes. Ronson, wearing what can only be described as gold overalls, looks back, as in on the joke as Bowie. Even today, it’s incredible, not least for fact that Ronson was from Hull. Hull!

It’s not just about the interplay between Ronson and Bowie though: everything here is era-defining. For one, Bowie and the band are playing live – no lip-synching for the Dame – while both the sideburns of the great man’s band, and the clothes of the audience just scream ’70s. The tank-top of the lad in the crowd behind Bowie is enough to give you a raging headache even today.

For a certain generation, this performance drew a big, fat line in the sand – a true ‘before and after’ moment. Bowie, said DJ Mark Radcliffe, then a 14-year-old schoolboy in Bolton, “had arrived from another planet where men flirted with each other, made exhilarating music and wore Lurex knee socks”.

He was suddenly, and officially, the coolest man on Earth.

17E X C L U S I V E L Y A V A I L A B L E A T christopherward.co.uk

CW | SPORTING IMAGES

WHAT MAKES THE PERFECTSPORTSPHOTO?On the surface Marc Aspland is

easy to dislike. As The Times’ Chief Sports

Photographer he gets paid to travel the world, shooting the biggest sporting events on the planet. The World Cup, the Olympics, the Ashes, Wimbledon… he’s shot the lot. There’s probably snaps of the World Crazy Golf Championships in Hastings in his catalogue somewhere.

However, as much as we covet his job – and his Air Miles – the man himself is impossible to detest. A humble presence, his singular photographs are as engaging as his company. And having been named Sports Photographer of the Year three times, plus being a fellow of the Royal Photographic

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THE TIMES’ CHIEF SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHER MARC ASPLAND ON CAPTURING THE MOMENT THAT DEFINES AN EVENT WORDS: JIM BUTLER

Society, it appears his peers agree.Here we speak to him about his colourful

career and those mesmerising photos…Hi Marc. So, why sports photography?It’s a moment in time that you’re never

ever going to get the chance to do again. In the click of a finger it’s gone forever. Whether it’s Usain Bolt becoming the fastest man in the world, or those few seconds of Jonny Wilkinson dropping that goal in 2003, what I really, really like about sports photography is I have no control over that moment. I can’t go and ask Jonny to re-take that goal because a yellow and gold shirt flashed before me. To capture a moment in time that I will never ever get a second chance to do again – that’s what I like.

WHAT MAKES THE PERFECTSPORTSPHOTO?

WHAT MAKES THE PERFECTSPORTSPHOTO?

➸

SPORTING IMAGES| CW


MO FARAH“I was reading an interview

with Mo Farah in which he said ‘every second counts’ 18 times. And that was what I wanted to capture at the 2012 Olympics – that in a 10,000 metres race, something that lasts for nearly 28 minutes, every second counts. I wasn’t interested in the Mobot. This was all about the bigger picture, about Mo the runner.”



What’s the key to a great sports photo?Everything builds up to it. Experience

plays a great part. Your own style, people that have influenced me… ultimately all of those things come into play. Cameras these days are so unbelievably clever and technologically advanced that my 16-year-old son could take a great sports picture because it does so much for you.

What differentiates the way I photograph something is the eye. It’s not a single technique, it’s the way I see a moment. I’m not saying I’m better than the person next to me: I’ve missed so many great moments in my career because I haven’t been looking at the person that scores the winning goal. I’ve been looking at the expression of Jose Mourinho on the sideline waiting for that eruption of emotion to sum up the whole event. I much prefer trying to capture the image that sums up the 90 minutes rather than the defining moment.

Your Ricky Hatton shot is the perfect illustration of that, isn’t it?

Yeah. The knockout punch wasn’t the story, it was him lying on the canvas – the end of this man’s career who was lying right in front of me. I’d got to know him quite well. The reason it’s in the book is that his gum shield is being taken out. It’s a powerful image because of what happens after. The same with Jean van der Velde going into the Barry Burn at Carnoustie in 1999. All he had to do was score a double-bogey six to win The Open and he would have been a golfing legend. His whole career, his whole life – the same with Ricky’s – all spiralled downwards after that one calamitous moment. Some find that photo comical, but it was tragic for me. I find no humour in it. Even now, I can’t. It’s those moments and what happens thereafter.

Do you know instantly when you’ve got a great shot?

Mostly. I’m a firm believer in prior planning prevents piss-poor performance. If I’m going to go to the snowboarding at the Winter Olympics, I’ll go on YouTube and study what this sport is all about. If I’m

ENGLAND“A lot of work went into this shot

of Emile Heskey in England’s win over Kazakhstan in a World Cup qualifier in 2008. I was up in the TV gantry – I had to get permission to go up there. I had the idea for this Subbuteo shot. I used a specialist lens – a tilt-and-shift – which causes a shrinking effect, the opposite to what you’d normally capture. When I told my editor what I wanted to do he wasn’t sure – thankfully it came off.”

“Whether it’s Usain Bolt becoming the fastest man in the world or those few seconds of Jonny Wilkinson dropping that goal, what I really, really like about sports photography is I have no control over that moment”

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RAFAEL NADAL“The longest final in

Wimbledon history [2008]. I love that you can see the time on the scoreboard – 9:26pm. A remarkable match with Federer. The roof was open, no floodlights. I used a technique where I slowed the shutter speed down and luckily I was able to capture one of the other camera’s flashes. We made it black and white to give it a timeless look. This picture hangs on a wall at his home in Menorca.”

