IT WAS EVERY show society’s worst nightmare come true: just two weeks out from the scheduled opening of the 120th Condobolin Show, the showground pavilion was deemed unsafe and closed.
Engineers from the showground’s insurers made the decision, after the alarm had been raised by several ceiling tiles coming adrift and falling to the floor.
A lesser show society might well have cancelled the pavilion section of the show at that point, but this was never an option canvassed by the Condobolin Show Society.
Within 20 minutes of receiving the news, Condobolin Show Society secretary Carol-Ann Malouf had secured the lease of a hefty marquee from Forbes, and the show – as the saying goes – went on.
Visitors were welcomed at the show’s official opening by the president, Ken Riach, who introduced the 2014 Condobolin Showgirl, Kristen Polimeni, accompanied by last year’s winner, Lily Ward.
Livestock classes as usual were a mainstay of the show, particularly this year the stud cattle section which swelled to its biggest entry in at least 20 years, with 10 exhibitors fielding more than 60 head for judging by Hannah Powe from Goondoola Red Angus stud, Cargo.
Numbers benefited hugely from the participation of the Red Bend Cattle Show Team from Red Bend Catholic College at Forbes.
Pictured are the 18 students who participated in the show. Click on this image to see more photos in our online gallery.
The cattle shown were drawn variously from the college’s own Loclani Limousin stud and from other local studs, all prepared and paraded by the students to the general admiration of onlookers.
Other regular exhibitors, however, took away the top awards, with Denngal Santa Gertrudis stud from Forbes showing the grand champion bull, Denngal Hobart, and the Ridley family’s local Eselar Park Shorthorn stud the grand champion female.
The judge chose the 19-month-old junior champion bull Denngal Hobart, a Sydney class winner earlier this year, over the senior champion, Hollywood Fistful of Dollars, shown by the Tout family’s Andarich Angus stud from Forbes.
Grand champion female was the senior champion, Eselar Park Minister’s Honour F177, a four-year-old matron shown with a four-month-old calf at foot, while junior champion was Skara Brae Upshot, exhibited by the Klarner family’s Skara Brae Angus stud at Gunningbland.
More than 120 sheep from 10 stud and commercial exhibitors provided plenty of work in the Merino sheep section of the show for the judges.
The outcome was a double triumph for Russell Jones of Darriwell stud, Trundle, who scooped three of the four top awards in the stud classes, after seeing one of his clients excel in the previous day’s flock section.
Grand champion ram was the August shorn champion, a 20.5 micron son of Darriwell 9.1, shown in the strongwool classes at Condobolin and also at Sydney earlier this year, where he was August shorn champion.
For grand champion ewe the judges selected the August shorn champion from the strongwool two-tooth class an ET ewe by a Towalba Yellow sire, shown by Sean Kopp, Towalba stud, Peak Hill.
Darriwell showed both reserve grand champion ram and ewe, as well as junior champion ram with a March shorn strongwool entry, to be named most successful exhibitor in the open Merino classes.
And in the flock sheep classes, Rob Neal for R. Neal and Company of “Lockerbie”, Condobolin showed the champion pen of three ewes and best individual ewe with his team of Darriwell blood entries.
Gowing Partnership, Trundle, a dominant player in previous flock classes at Condobolin, was restricted this year to unhoused classes, where it showed best unhoused ewe and best pen of three.
Other broad ribbon winners in the keenly contested unhoused classes were Crouch Brothers, “Milby”, Peter L’Estrange’s Belswick stud and John and Colleen L’Estrange, “Inglewood”, all of Condobolin.
Champion fleece of the show was exhibited by the Jones family of “Booroola”, Condobolin, and most successful exhibitor in pavilion classes was Laurel Gibson.
Caitlin Keen was the most successful junior exhibitor in pavilion sections, and at the end of a busy ring program the champion showjumping rider was Jenelle Waters, Dubbo.
One of the most popular spectator events of the show was the Down the Lachlan Speed Shear competition, which attracted 30 contenders from the surrounding districts and further afield.
Stacey Te Huia, Bathurst, won the open event with a time of 28.07 seconds, while Avin Haworth, Burcher, won the senior event with 31.28 seconds. Jarrod Brown, Condobolin, won the local event with a time of 31.81 seconds, and Zac Guy, Tullamore, the intermediate event with a time of 46.13 seconds.
Also held in conjunction with the show was an annual ram sale by local agents, J.N. Straney and Son, which saw 27 Poll Dorset rams sold to a top price of $750 for a $623 average.
