- Supreme Champion and Reserve
- Heifer Champion and Reserve
- Steer Champion and Reserve
- Baby Beef Champion
- Purebred Champion and Reserve
- King’s Cup Champion
- Ribs Champion and Reserve
- Champion & Reserve sell for £5,000 and £7,000
The East of England Smithfield Festival, held at Peterborough 30th November to 1st December 2012, was a fitting finale to the primestock show season for the Limousin breed, with all the major awards claimed by Limousin-sired cattle and the breed truly dominating the prize list from start to finish.
Heading up the prize list for the Limousins was the winner of the show’s Overall Cattle Championship, the Limousin-cross heifer Olympic Dream from Vicky Bowring, Mansfield, Notts.
This one, by Bailea Umber, a Requin son bred by MT Jones and owned by DS & DA Brute, Brecon, was shown weighing 596kg and was purchased at Ruthin in the spring where she took the championship. She was bought for £5,000 and was previously a class winner at Borderway Agri Expo in November.
She was described by judge Jonathan Maycock as “A perfect animal for the small retail butcher. She has a great top and is full of flesh with that added show ring presence as well.” Mr Maycock backed his judgement when buying Olympic Dream for £5,000 in the post-show auction held on the second day of the event.
The Reserve Overall award went to one of the season’s most successful show beasts, Tecwyn Jones’ heifer Black Beauty. This one stood second in her class to Olympic Dream and followed her through to take the Reserve Crossbred and Overall Heifer Championships before then taking the Reserve Overall title.
This one had taken supreme championships at both Agri Expo and Countryside Live this year. She is by Shire Apollo and was bought privately from John Smith-Jackson, Northumberland. She later sold for £7,000 to the Hyslop Family, Ayrshire.
The Championship Supreme Overall & Reserve Overall at Smithfield secured what has been a remarkable show year for the Limousin breed. In addition to Smithfield, Limousin sired cattle have won the Supreme Championships at: the English Winter Fair, Welsh Winter Fair, Scottish Winter Fair, and Allam’s (Northern Ireland’s leading primestock event). Championship titles have also been secured at Countryside Live, and the Borderway Agri Expo event. In the summer show season, pedigree Limousin cattle secured a remarkable 16 interbreed titles at the ‘summer majors’.
Back at Smithfield, a strong line up of crossbred steers saw Jonathan Maycock tap out the Alford Family’s successful Limousin steer No Likey No Lighty to take the Overall Crossbred Steer title and then the Overall Steer Championship.
Weighing 676kg, No Likey No Lighty had been Champion Steer at the English Winter Fair, Reserve Overall at Agri Expo and Countryside Live, and had a host of wins in the summer including the Steer Championship at the Royal Welsh Show.
Standing Reserve to him for the Crossbred and Overall Steer Championships was Trevor Lyon & Family with Rob Roy, another by Bailea Umber, this one having been Reserve Baby Beef Champion at both Beef Expo and the Royal Welsh, and had also stood first in his class at the English Winter Fair.
Limousin dominance continued in the purebred championships where Keith & Mark Harryman, Newlands, Keswick took home the Overall Purebred Championship with their homebred 538kg Limousin heifer, Keskadale Gamel. By Sarkley Volvo, this one has already stood Reserve Purebred Champion at the English Winter Fair this year, as well as a second at Countryside Live. Keskadale Gamel also secured the much sought-after King’s Cup for the Harrymans for the best beast bred by exhibitor.
And having stood second to her in the class, following on behind to take Reserve in the Purebred Championship was the Alford Family’s Bishops Goldilocks. This one, by Waindale UFO and out of Scorboro Custard, had had a successful championship run this year having won the Pedigree Championship at the English Winter Fair. She now heads to the British Limousin Cattle Society’s premier female sale, the Red Ladies Derby at Carlisle on the 14th December.
Winning the best opposite sex to the champion was Andrew and Becky Bishop’s purebred Limousin steer Bishops Gadolfin, weighing 644kg. He is also by Waindale UFO and is out of Stitford Daffodil.
And the Lyon Family’s success carried over in the Baby Beef classes, too with their homebred Limousin-cross heifer taking the Continental Baby Beef Championship before going on to take the top spot and be crowned Baby Beef Champion. Their winner was the January 2012-born heifer, Temptation. This one is by Rossignol and is out of a Thirlwall Castle-bred heifer and had been second at Stafford on her previous outing.
Coming through to win the special East of England Agricultural classes on the second day of the event were Jason & Sarah Wareham with their Limousin-cross heifer, Jessie J, which weighed 510kg. Bred by James Morrison, she had been purchased from Thainstone for £1,200. Standing Reserve to her was Trevor Lyon & Family with their Reserve Overall Steer Champion, Rob Roy. By Bailea Umber, this one had been Reserve Baby Beef Champion at both Beef Expo and the Royal Welsh, and had also stood first at Birmingham this back end.
Winning the exhibitor-bred title in these classes were Richard & Judy Fountaine, Beachampton, Bucks with their Limousin-cross heifer, Classy Girl.
In the National Festival Of Meat Beef Ribs Competition, the winner was a Limousin-cross heifer from SJ Hodges, Aylesbury. This one came from a June 2011-born heifer which weighed 416.1kg dead. In Reserve spot was Ian Wildgoose, Derbyshire, with another Limousin-cross heifer. This came from an April 2011-born heifer.