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outside of my comfort zone I really do my homework. If I’m doing the football, rugby, Wimbledon and what have you, I can generally do it with my eyes closed, but it makes me work even harder.

You do know in an instant when a moment has happened and you’ve clicked your camera. In boxing, there’s a saying that if you’ve seen the knockout punch through your lens you haven’t taken it. If you’ve seen that moment, that split-second, the punch will be halfway around the fella’s shoulder but the leather on the chin will be gone. So you have to react before it’s happened. You’re anticipating it – and that’s what I mean about prior planning. You’ve got to know that that guy’s technique is a body shot and then an upper cut, and then it’s over. You have to know that once he’s whacked that body shot in, the upper cut will follow.

You realise what a privileged position you’re in, don’t you?

Oh, totally. Absolutely. Sometimes I do stand back from it all. And not necessarily at the 100 metres final or the Champions League final. I remember finding myself at the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park at the Sochi Olympics last year. I was watching these guys warming up, doing these somersaults 40 feet in the air and then landing. I remember dropping the camera for a second and thinking, “Wow, that’s really, really impressive.”

Marc Aspland’s The Art of Sports Photography is out now

“You do know in aninstant when a moment has happened and you’ve clicked your camera. In boxing, there’s a saying that if you’ve seen the knockout punch through your lens you haven’t taken it”

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RICKY HATTON“A real seconds-out moment, just after he’d been knocked out by Floyd Mayweather Jr at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas, 2007. He landed six inches in front of me – out cold on that star. After the referee Joe Cortez took his gum shield out all hell broke out in the ring – as it does in boxing.”

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Calibre SH21: the industry verdict

“With the advent of the Harrison collection, Christopher Ward began to tip-toe in the halls of the major Swiss watch makers. With the release of the C9 Harrison 5 Day Automatic and the SH21 movement, Christopher Ward has the potential to make thunderous steps”A BLOG TO WATCH

“This is the kind of watch that couldbe worth something down the road, especially if Christopher Ward continues pushing forward at the rate they currently are. A day might come when they are not the biggest outsider brand, but rather the brand all others are looking at. And, in the current market, it’s in a class of its own for the features it provides.”WORN AND WOUND

It’s hard for any watch brand – yet alone a comparatively small independent – to stand out at SalonQP, the prestigious watch trade show held every year at

the Saatchi Gallery in west London. But that’s exactly what Christopher Ward did at November’s event.

How? By exhibiting our first ever in-house movement, Calibre SH21, and the watch that encases it, the C9 5 Day Automatic. Though this being Christopher Ward, we took it a stage further by getting our watchmakers Johannes Jahnke and Frank Selzer to assemble SH21 live in front of a crowd of customers, journalists and industry insiders.

Adrian Hailwood of watch auctioneers Fellows and Sons summed up the reaction.

“....the ambitionthat this movement will become a classic of the 21st century”MONOCHROME WATCH

“Destined to be one of the most talked-about watches of the year”SUNDAY TELEGRAPH

HOW THE FIRST BRITISH IN-HOUSE MOVEMENT WAS RECEIVED BY HOROLOGY’S MOVERS AND SHAKERS

“You realise this is probably the most important watch in this entire show, don’t you?”

Since its launch in July 2014, Calibre SH21 (and the watch that houses it, the C9 5 Day Automatic), has given Christopher Ward a leading – and unique – role in the British watch industry. One that points to a future less reliant on Swiss movement makers like ETA, which will no longer be required to supply its wares to non-Swatch Group brands after 2020.

As Christopher Ward releases its second SH21 timepiece, the C60 Trident COSC, here’s what horology’s key influencers said about the movement, the C9 5 Day Automatic and CW’s growing influence on the world of watchmaking.

It makes for happy reading.

“The price seems remarkably lowfor a movement designed and built from scratch” FINANCIAL TIMES

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PERFECT VC10 | CW

Calibre SH21: the industry verdict

“This is a hugely accomplished watch, with the technical chops, the looks and, above all, the price – £1,500 – to make a lot of Swiss watch executives tug uncomfortably at their shirt collars” MEN’S HEALTH

“....probably the most important watch in this entire show....”ADRIAN HAILWOOD OF WATCH AUCTIONEERS FELLOWS AND SONS AT SALONQP

“CW just changedthe equation”WRISTWATCH REVIEW

“Everything aboutSH21 is brand new, and the way it’s made with its modular capability really is revolutionary. They wanted to create a storm, and they have” WATCH IT ALL ABOUT

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CW | ICONIC CLOCKS


Nothing is more important to the rail traveller than punctuality.

A minute’s inaccuracy can lead to missed connections, late arrivals and

hours spent on windy platforms with only a cup of instant soup for company.

That’s why clocks form such an important role in the architecture of railway stations. From Sydney Central to London Waterloo, every terminus puts a clock at centre-stage, housed in an ornate tower or hung over platforms and concourses. Time is king.

This has led to the manufacture of a series of iconic clocks – ones that act as a totem for a particular place. A clock that doesn’t just tell you the time, but also that you’re home.

In Great Britain, where the railway was invented, station clocks tell the story of

TAKING A LOOK AT RAIL’S GREATEST CLOCKS

timekeeping itself. Up until the arrival of the trains, every town in Britain had its own time, based on when the sun came up, meaning that, say, Bristol in the south-west ran on time ten minutes behind that of London. Norwich, to the east of the capital, was ahead.

