Bristol Surprise Maximus

Bristol Surprise Maximus

The Rule for Bristol is as follows:

• Hunt 3 blows ... handstroke point ... hunt wrong 3 blows ... dodge wrong (none for Major, once for Royal, twice for Maximus, thrice for 14 and four times for 16) ... hunt wrong 3 blows ... backstroke point ... hunt right 3 blows. That takes you to the half lead: repeat to the lead end.
• Always make an extra place on each side when passing the treble. (If you hit your course or after bell, it's time to make that place - the treble will be next). If you find you're in a position to dodge with the treble, that takes the place of one of the wrong dodges.
• If you find yourself trapped on the front or back with the treble, ring Bristol Major: really it's just treble-bobbing on four.

Other useful tips:

• People often count the number of hunt blows in different ways. Some say "hunt 4 blows to a point," or mix these around. The best way to understand the rule is to look at the grid yourself and work out what's going on.
• A particularly useful feature of Bristol is that the points and dodges all occur at the same place above or below the treble.
• There is a point blow made in each half lead, alternately at handstroke at backstroke.
• The furthest points are made with your course or after bell (i.e. all of them in Major).
• Hunting is right both sides of the half lead and lead end, and wrong between the points and wrong dodges
• Other bells are always passed in perfect plain bob coursing order (backwards when you are backward hunting)
• Oh, and it's double, of course.