Ewes record with pics

MEDIA RELEASE

Ewes record with pics

On behalf of Shearing Sports New Zealand

January 11, 2011. 6.30pm

Shearing brothers Doug and Rowland Smith today stamped a mark on shearing history by hammering an 11-year-old record by 80 sheep in a Hawke's Bay woolshed. The pair, who grew up in Ruawai in the Far North but are based in Hawke's Bay, shore a combined total of 1066 ewes to beat the World two-stand eight-hours strongwool ewes shearing record 986 set by King Country brothers Hayden and Stacey Te Huia in a Rangitikei woolshed in December 1999. Shearing at Waitara Station, a remote property north of Te Pohue, between Napier and Hastings, both surpassed their own personal best work tallies.

Click for big version

Recovering from significant back problems, the younger Rowland, aged 24, topped the day with 562, the third-highest eight-hour ewes tally on record. Doug, a 28-year-old who gave up engineering studies to follow the rest of the family into shearing, struggled in the last two-hour run, but finished strongly with 13 in the last 12 minutes, slightly faster than his average for the day, and finished with 504 - about 40 better than his previous best. The two were quickly congratulated by Stacey Te Huia, who in December shore a solo record 603 in eight hours, beating the previous record 578 shorn by third Smith brother Matthew a year ago - the only eight-hour ewes tallies better than that shorn by Rowland Smith today. The record came just 24 hours after World champion and fellow Hawke's Bay shearer Cam Ferguson broke the eight-hour lambs record held by New Zealand-based Irish shearer Ivan Scott who on Friday tackles the World nine-hour lambs record - the pinnacle of records shearing.

Captions 1260 Rowland Smith during today's shearing record in which and brother Doug shore 1066 ewes in eight hours, 80 more than previous two-stand record set in 1999. 1261 Former two-stand record holder Stacey Te Huia (left) congratulates new record holders Doug Smith (centre) and Rowland Smith (right), after the brothers set a new record of 1066 in eight hours today at Waitara Station, Hawke's Bay. Te Huia had set the previous record with brother Hayden in 1999, but is still in the books as solo record holder since shearing 603 in a day last month.

ENDS