In 1840 Great Western Railway announced that all its stations would display GMT, the standard London time, no matter what the local time was. By 1845 this had been adopted all around the country (it was called ‘railway time’), yet local time still held sway away from stations. You can still see evidence for this on Bristol’s Exchange clock which has three hands, two for local time, and a third – like on certain watches – for GMT.

Then there’s the great clocks themselves. London’s St Pancras boasts a clock tower ➸

STATION MASTERS

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Holiday crowds at Waterloo Station, London,1946. The passengers are probably on their way to the South Coast. Waterloo is London’s busiest and largest station. The photograph was taken to show that passenger numbers had resumed after a lull during the Second World War. During the war it was difficult for people to travel as the number of passenger trains was limited. The railways were used for more important purposes, such as delivering essential supplies.

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like something from a Disney castle – all turrets, spikes and tiled roofs, while the four-sided clock above the concourse at Waterloo has long been a place for people to meet.

Glasgow Central and Edinburgh Waverley also have stunning clock towers – edifices more like national parliaments than transport hubs. And for romance you can’t beat the station clock at Carnforth in the Lake District, which played an integral part in the 1945 film Brief Encounter.

Away from the UK, the story is similar. New York’s Grand Central, which has perhaps the world’s most beautiful station concourse, has a clock instantly recognisable to its millions of commuters.

A bulbous, four-sided timepiece wrapped in brass, it sits above the station’s information booth, under which is also housed a secret staircase for staff. And like every other clock at the station, it runs exactly one minute fast, giving passengers an extra 60 seconds to get to their trains, hopefully calming them down in the process.

In Australia, Melbourne’s Flinders St station, the busiest (and with its yellow exterior, certainly the brightest) terminus in the Southern Hemisphere, has nine clocks above its main entrance, which tell the times of the next trains to depart. “Meeting under the clocks,” has been a local expression since the station was opened in 1910.

However, for design, nothing can top the official Swiss Railways clock, used at every station in the country since 1944, with each one synchronised by impulses from a central clock. Designed by engineer Hans Hilfiker, the red seconds hand, in the shape of the guard’s signalling paddle, was added in 1953. The hand only takes 58 seconds to go 360°, before stopping at the top for two seconds – something which allows for inaccuracies to be ironed out. A very Swiss concept.

Such is the beauty of the timepiece, it’s been exhibited at the Design Museum in London and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Swiss Railways also has licensing deal with Mondaine, which produces timepieces of various sizes using the design. What was that Orson Welles said about Switzerland and cuckoo clocks?

So while station clocks still provide us with an immediate reference as we rush to that slowly departing Inter-City, they also act as a spur for travel, romance, design and inspiration. And you can set your watch by that.

left: St Pancras in London, a splendid clock in a fairy-tale stationbelow: The clock over the entrance to Waterloo station bottom: Flinders Street Station in Melbourne, the busiest terminus in the Southern Hemisphere

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right: The legendary clock from Brief Encounter at Carnforth railway station in Cumbria. Made in the 19th century, the clock is wound by hand each week by ex-train driver Jim Walker, who works as a volunteer at the Carnforth Station and Visitor Centre Trust

above The Corn Exchange, Bristol. Note the second minute hand, displaying the time in London as well as Bristolright: The Brass Clock, Grand Central Terminal, New York City. Not just an instrument, but a popular meeting point for New Yorkers, toobelow: Swiss railway clocks – another timepiece on the production line

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EDCLASSIC WARD

C4 RED LIMITED EDITIONRELEASED AUTUMN 2007 PRICE £249

The three co-founders of Christopher Ward; Mike France, Peter Ellis and Chris Ward had been watching a late-night Premier League football match in a bar in downtown Hong Kong when the conversation, no doubt fuelled by a few Tsingtao beers and the shirt colours of the Liverpool team they’d been watching, veered away from 4-4-2 to the colour red.

Initially, the talk was about using the colour to accent CW’s black and white brand colours in packaging, linings and accessories (still not a bad idea) but somehow moved onto creating a limited edition red version of the in-demand C4 Peregrine Chronograph, CW’s original sports watch introduced to challenge the likes of Breitling and Tag Heuer.

Back in 2006, the launch of a watch with a red dial seemed outrageously bold for an emerging brand so it was decided to make it a limited edition of just 200 pieces to give it additional appeal. It was a surprise, therefore, when on its release the C4 Red became the fastest selling watch that the brand had introduced by some distance.

Since then, football and alcohol haven’t been integrated into the design process but as red has become a colour associated with some of CW’s most popular timepieces (eg C7 IRR, C70 3527GT) maybe it’s something the design team should consider.

Tsingtaos all round!

THE C4 RED WAS BORN IN AN IRISH PUB IN HONG KONG IN THE EARLY HOURS OF A SUNDAY MORNING IN NOVEMBER 2006…

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...the conversation, no doubt fuelled by a few Tsingtao beers and the shirt colours of the Liverpool team they had been watching, veered away from 4-4-2 to the colour red!

CW | BRITISH WATCHMAKING

watchmaking industry in this country rather than running a self-interested agenda.

Overstatement is, unfortunately, a common thread in the marketing of Swiss luxury watch brands and it’s perhaps no surprise, therefore, that British brands competing with them using the same model, feel pressured to import hyperbole into their own PR.

