Curries in red hot form at CCM Skipton Beef Shorthorn highlight
Beautry reserve champion sets all-time centre record price of 11,000gns
There was a standout local success at the North of England Beef Shorthorn Club’s ninth annual show and sale at Skipton Auction Mart, when Stuart and Gail Currie’s Beautry herd in Rathmell, near Settle, secured a scintillating championship and reserve championship double, with the overall runner-up setting a new centre sales record by far for the breed of 11,000gns. (Wed, Nov 7)
The outcome capped a tremendous year in the exhibition arena for the Curries, who just the previous week had sent out both the supreme champion male and overall reserve supreme champion female in the Beef Shorthorn show calf classes at Agri-Expo 2018 in Carlisle.
The Curries, who established their pedigree herd at Beautry House in 2010, were over the moon with their high profile successes at their local auction mart, describing the outcome as “just amazing .... absolutely fantastic,” notably in regard to the record price performer, Beautry Sona Liesl, who annihilated the previous centre record of 6,500gns, established at last year’s Skipton sale.
From the Beautry herd’s strongest dam line, Liesl, first tapped out as winner of one of the junior heifer show classes, before being awarded the reserve championship, is an April, 2017, roan daughter and among the first crop of calves to Poyntington Himself, an 8,000gns acquisition by the Curries in 2016. He was also responsible for their Agri-Expo supreme champion and reserve.
The dam, Croxtonpark Shuna Titania, a half sister to this year’s Agri-Expo female champion, was bought as a calf at foot with her mother. Her sale-leading daughter, who is free of the bull, was claimed at a packed ringside by Thistledown Cowford Farms, of Bankfoot, near Perth.
The same buyers also went to 5,800gns to purchase the Curries’ supreme champion, Beautry Rose Lolita, winner of her own shown class and described as “truly outstanding” by Scottish show judge George Irving, who runs the Mountbenger pedigree Beef Shorthorn herd in Selkirk.
The March, 2017, title winner, another roan, is also by Poyntington Himself, out of Bradshaw Classic Rose 2nd and a half sister to Kooky Rose, the 2016 Northern Calf Show champion and reserve champion at last year’s Skipton Beef Shorthorn highlight. She has been scanned in-calf to Stonehills Jackpot, bred by fellow North of England Beef Shorthorn Club member Geoff Riby at Fraisthorpe, near Bridlington,.
The two show principals really caught the eye of Thistledown Cowford Farms’ head stockman, Charlie Reed, who was bidding on behalf of owner, Sandy Anderson.
Mr Reed, who is assisted on the 500-acre farm by his own daughter, Charley, deemed them the two outstanding animals in the sale and they will now form an integral part of the Cowford Beef Shorthorn herd, which was only established in February this year.
“We backed his judgment. We like the Skipton sale and have always felt there are some outstanding Beef Shorthorn cattle in Yorkshire. Our aim is to build up a quality herd in Scotland that will become a contender for top lots. The plan now is to flush these two highly promising heifers and take some embryos out of them,” explained Mr Anderson, who has other farming interests in the Cotswolds and Leicestershire. Pedigree Lincoln Red cattle are also bred on the Perthshire holding.
A third Thistledown Cowford Farms acquisition at 3,400gns was the January, 2017, Glenariff Princess Lobelia, from Norfolk breeders NJ and AM Barrett, of South Wootton, Kings Lynn. She is a home-bred daughter of Glenariff Brave Bonnar, out of a Tofts Hector-sired dam.
The Beautry pen contained two further prize-winning junior heifers, both again by Poyntington Himself, the easy calving 2016 Stirling bull sale champion, and both also scanned in-calf to Stonehills Jackpot.
Standing second in class to the supreme champion was the February, 2017, roan, Beautry Desiree Lyric, out of Beautry Hibiscus, herself by Beautry Excalibur, male champion at the 2016 Great Yorkshire Show.
Lyric, whose full brother was the previous week’s Agri-Expo supreme champion, had already won a reserve championship at North Yorkshire Show and a fourth prize at the Great Yorkshire. She found pastures new in the East Midlands when becoming a 5,000gns purchase for Gates Farming Partnership, of Oakham.
The Curries also picked up a third prize with another April, 2017, dark roan junior heifer, Beautry Daydrop Layla, part of the champion pair at last year’s Thirsk Calf Show, out of a 4,000gns prize-winning dam, Shawhill Dewdrop Fairlady. Layla sold for 2,700gns to Welshman WE Evans, of Llanrwst in Conwy, who has also bought Beautry cattle in the past.
Mr Currie paid tribute to two up-and-coming young people, Rebecca Braithwaite and Tim Bradley-Farmer, who both work at the farm and deserved full credit for the part they had played in the family show team’s sparkling success. “They have proved indispensible,” he said.
From Thorney, Peterborough, the Podehole herd of Harry Horrell, represented by Charles and Sally Horrell – Mrs Horrell is president of the Beef Shorthorn Society - produced a second prize junior heifer, the April, 2017, roan, Podehole Gypsy Laura.
Bred from the EXC91 Podehole Gypsy Diamond and the first calf sold to Knockenjig Hercules, who was bought as a yearling, the heifer, with high calving ease and growth EBVs, sold for 5,000gns to A&C Farms in Langham, Rutland, owned by husband and wife, Andre and Caroline Vrona, who started their Beef Shorthorn herd five years ago and are regular buyers at the fixture.
