The Royal Trip – Day Three – Finally!
Welcome to the long-lost Day Three of the World staffers trip to the Royal! This day brings another pre-dawn start as the Holstein cow show was scheduled to begin at 7:30am and the crowd arrives early to get the good seats. It was a full house watching the final day of the National Holstein Show.
Judge Martin Roberge and Associate Judge Claude Lafrance began the day with a nice Milking Yearling class and really got rolling in the Junior Two-Year-Olds with their class winner, Blondin Lyster Beauty.
She’’s a remarkable young cow who only got better throughout the day. Beauty arrived on the grounds owned by her breeders, Simon Lalande and Kim Cote of Ferme Blondin, but during Royal Week she acquired new owners in the Hoese family of Glencoe, MN. She eventually was named Intermediate Champion and HM Grand Champion of the show.
The Four-Year-Old class marked the beginning of the Senior cow classes and these classes saw plenty of famous show cows circling the ring. Landing the first-prize red ribbon was Tomalynn Leduc Della. No stranger to Canadian tanbark, EX-95 Della already has claimed All-Canadian Junior Two-Year-Old and All-Canadian Junior Three-Year-Old titles. She went on to be named Reserve Grand Champion of the Royal for her owners, Morsan Farms of Ponoka, AB and Huddlesford Holsteins of Lichfield, Staffordshire, UK.
As always, the staging area was full of cows, barn crews and interested observers.
Organizers and volunteers were busy and efficient in keeping the show moving smoothly.
Another well-known Canadian campaigner took home top honors in the Five-Year-Old class as the recently fresh Silverridge Leduc Noleta used her tremendous height and length of body to move to the top of the line.
A 6th generation VG or EX, Noleta has a show record as long as your arm. She has been nominated All-Canadian every year of her life from 2002 as a Senior Calf through 2006 when she was named Reserve All-Canadian Four-Year-Old. It doesn”t look as though her streak will end this year as she carried on through the day to be named Grand Champion Holstein of the 2007 Royal Agricultural Winter Fair for her owners Chilliwack Cattle Co. of Chilliwack, BC and R & F Livestock Inc. of Warman, SK.
Noleta with the roses! Grand Champion Noleta and Reserve Grand Champion Della are both Lystel Leduc daughters and put him well on his way to claiming Premier Sire honors.
Noleta gets the star treatment while Della and Beauty wait for their turn.
The judges placed 340 head of Holsteins over the two-day show and both days the show was done by the noon hour giving plenty of time for spectators to make their way through the barns and exhibits. As always, Semex presented their Walk of Fame group of daughters.
The Ayrshire Show was also held on Friday in the Ring of Excellence and there were many attractive Ayrshires in the barn. Premier Breeder and Exhibitor of the show was Vieux Village of Piopolis, QC.
The Vieux Village line-up on one of the busier aisles in the barn.
The Jersey heifer show in the Ring of Excellence began quite soon after the Holstein show concluded.
A patient Jersey heifer waits on deck.
Trips to the Royal always seem to go by in a blur and this one was no different. Cheers to the Holstein exhibitors who, in spite of a Tuesday arrival on the grounds, had their animals in tip-top shape on Thursday and Friday.
If you”ve never been to the Royal, make the effort to attend sometime. You”ll find, as we did, great cattle, a few cocktails, and, as always, fantastic Canadian hospitality!
One more tip of the hat to Noleta at the end of her Big Day…
For more complete coverage of the Holstein Show – both class placings and class photos – please visit the 2007 Fall Show Results section of www.semex.com.
Next: Toronto without cows…really?