In the long-term, however, Roger Smith is right, such behaviours can only damage British watchmakers and stunt the revival of the domestic industry. I have a view, however, that this ‘revival’, to some extent, has been fuelled by the same PR puff

One of the most talked-about events at last November’s SalonQP Fine Watch Exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery in London wasn’t a new launch or

a technological breakthrough. In fact it wasn’t really an event, but something

equally significant: an open letter to the domestic watch industry from Britain’s top watchmaker, Roger Smith. And with horology’s key influencers all packed in just one place, it caused maximum impact.

The letter, as carefully crafted as one of Smith’s Series 2 watches, criticised elements of the British watch industry for making “premature and deceitful” claims about the domestic provenance of their timepieces which “diminish Britain’s rich horological past, and prejudice its present and its future”.

In his statement, Smith cited one British brand which claimed to have designed and made an “in-house” movement in England, which, in reality, wasn’t either in-house or substantially English. His view was that such misleading claims have a detrimental impact on British watchmaking and could damage the re-emergence of the industry in this country, perhaps for good.

TIME FOR TRUTHIt’s hard to disagree with Smith, whose recent

appointment as ambassador and leading light for the government-sponsored GREAT Britain campaign as well as his work with the George Daniels Trust, demonstrates he’s strongly motivated to support the


British watchmaking: hope or hype?CHRISTOPHER WARD CO-FOUNDER MIKE FRANCE LOOKS AT THE STATE OF BRITISH HOROLOGY AND ASKS IF THE FUTURE OF UK WATCHMAKING IS REALLY AS BRIGHT AS SOME CLAIM

Britain’s hand-crafted approach, which relied on a highly skilled and expensive workforce, had been supplanted by mass-production techniques pioneered in America but adopted by the Swiss

and is preventing a more intelligent and realistic debate about just what sort of watch industry is both likely and desirable in the UK.

NEED FOR INFRASTRUCTUREThere’s a rising number of British brands

(including our own) that in various segments with different business models have raised awareness of British horology in the past decade. This is a good thing. However, to the best of my best knowledge, the number of truly ‘British- made’ contemporary ➸

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Roger Smith cited one British brand which claimed to have designed and made an “in-house” movement in England, which wasn’t either in-house or English

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C9 5 DAY AUTOMATIC £1,500




mechanical watches produced last year is fewer than 20 – and they all came from Roger Smith’s workshop on the Isle of Man.

This isn’t as shocking as it may sound. There’s no industrial infrastructure for watchmaking in the UK so any British brand that wants to supply watches in any volume must look to other markets, primarily Switzerland and the Far East, for expertise and components. There is effort being expended by some brands to use UK manufacturers for cases, dials and the finishing of components, and a commendable aspiration to develop a real British movement by the likes of Robert Loomes and Bremont. However, in the absence of any significant infrastructure, even if these ambitions are to be realised the resulting watches are likely to be produced in very small numbers, with fairly basic complications and at a cost that will make them accessible only to those wealthy enough to indulge themselves in novelty. Laudable it may be, but the basis for an ‘industry’ by any proper definition of the word? I’m not so sure. It’s also worth reflecting on the history of watchmaking in the UK to understand exactly what it is we would actually be reviving.

RICH HISTORYIn 1800, the UK manufactured 200,000

watches, around half the world’s total. One hundred years later, the output had halved despite the market for watches being counted in millions. Our hand-crafted approach, which relied on a highly skilled and therefore expensive workforce, had been supplanted by mass-production techniques pioneered in America but quickly adopted by the Swiss. These produced cheaper and more reliable timepieces.

There was a brief resurgence after World War II when Smith’s Industries flourished for a while, but that was snuffed out by the quartz crystal revolution of the ’60s and ’70s ,and the easier profits Smith’s identified in engineering and aerospace. So, for the most part, watchmaking on these shores over the centuries should really be described as a cottage industry.

Nothing wrong with this either and I foresee a strong resurgence of artisan watchmaking in the UK as being an important part of our horological future but it’s dishonest to pretend this compares

It’s up to the rest of us to follow Smith’s lead

BRITISH WATCHMAKING | CW

in any meaningful way to the sort of sophisticated industrialisation that has developed over the last century in Switzerland.

FORMULA 1 MODEL And yet, I am very optimistic about the UK

playing an increasingly influential role in the world of horology if we combine our capacity for invention with our engineering prowess in the same way that Formula 1 in the UK has become the hot-house for technical advancements in the automotive industry without there being any indigenous car industry left to speak of.

The UK’s contribution to horology can not be overstated. Every major escapement design (including George Daniels’s co-axial) and around three-quarters of the remaining important innovations in horology came from these shores.

We’re a long way from being this influential again but if the brightest young people can access an excellent watchmaking education and then enter rewarding and exciting careers working for thriving British brands, no matter where they source their components, anything is possible.

As a fast-growing British brand, Christopher Ward is well placed to benefit from this approach and would be delighted to add real British watchmaking talent to our team, working alongside the likes of Johannes Jahnke and Frank Selzer to create great movements and, who knows, groundbreaking advances in the art of watchmaking to rank alongside those of past greats. There’s no reason why not.

Others will, of course, have a different perspective on the future but whatever direction the industry chooses to go toward, it needs to be honest about its starting point today. Roger Smith’s open letter to the UK’s watchmaking fraternity may have ruffled a few feathers but it represents a challenging and definite step in the right direction for British horology.

