Super Time at Super Trowel
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Speed, Skill and Spectacle: Inside Super Trowel 2026.
Under the relentless summer sun at Hertfordshire County Showground, the rhythmic scrape of trowels and crack of bricks filled the air. Super Trowel 2026, the UK’s largest bricklaying and construction skills event, transformed the outdoor space into a vibrant arena of craft, competition and industry pride over two days of challenges and demonstrations.
For the first time the finals moved outdoors, giving competitors more space and clearer views for the crowds. Sixteen professional finalists, drawn from regional heats across the country, faced the same relentless test: build a high-quality wall using as many Wienerberger bricks as possible in one intense hour, after two hours of careful preparation. Judging balanced sheer volume with accuracy, consistency and workmanship to exacting tolerances.
The highlight I suppose came when Dale Wherton, a 35-year-old brickwork tutor at West Nottinghamshire College, emerged as champion. He laid an astonishing 859 bricks, setting new British and European marks and securing the title of UK’s Fastest Bricklayer. Wherton, who once worked as a contractor for two decades including time in Australia, will now represent Britain at the Bricklayer 500 in Las Vegas next January. He also drives away in a Ford Transit Custom Plug-In Hybrid for two years…Some prize I am sure you will agree.
Juniors, Masters and hod-carrier challenges added further energy, while exhibition stands from Dewalt, Altrad Belle, Ford, Wienerberger and others offered tools, materials and hands-on demos.
Free tickets drew families, apprentices and seasoned tradespeople into a celebration of the craft that underpins so much of the built environment, the crowd numbers looked both plentiful and relevant.
Walking the site, the atmosphere felt dynamic yet purposeful. Competitors worked with focused intensity; spectators cheered every course completed.
We were delighted to exhibit at the event. Accepting the invitation of our good friends over at NOCN. Look out for our interview with Paul Taylor Head of Card Schemes who gave a great insight into why the organisation were there and the work they do.
It was a pleasure also to meet with Steve Mullholland CEO of the CPA. The CPA do splendid work and have been highly vocal recently as construction, house building and construction skills have all been in the headlines. Really pleasing to see the news channels reaching out to Steve, who has responded so well on behalf of the industry.
A fine example of an event that has been exclusively an indoor show spreading its wings and venturing into the great outdoors.
Super Trowel has grown into more than a contest—it is a showcase of skill, a platform for the next generation, and a reminder that precision under pressure remains the hallmark of great bricklaying.
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