Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show

The 2010 ~ Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show

The Bluefaced Leicester Breeders Association (BFLBA) will be hosting the 2nd Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show held in conjunction with the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival in Jefferson, WI on September 11th - 12th, 2010.

The BFLBA will be coordinating the Bluefaced Leicester Show along with the North American Mule Sheep Society's (NAMSS) 3rd Annual Mule Sheep & Progeny Show. Our guest UK judge presiding over both the Bluefaced Leicester classes as well as the Mule Show classes this year will be Glenn Shapiro. New this year to the Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show will be a Young Handlers class (for ages 14 and under), the Progeny class (sire w/ 2 progeny), and the aged ewe class (2 years and up). Glenn will also be giving an educational presentation on the 'History of the Bluefaced Leicester' and the 'Development of the Hazelwood Flock'.

The BFLBA's, Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show, and the NAMSS's, Mule Sheep & Progeny Show are excellent venues that allow us to showcase the Bluefaced Leicester, and the Mule ewe to the purebred, as well as the commercial sheep industry.

The BFLBA and the NAMSS would like to thank the UK- BFLSBA for thier generous contribution in providing us once again with our guest breeder-judge; and for their continued support of our efforts here in the States promoting the Bluefaced Leicester and the Mule ewe.

AN INTRODUCTION TO OUR 2010 JUDGE:

Our visiting UK judge this year is Glenn Shapiro, Hazelwood Farm, Silverdale, Carnforth, Lancashire, UK. Glenn is a past Chairman & Vice Chairman of the UK-BFLSBA, and sits on their Council of Management. Her other duties include serving as an inspector for the Society's fall ram sales, as well as judging at the Royal Shows, and at local County shows. Some of Glenn's Bluefaced Leicester judging assignments this year have included the Northumberland Show, and at the prestigious Royal Welsh Show.

Mrs. Shapiro's Hazelwood Flock prefix is synonymous with the Bluefaced Leicester breed. She established the Hazelwood flock in 1985, with 7 ewes, and 2 ewe lambs, buying in rams from other well known flocks such as Parcelstown, Walton, Shrewbridge, Barlaes, Cairn Smiddy, and Newmills. HAZELWOOD Bluefaced Leicesters have won the red ticket at all the major shows, as well as winning the coveted Interbreed Champions titles at the Great Yorkshire, and the Royal Highland Show.

We look forward to meeting Glenn, and her husband, Dan, this September during their visit to the USA, and the Great Lakes area.

Blues, Youth, Lambs, and the YCP

Last year's recipient of the Youth Conservationist Program, Nick Wenger, recently sent an update about his Bluefaced Leicester ewe, Beechtrees 'Carron'.
After receiving Carron at the 2009 YCP Awards at the MSWF, Nick and Carron went on to compete in several Pennsylvania Fairs and shows, taking the purple rosette at the Elizabethtown Fair. As part of his contract with the YCP program to breed Carron, Nick purchased a Bluefaced Leicester ram lamb, aka Fred, from a pair of previous Bluefaced Leicester YCP recipients, Rachel & Joe Goodpaster.
Nick has learned to hand blade shear his sheep, as well as to hand card, and then spin the wool. In March, Carron presented Nick with a set of triplet Bluefaced Leicester lambs, two ewes and a ram. Mother and lambs are doing great!
We look forward to seeing Nick at the MSWF, for the presentation of his YCP 1st year report.

Awesome job Nick & Carron !

'Carron' with her 2010 triplet Bluefaced Leicester lambs

2009 YCP Bluefaced Leicester ewe 'Carron' donated by Beechtree Farm to Nick Wenger.

New Year Blue Promotions

We started off 2010 by promoting the Bluefaced Leicester and the BFLBA, as well as the NAMSS and the roll that the Mule plays in the 3-Tier Breeding System.
We were at the Michigan Sheep Breeders Assoc. 'Shepherd's Weekend'
held in Lansing, MI on a very cold and blustery weekend January 2nd & 3rd.

Our display table contained newsletters, tri-folds, and flyers for the BFLBA, and the NAMSS.

As well as handouts announcing the dates for the 2010 Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show, and the NAMSS ~ Mule Sheep & Progeny Show,
to be held at the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival, September 10 - 12, 2010

We also had a laptop and computer display screen running different photo slideshows promoting Bluefaced Leicesters, Mule Sheep, grass fed lamb, and the different breeds associated with the 3-Tier Breeding System.

We had many interested sheep producers asking questions about the BFL sires involvement in the 3-Tier system, as well as picking up the informational flyers and newsletters for reading later.

Watch this blog and the www.BFLBA.com website for updates on where we will be promoting the Bluefaced Leicester, and the BFLBA and its members,

as well as information about the 2nd Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show.

History of the Bluefaced Leicester

Just in time for Christmas gift giving for the Bluefaced Leicester enthusiast on your list.

The Bluefaced Leicester

"A History of the Breed"

By: Jeremy Hunt

This 50 page black & white booklet was published in the UK by the Bluefaced Leicester Sheep Breeders' Association and is available here in the USA.

It takes an indepth look at the history and development of the Bluefaced Leicester starting with Robert Bakewell's work in the 1700's, and it includes many b&w photos fo the breed from as early as 1901.

Order your copy of

'The Bluefaced Leicester ~ A History of the Breed'

by sending your email request to: beechtrfrm@aol.com

The cost of the booklet w/ shipping (in the USA) is $ 23.

BFLBA Website

The BFLBA's website has recently undergone a few updates to its pages, including some photos from the Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show in the photo gallery. Visit: www.BFLBA.com
The complete results from the GLBFLS show, and more photos will follow on this blog, and in the upcoming issue of the BFLBA's newsletter 'The Blue News.

Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show

For the Great Lakes ~ Bluefaced Leicester Show 2009, our judge was allowed to choose a special placement award called the "Judge's Choice Award". He was to choose an appropriate topic for what he felt was the most deserving category for the entries of the day.

Our guest UK judge: Mr. John Stott, choose to make it the "Young Handlers Award" to recognize the young youth who did such a great job exhibiting their Bluefaced Leicesters. The two youngest handlers of the day, Blake & Tyler Johnson 'River Winds Farm', exhibited excellent showmanship skills with their respective entries, and the time they had spent training their sheep really showed. 5th Place

Yearling Bluefaced Leicester Ewe:

Blake Johnson with his yearling ewe 'Belinda'

Tyler Johnson with his ewe lamb 'Dianthus'

Tyler Johnson
Winner of the 'Judge's Choice Award'
for Young Handler
Presented by our UK judge: Mr. John Stott
President of the UK- Bluefaced Leicester Sheep Breeders' Association

Glimpse at UK Fall Ram Sale

The following photos are from the Bluefaced Leicester ram sale

held at the UK's NSA Wales & Border Ram Sale on the Royal Welsh Showgrounds.

Bluefaced Leicester Sale Champion

bred and exhibited by: M. Roberts 'Myfyrian'

judged by: Neil Laing & Matt Drummond

The winning ewe class being recorded into the books by Arthur Yeats

The Ewe class entries

The ram lamb line up

The Shearling Ram line up

another view of the Shearling Ram class