Now, it’s up to the rest of us to follow his lead.

Read Roger Smith’s letter at rwsmithwatches.com

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“I’ve had my gunpersonalised with a union jack – it looks amazing!”

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Seventeen is the age when many of us start doing all the fun things we’re not supposed to do; adulthood without any of the responsibility. Olympic

skeet shooter Amber Hill is also 17 but her life – and attitude – is very different from that of a ‘normal’ young adult.

Supported by the Christopher Ward Challenger programme, Amber has already won a World Cup medal, and competed at the Commonwealth Games in her chosen discipline. No wonder she won the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year in 2013.

This year, her goal is to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics, and with her family right behind her, everything looks on target for this Berkshire teenager. Here. she explains to us what her life is all about and where her ambitions lie…

Hi Amber! When did you first take up shooting?

My granddad introduced me to it when I was 10. It was good fun but it wasn’t really a great passion of mine. However, he saw my potential and kept me interested, and he’s guided me ever since.

When did you realise you were good at it?When I was 12 I won the English, and

British Opens within a few months. I then made the England team. That inspired me to push myself as hard as I could.

Olympic skeet is a complex event, with clay targets coming out at various heights and frequencies. What does your training involve?

I see my coach Joe Neville each month to go through any issues, such as checking my gun-mounting routine. I shoot almost every day and need to stay fit.

It’s more physical than many people realise, keeping upper body strength and stamina is important as competitions can run to 15 hours in a day.

What about the mental side of training?I don’t use psychological training.

It’s common in the sport so I don’t rule it out but I don’t feel I need it now. Many professionals use a routine – such as the same food, a piece of music, lucky socks etc – but I just keep everything simple.

What if things don’t go to plan? If a session doesn’t go well then I have

to think about how I’m going to come back from that immediately. You can’t let yourself go. If the first round doesn’t go to plan then I’ll work twice as hard in the second. I’ll always fight for it because you never know what might happen.

At the Commonwealth Games, you missed out on a semi-final place after a three-way shootout. What did you learn from the experience?

Although the quality of shooters was lower

You’ve turned professional at the age of 17. What’s that been like?

Leaving school to turn pro was a mixed decision. It’s difficult knowing that I have less time with friends and family but I’m focused on achieving my goals. I’m absolutely determined to reach the Olympics and the sacrifices I make now will help me get there.

Is keeping cool important? It must be hard not to ‘lose it’ sometimes…

To shoot at the top level you have to be calm. I‘m quite laid back but also totally determined to win. I always want to be the best at everything I do. In competition, you have to keep everything else out of your head and concentrate on what you have to do – hit that target.

than at a World Championship – and things didn’t work out for me on the day – the games gave me a valuable experience of what the Olympics might be like. I learnt from my mistakes, and in training went right back through the basics for the World Championships in Granada. That approach paid off. I won gold with the GB women’s team – their first ever – and was just one shot off the final in the individual women’s event.

This might sound a bit odd, but tell us about your gun…

For consistency, I use the same gun for practice and competition. Last year I switched to one by Italian specialists Perazzi, and by making lots of micro adjustments it’s now the perfect fit. I’ve also had it personalised with a union jack – it looks amazing!

What’s been your biggest victory so far? It has to be the first big win, the gold at

the World Cup in Mexico in 2013 [Amber is the youngest ever winner of a World Cup]. It was my first one so no-one expected me to win. Hearing the national anthem was amazing.

What impact has the Christopher Ward Challenger Programme had on you?

It’s been a great help and they’re such nice people to be involved with. When it came to choose a watch, I went for the C60 in blue because I loved the design and colour, and I really like the size. I was never into watches before and didn’t wear one regularly but I love my C60!

How do you feel about 2015? It’s huge, but I’m well prepared and on

track. Everything I’ve done over the past few years has been targeted on qualifying for Rio and coming away with a medal. I’m determined to be there.

SHOOTINGSTAR

THE BRIGHT HOPE OF BRITISH SHOOTING TALKS TRAINING, MENTAL STRENGTH AND GUN CUSTOMISATION WITH JOHN MATHESON

“Everything I’ve done over the past few years hasbeen targeted on qualifying for Rio and coming away with a medal. I’m determined to be there”


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For a brief period, post-war Britain was the cycle-making capital of the world.

In those days you wouldn’t have to go very far to find a bike shop, in which a man, maybe smoking

a cigarette and wearing dusty overalls, would be welding metal tubing in the overrun space. He’d braze together the disparate elements that compose a frame; dropouts, lugs, fork crowns, and with a combination of knowledge, experience and technique, create one beautiful whole.

Frame-builders and their shops were everywhere then, igniting equal parts lust and love in their clientele, names whispered in hushed tones, and shop windows grubby from the faces pressed up against the glass: Hetchins; Hobbs of Barbican; RO Harrison; Rotrax; W.F. Holdsworth; AS Gillott; Woodrup; Ellis Briggs; FA Lipscombe; Ephgrave, to name a few.

Condor, located on Gray’s Inn Road in central London, is one of the brands to have survived from those days. Founded in 1948 by Monty Young, and his future brother-in-law Walter Conway, today it’s a store in its own right, a producer of frames and bicycles, and a sponsor of road racing teams, producing bikes for the likes of Bradley Wiggins and rising star Tao Geoghegan Hart. A one-stop shop of cycling excellence.

