YOUNG Micaela Lock, 17, has trumped her father Gary with the highest-valued two fleeces in the long-running Mundulla Ag Bureau’s Hogget Competition.
The third time entrant’s fleeces were valued at $236.31 and included an 11.4-kilogram fleece of 19.6 micron yielding 76 per cent and an 18M fleece weighing 7.7kg with a 74pc yield.
Mr Lock – who is also the competition’s convenor – was just four cents behind with his two fleeces valued at $236.27.
The Locks from Mundulla have been using Hannaton bloodlines from Kaniva, Vic, for about 15 years.
In the past decade, the Ed Champness Perpetual Trophy for fleece of the day has been dominated by three winners, including Mr Lock.
He was back in the winners circle for the fourth time in 10 years, last winning in 2014.
His 17.2M fleece weighed an impressive 10.6kg and valued at $143.56.
Second place went to Gary’s brother David Lock, Lock Haven, Mundulla, with a fleece valued at $137.56.
Thirteen teams of three Merino wethers were run on Philip and Phyllis Salmon's property at Cannawigara, near Bordertown, for the past year for the state's longest-running hogget competition.
This included three teams from Bordertown High School.
At shearing on Friday last week, the entrants selected two of their wethers to vie for the major awards.
Gary Lock said in the past few years, the heaviest fleeces had won the day due to little difference in price between 19M and 22M, but with a micron premium of several hundred cents a kilogram this year, the finer fleeces triumphed.
He said the competition continued to be a great benchmark of how Merino genetics were performing in the high rainfall area.
“We are all about to start looking at rams so this is a chance to look at the wools,” he said.
“The fleeces from the top five teams had an average cut of 9.8kg while the next five were 8.3kg, so there is a lot of potential to cut more wool, especially with wool worth a dollar.”
Eleven sheep were valued at $100 or more.
Judge and Dalgety Wool manager Tony Kidman said it was a very even line-up of high quality fleeces.
“The fleeces were showing plenty of growth due to the season and extra fleece weight than last time I judged three years ago,” he said.
The meat section was won by Mark Dahlitz, Bordertown, with his three Ridgway Advance-blood wethers valued at $305.90.
Southern Australian Livestock Bordertown agent Craig Lewis was the meat judge.
Neil Hagger, Willalooka, won the estimation contest valuing three fleeces with his figure of $258.20.