The last Saturday of May saw Tweedvale Pipe Band travel the short distance to West Lothian to take part in the Bathgate & West Lothian Highland Games. The band’s attendance at the Bathgate contest was made by generous coach sponsorship from Graham McGrath Ltd. Tweedvale Pipe band was drawn to play second in the Grade 3 pipe band contest out of 12 entered bands. Playing in beautifully sunny and warm conditions, Tweedvale played their new medley set for the first time in outdoor competition this season. The performance was one of the best that the band has played in recent memory, with no mistakes and a solid bright sound throughout. The band members came off the park feeling that they had done themselves justice with a very positive performance. The band then moved on to play for a heat of the Drum Major’s flourish contest, before preparing to re-enter the contest arena with a performance in the Grade 2 contest. This performance, also of the medley set, was not as polished as the previous Grade 3 one but still reasonably good. When the results were announced, Tweedvale Band found itself placed third by the judges winning the Grace Legget Trophy and a substantial cash prize to boost the coffers. The piping judge placed the band third, with the drumming judge putting the band sixth leading to the overall award of third place. The Grade 3 contest was won by George Watson’s College Juvenile Pipe Band, with Boghall & Bathgate Caledonia Juvenile taking second and Linlithgow & District Pipe Band fourth.

This result also boosted Tweedvale Pipe Bands standing in the RSPBA Lothian & Borders Branch Champion of Champions table. This is a ranking of the performance of all local branch bands over the six contest held in the branch area. After two events, Tweedvale Pipe Band is holding its own in the Grade 3 table with 10 points, one behind current leaders Linlithgow.

Speaking about the outcome of the Bathgate contest, Tweedvale Pipe Major Bruce Gillie said "I was really happy with the performance the band gave on Saturday; it was one of the best we’ve had in recent years. Congratulations to all the players involved. Saturday’s showing proved that when the band puts its mind to it, it can live with the best bands in the grade. Thanks are also due to Graham McGrath who sponsored our bus on Saturday, thus making our success possible. I’m confident that we can use this result as a springboard to further success this season."

Tweedvale’s contest season will resume on 13 June when they band will participate in the 8th Innerleithen Pipe Band Championships. The band has been drawn to play 4th out of 13 bands in the Grade 3 contest, which is a medley contest, and 4th out of 8 bands in the Grade 2 contest, which is a March Strathspey and Reel event.  After the Innerleithen contest, Tweedvale Pipe Band will have a major break from the competition scene as the bands next scheduled competition after Innerleithen is the European Pipe Band Championships in Inverclyde on the last Saturday in July.