| 23/08/06           It was a case of many happy returns for Lancashire sheep farmer
                Peter Fox when he landed back-to-back championship successes
                with a ten-strong pen of mules at the annual prize show and sale
                of 3,852 shearling gimmers at Craven Cattle Marts' Skipton Auction
                Mart. (Tues, Aug 22)
 
              
              Peter Fox receives the Skipton mule shearlings trophy from Olwen
              Hazell, of the Farmers Guardian.
 
 
                |  |  Champion in 2005, Peter, who farms with his father Vince at New
              Lane Cottage, Withgill, Clitheroe, repeated his success at this
              year’s renewal, once again receiving the Edgar Boothman Memorial
              Trophy for his title-winning mules.
 On a day when good sheep met with nice trade, the mule champions
              sold for £100 per head to David Booth, of Feizor, near Settle,
              who is chairman of the Skipton branch of the North of England Mule
              Sheep Association (NEMSA).
 
 The Foxes also had the second prize pen of mules, which made £96
              each, with the third prize pen from John Greenhalgh, of Bashall
              Eaves, Clitheroe, selling at £104 per head. Top price in
              class at £105 each was achieved by Cameron Walton, of Hellifield.
 
 First prize in the class for Masham shearlings went to first-time
              Skipton exhibitor Colin Eastwood, of Bentham, whose total holding
              of the breed numbered just 12, all bought as hoggs at Skipton last
              year.
 
 Colin, who admitted to being very pleasantly surprised by his debut
              success, later saw his charges sell for £83 each to John
              Bradley, of Lothersdale, just £1 a head less than the top
              price in class from David Pilkington, of Rimmington.
 
 Top price of the entire day fell to a pen of ten pure-bred Texels
              from South Yorkshire exhibitor John North, of Fenwick Grange, Fenwick,
              Doncaster. John, a familiar face in the Texel world and regular
              exhibitor at the big breed sales at Skipton in the Autumn, saw
              his gimmer shearlings clinch first prize in the Continentals class
              and then sell for £110 a head to Stephen Greensit, of West
              Tanfield, Ripon.
 
 First prize winners in the Texel-cross class were Richard and Mark
              Ireland, of Whalley, their charges selling at £85 a head
              to T&C Robinson, from Tosside.
 
 The show was sponsored by the Farmers Guardian. Judges were Simon
              Spensley, of Gargrave, and Brian Dodd, of Clitheroe.
 
 Results:
  Mule Shearling Gimmers - 1 & 2 JV Fox, Clitheroe,
            3 J&E Greenhalgh, Bashall Eaves.  Masham Shearling Gimmers – 1
            CR Eastwood, Bentham, 2 & 3 Bill Pinder, Newton-in-Bowland  Pure-bred Texels – 1 JL North, Fenwick Grange, 2 Bernard
            and Anne Myers & Daughters, Winksley Texel-cross – 1 & 2
            M&R Ireland, Whalley, 3 Thomas Charnley, Laneshawbridge. 
              Averages: Mules to £105 av £83.08 (2005 av £83.00),
              Mashams to £84 av £75.27 (£86.21), Texels to £110
              av £67.61 ((£89.81), Suffolk-cross to £70.00
              av £68.25, Cheviots to £75.00 av £69.00.
  Big day at Skipton Auction Mart 
  Lazonby Sheep Dog Sale 
  Good Trade For Quality Beltex Sheep at Carlisle
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