SHEARING CARRIES $l3 PRIZE MONEY

Press, 8 November 1978, Page 31

SHEARING CARRIES $l3 PRIZE MONEY

N.Z. blade and Corriedale Machine championships

Shearing championships continue to draw good support from both competitors and the public. This year, the five events, plus the Canterbury wool-handling competition. carry a prize money of almost $l3OO. They are being sponsored largely by Caltex Oil, New Zealand, Ltd. The New Zealand open blade shearing championship will carry $455 in

prize money, with $2OO going to the winner. As well, the winner will receive a handsome trophy — the Caltex Golden Blades, and the Wool Board’s gold medal. It will be decided on Friday. An intermediate biade shearing title will also be held. It is restricted to shearers who have not shorn more than three full seasons.

Three machine shearing events will again be staged. The principal contest here will be the New Zealand Corriedale open championship, carrying $305 in prize money. Run in conjunction with this class will be the Canterbury wool-handling competition for competitors employed as shearing shed ’ woolhandlers. It is a new event because efficient wool handling is regarded as being as important as good shearing. The Wool Board has lent its support with a grant of $l5O to run the contest.

A New Zealand Corriedale senior machine championship will be run for shearers whose maximum tally has not exceeded 300 sheep- in eight hours, and an intermediate event will be run for shearers whose tally has not exceeded 240 sheep in eight hours. The Canterbury regional final of the Young Farmers' Clubs’ shearing and wool-handling ocmpetition will be decided on Friday. As usual the winners will go on to take part in the national final at Masterton.

Wrightson N.M.A. Ltd has offered eight prizes of combs and cutters to the winners of the junior and senior sections.