Shears Record Gets Green Light, Despite Some Rain

MEDIA RELEASE

On behalf of Shearing Sports New Zealand

February 4, 2013, 10pm

Shears Record Gets Green Light, Despite Some Rain

A shearing record challenge on a remote Northern Southland sheep station is expected to go ahead in the morning (Tuesday) despite rain which delayed the crucial pre-event wool-weigh today.

Unexpected rain dampened much of the 3100 lambs set aside for the four-stand tally to be shorn over eight hours at Centre Hill, northwest of Mossburn, about 110km north of Invercargill and about 200km west of Dunedin.

Although conditions had improved, the woolweigh was delayed till early-evening,but comfortably met the requirements of the World Shearing Records Society with an average weight of about 1.5kg of wool per lamb in a sample shear of 20 sheep. The rules required at least 0.9kg per lamb.

A team of six judges, headed by Australian official Mark Baldwin and with South African Eddie Archer observing, gave the attempt the green light, and shearers Leon Samuels,of Invercargill, Eru Weeds, of Ohai, and Hawke's Bay shearers James Mack, of Weber, and Golden Shears champion John Kirkpatrick, of Napier, are expected to start at 7am.

They shear four two-hour runs, with half-hour breaks for morning and afternoon smoko and an hour for lunch. There is no current record, but a range of personal goals have supporters hopeful of a tally over 2800.

Updates will be available throughout the day at http://www.shearingsports.co.nz/

ENDS

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