Monty, a cabinet maker, turned his hand to frame- and wheel-building before employing frame-builder Bill Hurlow for his venture. Condor’s reputation was built upon its beautifully ornate lugs – the precast joining

points that hold the different tubes together – designed by Harlow. These joints were vital in establishing the Condor identity, as Claire Beaumont, Condor’s Marketing Manager, says: “Back in the ’50s, everyone had to use the same tubing, Reynolds 531, so the way brands differentiated themselves was to do fancy lug work. Today, Condor still has three designs, the Superbe, the No 1 and No 2 lug pattern.”

While lugged steel is still used by Condor and other framebuilders, the main way of producing frames today is by connecting tubes together, filing away at the end of each one (mitring) until they fit the round surface they’re connecting to. This is called fillet-brazing, and Condor, always looking to innovate, championed this technique as cycling moved away from lugged frames in the ’70s.

THE RIDE OF ITS LIFE

CONDOR CYCLES IS A LONDON INSTITUTION, COMBINING THE ART OF FRAME BUILDING WITH A RELENTLESS PURSUIT OF INNOVATION, AS DON G CORNELIUS DISCOVERS ON A TRIP TO ITS HEADQUARTERS ON GRAY’S INN ROAD

“Back in the 1950s,everyone had to use the same tubing, Reynolds 531, so the way brands differentiated themselves was to do fancy lug work”

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CW | CYCLE MAKERS


Typical of this innovation and versatility is the fact that this relatively small company produces frames in all four of the main cycling materials; aluminium, steel, titanium and carbon fibre. The reliance on a particular set of skills means sadly, much of its production has been transferred to Italy.

“Up until 2002 Condor frames were still made in England, but people just weren’t interested in becoming frame-builders,” says Beaumont. To make aluminium and carbon frames you need to buy lots of different machines, and there was a factory that was on its knees in Italy that had the machinery, so we moved our manufacturing there.”

While it remains very much a British company at heart, Condor now employs 30 full-time staff in Italy, handcrafting all but two of their 20+ models there. Harking back to cycling’s heyday, each frame is hand-built by one person.

“The Italians care about what they’re doing, and the heritage of cycling in Italy is really strong. They don’t want to use their welding skills to make tubes for washing machines, they want to make bicycles. So that passion is translated into the product,” says Beaumont. Whether they’re making the entry-level aluminium Italia or the slick, carbon fibre Leggero (used by the Rapha JLT-Condor team), craftsmanship is all. And that translates to the track, too.

Condor has always been involved in racing. From the ’60s as Condor Mackeson, its bikes were ridden to victories on the track by 1968 World Pursuit Champion Hugh

Porter, as well as Colin Lewis, Dave Bonner and Tommy Simpson.

In the 1970s Condor supported the Milk Race (now revived as the Tour of Britain), then sponsored the UK professional team Percy Bilton that featured National Road Race Champion John Herety, now Sporting Director of the current Rapha JLT-Condor squad.

This commitment has been continued by Grant Young, Monty’s son and Condor MD, as Condor uses the information its race squads provide to produce ever more responsive bicycles, even using materials which were seen as unsuitable for modern racing. And that includes perhaps the oldest bicycle metal of all.

“Steel is a substance which wasn’t ever really considered as racing bike material in modern day terms,” says Grant. “But after three years and about a million different iterations we finally produced what we consider to be a product suitable for elite level racing – the Super Acciaio. The team helped us go through all the iterations, and from that we passed it onto the customer in the shape of this bicycle that they can purchase.”

This dedication to pushing things forward is what makes Condor so popular with serious riders, but it’s the company’s long pedigree that stirs up affection from every branch of the cycling family.

“What I love about them is their history and heritage,” says Lewin Chalkley, co-owner of London cycle café Look Mum No Hands. “When I was growing up, they were the bikes that everyone’s dad had or wanted. And I think part of the reason for them having stayed around so long is because they’re easy to access, there’s no need to go into middle of nowhere to find them.”

Condor is a little bit of cycling history embedded in central London, harking back to the golden age of road racing, immortalised in the black and white photos within its own history book, Past Present Future.

But Condor has always been forward-looking, too, merging new technologies with skills handed down from master to apprentice, as in the new Super Acciaio. It’s this that has kept Condor at the top.

And why the large glass windows on its Gray’s Inn Road premises are still grubby from the faces pressed against them.

left: How the bike looks, and performs, requires both graphic and engineering skillsother page: From the factory to the track, Condor’s bikes go through rigourous testing


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“Up until 2002Condor frames were still made in England, but people just weren’t interested in becoming frame-builders”

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FEATURES• Swiss made• Limited Edition of 1000 pcs worldwide• Self winding automatic chronometer• COSC certified• 38 hour power reserve• Date calendar• Anti-shock system• Satin-brushed titanium case• Screw-down crown• Screw-down helium release valve• 4.3mm museum-grade AR08 anti-reflective sapphire crystal• Screw-down internal countdown bezel• Bespoke SuperLuminovaTm hands and indexes• Screw-down deep-etched engraved back plate• Unique engraved serial number• High-density rubber dive strap with titanium clasp• Deluxe presentation case and owner’s handbook

TECHNICAL• Diameter: 42mm• Height: 14.9mm• Calibre: Sellita SW200-1 (COSC)• Vibrations: 28,800 per hour• Case: Titanium• Water resistance 100ATM (1000 metres)• Strap: 22mm Rubber

EXPERIENCED RECREATIONAL DIVER NICK TOYAS HAS JUST RETURNED FROM LEADING A WEEK OF EXPEDITIONARY DIVING IN THE SOUTH OF FRANCE WHERE HE DIVE-TESTED THE C11 TITANIUM EXTREME 1000. HERE’S HIS VERDICT

hen I tested the C11 Titanium Extreme 1000 Chronometer, it immediately displayed the two things I require from a dive watch: clarity and an indestructible construction engineered to withstand the rigours of a dive boat and the unforgiving environment of deep

wrecks. Accuracy, as I’ve come to expect from Christopher Ward, wastaken for granted as the watch is powered by a COSC-certified Swiss movement, guaranteed to 1,000m.