The first heifer into the ring and first prize senior heifer came from the Upsall herd of the Rt Hon Gerald Turton, Britain’s oldest Beef Shorthorn herd based at The Grange, near Thirsk, which was last year responsible for the supreme champion at Skipton, along with another heifer that set the then centre record price of 6,500gns.
Again well represented at the fixture, the herd’s red rosette-winning senior heifer was the April, 2016, roan, Tessa X1179 of Upsall, a Grenadier daughter bred from the Democrat of Upsall daughter, Tessa X914 of Upsall. Carrying a pd to Lawyer of Upsall, she heralded the start of a highly successful sale when going with a 4,000gns bid to Loak Farm, another buyer from near Bankfoot in Perthshire.
The same breeder sold the light roan 19-month-old, Tessa X1253 of Upsall TI +28, SRI +27, a Hotspur of Upsall daughter, at 3,000gns to Gates Farming Partnership. Clipper X1242 TI +37 and SRI + 34, a red 20-month-old by Dingo of Upsall, sold for 2,800gns to J Wilson, Settle. Nonparel X1221 of Upsall TI +14, SRI +11, a red and little white 20-month-old by Grenadier of Upsall, made 2,500gns to G and M Smith, Laurencekirk.
Also stepping up with a third prize junior heifer was North Yorkshire’s Catrina Ward, who runs the Kimrina pedigree herd at Glaisdale, near Whitby. Her January, 2017, roan daughter of Podehole Falconer, out of the Dingo of Upsall daughter, Upsall Clipper X834, had been pd in calf to Craigfaddock Khan. She found a new home in Wales with G Williams & Son, of Mold, Flintshire, for 1,600gns.
Geoff Riby himself achieved a 3,200gns sale with his home-bred March, 2017, Stonehills Princess Gem 3rd, by Tofts Prince Grenadier, out of a Hallsford Viking Warrior-sired cow. Scanned in-calf to Jason of Upsall, she joined TC Brown, of Lakesley in Northamptonshire.
Trade was spirited for top end quality cattle with buyers looking for good EBVs and strength in the heifers. The commercial end of maiden heifers was well supported with buyers looking for pedigrees, embryo recipients and stewardship scheme cattle.
Chief prices and averages: Maiden heifers to 11,000gns, av £2,054, in-calf heifers to 5,800gns, av £2,302, cows with calves to 2,600gns, av £2,153.
Show sponsors were I’Ansons Quality Feeds and supermarket group Morrisons. Detailed results and chief prices are at www.ccmauctions.com
5,200gns top price at Newfield herd dispersal
The Shorthorn Cattle Society also supported the same day’s much anticipated dispersal sale of the entire Newfield pedigree Beef Shorthorn herd on behalf of Michael Abrahams at Mickley, near Ripon.
It featured some of the oldest and top bloodlines in the UK and brought down the curtain on more than half a century of keeping cattle for Mr Abrahams, who had taken the ‘reluctant’ decision to sell his highly rated herd in the light of long-term herdsman, 78-year-old Ray Sanderson seeking to reduce his workload on the estate.
The sale of the remaining 35-strong herd, an elite member of the SRUC Premium Cattle Health Scheme, produced a leading price of 5,200gns for Newfield Ecstasy Foxglove, a seven-year-old Holmeere Fraser cow bred from the favourite Foxglove family at Newfield.
Sold with her February-born white heifer calf, Newfield Magic Foxglove, at foot, by the Newfield stock bull, Sleightholme Star Thistle, and also scanned in-calf again to the same sire, the mother of five calves to date remained in North Yorkshire when joining father and son, Graham and Sam Hunt, who run the Sowerby Parks pedigree herd in Thirsk.
The herd was established in 2015, with Mr Hunt developing a keen interest in Beef Shorthorns from his inspirational father, Sam, who worked for Harrisons of Gainford Hall, back in the day one of the most famous names in the Shorthorn world.
Junior champion with a bull and reserve supreme champion with a two-year-old heifer at this year’s Great Yorkshire Show, Mr Hunt said he had initially tried to buy the Newfield top price performer when he first saw her as a second prize winner in the large heifer class at the Great Yorkshire four years ago, though on that occasion he was unsuccessful.
“I liked her then and I like her know, so I followed her and bought her. She is a good, powerful cow and we will hopefully breed some nice heifers from her,” said Mr Hunt.
The much-admired May, 2013, roan, Newfield Goddess Foxglove, a Connor of Upsall daughter who stood second in class at this year’s Great Yorkshire Show, was sold with her third calf at foot, the Sleightholme Star Thistle-sired February-born Newfield Melody Foxglove. The outfit made 3,800gns when joining the Sleightholmedale Partnership in Fadmoor, Kirkbymoorside.
Pick of the maiden heifers was Newfield Liza Foxglove, a well grown January 2017- born roan Sleightholme Star Thistle daughter, out of Newfield Greta Foxglove. She joined Malcolm Wood, of Birkenshaw, Bradford, for 1,800gns.
The prolific Sleightholme Star Thistle, now five-years-old, but still packing plenty of punch, was also offered for sale, attracting a successful 1,350gns bid from J Richardson & Son, of Peterborough.
Chief prices and averages: Beef Shorthorn heifers with calves to 5,200gns, av £2,201.50, Beef Shorthorn heifers to 1,800gns, av £1522.50.
Both sales saw a packed ringside with interest drawn from throughout the UK