What a shemozzle
It seemed like every man and his dog were at the Hunterville Huntaway Festival, and this year the event carried a message of unity for farmers who might be struggling through tough times.
The iconic Shepherds’ Shemozzle in the Rangit¯ıkei District ran for the 21st time and, as usual, proved a gruelling challenge, with high hills and gruesome obstacles for shepherds and their huntaway dogs.
Feilding’s Angus Mckelvie was the first man in. It was the third time he had won the race with his dog Red, and he said this year had been a tough one. ‘‘I’m pretty buggered, to be honest.’’
Asked when he would stop running the race, he replied: ‘‘When someone beats me.’’
The first woman to finish, Katie Herries, from Gisborne, said her dog Sruff gave her a few tricky moments in the tunnel but she was proud of how her dog went.
Prior to the Shepherds’ Shemozzle, a new bark-up event was held, launching Will to Live – a campaign set up to help those most vulnerable to suicide. The event involved shepherds getting their 125 huntaway dogs to start up a barking chorus that filled the streets of the little Rangit¯ıkei town.
Festival secretary Christine Whinn said organisers were glad to help get the word out about rural isolation and rural suicide.
‘‘It’s important to keep an eye on each other, and it’s OK to speak out about mental health, just like our huntaway dogs are trained to speak out."
The Children’s Shemozzle, which sold out in 14 hours, was a testing one this year, with a drinking challenge of curdled milk after a gut-wrenching climb up a steep hill. The winner, 12-year-old Jonty Giesen, from Waituna West, said five of his family members competed on the day and he was excited to have done them proud.
His mum, Elizabeth Giesen, came in as the third woman in the adults’ race. Jonty said she had been out doing a bit of practice the night before.
First girl in the Children’s Shemozzle was 10-year-old Charlie Cook, from Hunterville, who said she was usually ‘‘pretty fast’’ but didn’t expect to come first.
Waituna West’s Flynn Kowaleski had a huge lead when he took out the teen title for the second consecutive year, and the two 14-year-old girls who came in first together were fellow students Ashleigh Alabaster and Ana Brabyn from Wanganui Collegiate School.
‘‘We decided to run it together, help each other and finish together.’’