I wore the C11 Extreme non-stop for an intense week of diving the wrecks around Cavalaire in the south of France, not far from where Jacques Cousteau and Émile Gagnan perfected the aqualung over 70 years ago. And these waters would prove the perfect testing ground for the C11 Extreme. From the wreck of Le Rubis, the French submarine off Cap Lardier, to the 50m sites of Le Donator and Le Grec, the titanium case of the C11 Extreme was more than robust enough to withstand the rigours of wreck diving. Its durability would be tested again and again on the boat as the first gusts of le mistral started to make their violent presence felt. The C11 Extreme was more than up to the task, unlike some of us divers.

When we entered the darkness of a wreck, the C11 Extreme’s SuperLuminovaTM

numbers and hands were startlingly bright and easy to read. The large crown makes delicate adjustment of the internal bezel easy – even through neoprene gloves – and it gained admiring glances from a group of French naval divers as we counted down a long decompression stop. Now that’s what you call a rarity.

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C11 TITANIUM EXTREME

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1000PUT TO THE TEST

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CW | TEST DIVE

CLOTHES MAKERS | CW

FEATURES• Swiss made• Limited Edition of 1000 pcs worldwide• Self winding automatic chronometer• COSC certified• 38 hour power reserve• Date calendar• Anti-shock system• Satin-brushed titanium case• Screw-down crown• Screw-down helium release valve• 4.3mm museum-grade AR08 anti-reflective sapphire crystal• Screw-down internal countdown bezel• Bespoke SuperLuminovaTm hands and indexes• Screw-down deep-etched engraved back plate• Unique engraved serial number• High-density rubber dive strap with titanium clasp• Deluxe presentation case and owner’s handbook

TECHNICAL• Diameter: 42mm• Height: 14.9mm• Calibre: Sellita SW200-1 (COSC)• Vibrations: 28,800 per hour• Case: Titanium• Water resistance 100ATM (1000 metres)• Strap: 22mm Rubber

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// “OUR FINAL DIVE, ON THE SHALLOW WRECKOF THE RAMON MEUMBRU, MADE FAMOUS IN COUSTEAU’S DIVE CLASSIC LE MONDE DU SILENCE, GAVE ME TIME TO EVALUATE THE WATCH CAREFULLY. PITTED AGAINST SEA WATER, RUSTING WRECKS, HIGH WINDS AND EVEN HIGHER SEAS THE C11 EXTREME HAD PERFORMED PERFECTLY – AND IT STILL LOOKED AS THOUGH IT HAD JUST BEEN REMOVED FROM ITS BOX“

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////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// “ALTHOUGH, I HAD ONLY TESTED IT TO A 20TH OF ITS DEPTHRATING I COULDN’T FAULT THE WATCH’S DURABILITY OR PERFORMANCE. ADD TO THIS ITS UNIQUE STYLING AND IT’S CLEAR CHRISTOPHER WARD’S C11 EXTREME 1000 WILL BECOME A DIVE CLASSIC IN ITS OWN RIGHT”

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CW | WATCH MAKER


GERMAN WATCHMAKER FRANK SELZER PLAYS A KEY ROLE IN TAKING CHRISTOPHER WARD FORWARD, AS ANTHONY TEASDALE FINDS OUT ON A TRIP TO CW’S SWISS ATELIER

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS

old watchmaker from Dresden, who is SH’s Manager of Movement Assembly.

While Technical Director Johannes Jahnke designs the movements, including the Calibre SH21, Frank is involved in their development and is also responsible for managing the team that assembles the movements and watches. Ultimately, he’s responsible for ensuring the quality of the watches that go out of the door.

Here he talks to us about his role, the magic of mechanical watches, the expansion of Christopher Ward and why the C900 Single Pusher Chronograph is such a unique watch.

Hi Frank, what’s your role at Christopher Ward/Synergies Horlogères?

I lead the watchmaking team. We have a small group of young watchmakers and I train each one to the highest standards. Part of this is assessing their expertise in the various

“My role here is to leadthe watchmaking team. We have a few young watchmakers that I oversee, and as the company expands more will arrive next year”

At Christopher Ward it’s vital that the quality of its timepieces is not just maintained but constantly improved upon. The recent merger with Synergies

Horlogères (SH), CW’s long-time watchmaking partner makes this possible.

Located in one of Switzerland’s centres of horology, Biel/Bienne (home of Rolex and Omega), SH produces all of Christopher Ward’s watches, including those containing proprietary movement modifications like the C900 Worldtimer and Single Pusher Chronograph, as well as the first watch encasing the company’s in-house movement, Calibre SH21, the C9 5 Day Automatic.

