Sophie and Paul Huf with baby Axel Picture – bypeta.com
VICTORIAN wool handler Sophie Huf had a secret weapon with her at the 2016 Australian National Shearing and Wool Handling Titles at Warialda in New South Wales on the weekend.
The proud 25-year-old mother said her first baby with husband and shearer Paul, nine-month-old Axel, helped calm her nerves between the heats at the event – her first national titles. And husband Paul behaved himself too, she said.
“It was my first time winning the nationals, first time in the Australian team and first time heading to the worlds.
“I was pretty focussed, but Axel kept me distracted so I didn’t get as nervous,” she said.
“I was looking after him between heats so I was pretty well distracted, I didn’t have time to think about the nerves.”
Axel is no stranger to woolsheds and shearing; Sophie said she was pregnant at the national titles last year and she was rousing in the Huf family shed near Hawkesdale when her labour started. She was on maternity leave from her job as a wool handling instructor with RIST in Hamilton while at Warialda. Click here to get Sheep Central story links sent to your email inbox.
Sophie Huf in action at Warialda. Picture – Emma MacDonald.
Despite crossbred wool not normally being her speciality, Sophie won the open wool handling final at Warialda with just 27.63 penalty points, less than two points ahead of Tasmanian wool handler Mel Morris (28.47) and Aroha Garvin from Western Australia third with 29.23 points. The Victorian was among the lowest penalty point scorers on the board and was one of the fastest finishers.
“It was a pretty tight competition though – it always is.”
Needless to say Axel, and Paul, are going with her to the world titles at Invercargill in New Zealand in February next year as her secret weapon.
“He will be, I reckon – he sort of gets dragged along whether he likes it or not.”
Warnest wins 11th national title
New national shearing champion Shannon Warnest
In the Australian open shearing final, South Australian shearer Shannon Warnest won his 11th national title. Shannon will now represent Australia in his sixth world titles. He has been world champion twice.
But on the first 30 degree day in four months for the north-east New South Wales town on the weekend, the 42-year-old farmer and part-time shearer, with typically low penalty points (88.40), managed to keep his composure to keep the fastest finisher shed-fit Victorian open champion Jason Wingfield (91.20) at bay by just 2.8 points.
Jason finished the 20 crossbred and Merino sheep in the final in 21 minutes 42 seconds, 2.5 minutes ahead of Shannon. Defending Australian champion Daniel McIntyre from New South Wales was third (96.05) in the open final, followed by South Australian Justin Dolphin, New South Welshman Wayne Hosie and Tasmanian Robbie Glover.
Shannon won the Warialda open event before the national open final and said he spent a bit of time in a nearby pool to cool down between heats and finals.
“I was trying to pull every string out of the bag to keep my body right.”
Shannon said the sheep for the open and the nationals were “tricky” with wool grease on the skin and shearers needed to have their gear – combs, cutters and handpiece — running right to do well.
“I keep banging on about it – if you are only 75-80 per cent right on your gear when you go up there, you are 20pc behind the bloke that is running full noise with it.
“The nationals sheep had wool grease right on the skin and if your comb lifted a little bit off it, then you are out into the wool and up go the points straight away,” he said.
“You needed a comb that could sit right down underneath that and then you could do a nice job on them.”
Victorian open final winner Jason Wingfield, 41, has only missed three years since 1997 representing Victoria at the national titles, has been Australian open champion twice and represented Australia in Wales, Norway and Ireland. Daniel McIntyre was national champion for the last two years.
In the open blade shearing final, current Australian champion Johnny Dalla from South Australia retained his title – his 8th national sash — ahead of Victorian shearer Ken French.
The Australian shearing-woolhandling team 2016. From left – blade shearers Ken French and John Dalla; machine shearers Jason Wingfield and Shannon Warnest, and wool handlers Sophie Huf and Mel Morris. Picture – Emma MacDonald.
Click here to see the national open shearing final results.
Click here to see the national open woolhandling final results.
Click here to see the national blade shearing final results.
Click here to see the national teams event results.
Click here to see the novice shearing final results.
Good article about the nationals. Congratulations to all competitors and best of luck at the world championships to the winners.