The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Excited buzz round the
There was a buzz of excitement round the cattle rings as the Highland Show kicked off yesterday, with everyone delighted to be back enjoying a great show of cattle and plenty of spectators around the ring.
It was fitting that in the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee year, her Highland bull should win the 200th Royal Highland Show.
Farm manager Dochie Ormiston was especially pleased as this was the first time winning with a homebred animal. He also won last year but reckoned that didn’t count as it was a much reduced show.
Gusgurlach of Balmoral is by Tomintoul of Glamis and out of Bhadair Ruadh 44th of Balmoral, one of around 60 breeding cows on the Aberdeenshire estate.
Another bull which won last year and again this time was the six-year-old Charolais, Maerdy Morwr by Maerdy Dynamite from AJR Farms at Ellon. This win was an emotional one for farm manager Andrew Reid, who was showing in memory of his wife, Sarah.
David Stubbs of AJR
Farms took over the Logie Aberdeen-Angus herd a few years ago and established a Charolais herd on the farm in 2017 with Morwr as the stock bull, which he bought privately from Esmor Evans for £25,000.
The first two sons off him sold for 12,000gns and 10,000gns respectively at Stirling and he was also interbreed champion at last year’s Great Yorkshire.
Wilson Peters from Monzie, Crieff, is no stranger to the commercial cattle ring at the Highland, having exhibited there for many years but this year he was judging.
There was definitely a female theme going on in the ring with Fifty Shades of Grey, a 13-month-old heifer from JCB Commercials, Co Down, taking champion and Sexy Spice, the prolific winning heifer from Stewart and Lynsey Bett, Boqhan farm, Stirling, taking reserve.