The key figure in co-ordinating these complex operations is Frank Selzer, a 32-year-

orderline +44 1628 763040 45

aspects of movement assembly so we can determine what additional training they’ll need. It’s like an assembly line in a car factory. A single person does not build a movement in one stage – different people work together in a team. My job is to co-ordinate it all. As the company expands I’m also involved in the recruitment of new watchmakers.

What’s the difference in roles between you and Johannes?

Johannes is the designer of the in-house movements and modifications but I work closely with him in their development. In constructing a movement, issues often come to light that aren’t always apparent at the design stage. For instance, a wheel may not be quite right, in which case I’ll advise Johannes and he’ll work with the wheel manufacturer to make an improvement. I’m primarily responsible for the industrialisation of the process, including what machines we need for the future. That could include a 3D printer to produce the movement holders we work with. Being able to download them is not only more efficient, it also reduces cost!

How did you start as a watchmaker?I learned watchmaking in Germany at

Glashütte Original but I’d always loved mechanics. My grandfather taught me how to fix model railways. I loved the little parts and looking after the trains. When I left school I saw

firms were looking for watchmakers and this seemed an obvious way to fulfil my craving for all things mechanical!

What took you to Synergies Horlogères?I studied movement construction and

relocated to Switzerland, where initially I worked with Omega’s customer service department repairing chronographs. That was fascinating but after completing my studies I ended up working in the Swatch Group’s case and bracelet section which wasn’t so interesting. I wanted to make movements!

Someone told me about a small brand near Omega that was looking for someone with my skills. This was Synergies, which was already working closely with Christopher Ward. I met

“I learnedwatchmaking in Germany at Glashütte Original, but I’d always loved mechanics. My grandfather taught me how to fix model railways. I loved the little parts and looking after the trains”

➸

WATCHMAKER | CW

C11 T I TANIUM EXTREME 1000 £1,150


Cool under pressure

WATCHMAKER | CW

47

founder Jorg Bader and Johannes and was excited by their work and the ideas they had for the future. Most importantly, I would get to put my studies into practice, starting with helping Johannes build Christopher Ward’s Single Pusher Chronograph. It wasn’t a difficult decision when the offer of employment arrived!

What problems have you encountered in assembling SH21?

Fortunately, because Johannes designed it to be robust, rather like an old-school movement, we’ve had very few issues with Calibre SH21. And, of course, despite the rigorous testing we did, it will be years before we know if it’s passed the ultimate test: the test of time. That’s the real measure of all new movements.

How do you test a new movement? The best way is the simplest, we wear them.

With SH21, we gave everyone here prototypes of the C9 5 Day Automatic to wear. The first tests were conducted a year before it was released. After a couple of months of constant wear we take the movement out of the watch, disassemble it and review every part, looking

for signs of inappropriate wear, scratches and whether it’s clean. We make adjustments and the process starts again.

Which is your favourite Christopher Ward watch?

I absolutely love the C900 Single Pusher Chronograph. Look at the movement, this is real watchmaking! There are so many parts that aren’t standard. No part in the SPC can be used elsewhere, it’s so bespoke. You can see how the chronograph works – that’s not normal. For instance, you don’t see how the chrono mechanism works in a Valjoux 7750. Take it from me, the SPC is a significant piece of watchmaking.

What do you think makes mechanical watches so special?

There’s something in the motion of a movement which is amazing for most people. They’re fascinated by this tiny mechanism, especially because it’s not immediately obvious how it works. It gets them every time!

“...of course, despite therigorous testing we did, it will be years before we know if it’s passed the ultimate test: the test of time”

E X C L U S I V E L Y A V A I L A B L E A T christopherward.co.ukorderline +44 1628 763040

orderline +44 1628 76304048

THERE IS NO GREATER CHALLENGE IN HORSE RACING

THAN THE GRAND NATIONAL.

The Aintree course has claimed the lives of too many horses and injured too many jockeys for it to be treated with anything other than respect. Which makes Red Rum’s three – yes, three – triumphs there all the more remarkable, a series of victories that reached its zenith in 1977.

At 12 years old Red Rum was considered by many to be too old to win the National again (he’d been victorious in 1973 and ’74), though at odds of 9-1 he was still the joint favourite. Perhaps the punters knew something the bookies didn’t.

The National is run over two laps of the course, and the first circuit took a particularly hard toll on the runners with 19 out of the 42 defeated by Aintree’s mountainous jumps. Red Rum, with his years of experience on the course, and ridden by Tommy Stack, took the lead at Becher’s Brook second time around when joint-favourite Andy Pandy fell.

As Rummy cleared the last fence, with only Churchtown Boy chasing, a deafening roar came from the crowd as they realised he would do the seemingly impossible and win a third Grand National. Commentator Peter O’Sullivan, unable to keep a lid on his excitement at the best of times, described it like this.

“The crowd are willing him home now. The 12-year-old Red Rum, being preceded only by loose horses, being chased by Churchtown Boy... They’re coming to the elbow, just a furlong now between Red Rum and his third Grand National triumph! He gets a tremendous reception, you’ve never heard one like it at Liverpool... and Red Rum wins the National!”

10 : 03April 2, 1977, Red Rum wins his third Grand National

TIM

ESPAN


C7 RAPIDE CHRONOGRAPH MK I I £350



C60 TR IDENT GMT 600 £860


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Christopher Ward Magazine - Spring 2015

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