The object was to test the skills of greyhounds in a competition. Coursing would involve a number greyhounds competing against each other, two at a time, in a series of knockout rounds. The dogs were awarded points for their speed and skill in making the hare turn and a point was awarded if the dog caught a hare. Beaters, namely people using instruments, such as plastic bags, to flush hares from cover, would drive hares on to the coursing field one at a time from surrounding fields. The slipper, positioned in a shy, would hold two greyhounds on a leash and release them when the hare was at least 80 yards past the dogs. The hounds would chase the hares, gaining on it quickly. The hare would try and evade the dogs by turning rapidly. The hounds would sometimes lose the hare if it had found cover. The chase would generally only last around half a minute. One or more judges would assess the skill of the greyhounds and identify the winner of the pair. Hare coursing is not a field trialling activity and is therefore not exempt from the Hunting Act.