We returned from the Futurity yesterday having had a splendid three days up at the NEC. Once again the organisers did the show and the UK Alpaca industry proud with an absolutely fantastic event. Well done to them all but particularly to the three superstars, Chas, Rachel and Cathy. Awesome job all round. Best Futurity so far in my opinion and it would be such a shame if that was the last one.
Anyway the weekend was all about our boys. We made the decision to take Angus out of school for a couple of days (we did get permission) and he loved it. Unfortunately Woody, who Gus showed all last year, was now too big so Gus had to wait until Saturday morning to take little Troy into the ring. Troy wasn't quite brown enough in the end and was bumped from brown to fawn. I prefer to think of him as a light, light brown! Anyway he picked up a rosette, as did Woody and we came away happy.
We also took Edwina's Journey, an honorary member of Team Patou for the weekend, owned by Ivan and Gill Hayward and by crikey they were glad that we did as she took Fawn female Champion!
The grand finale turned out to be the Fowberry Show again as the best in show ribbon was taken by Fowberry Nobility. The judges urged people to get hands on with him and I did. That is most definitely the standard to aim for. What a super, super male.
The dinner was superb, (well done Cathy) and we were lucky enough to be on what I considered to be the 'Top Table'. Sue and I missed the champagne reception as I just couldn't stop watching Wales thrash England with a glass of red in hand, as a result I was buzzing when we arrived! Much wine was consumed and as we drove away on Sunday morning my hangover was in full swing, as usual.
The first thing that I did when we got home was to trot across to the shed with the weighing scales. The animals had been left in the care of our 19 year old nephew and his mate. Full instructions had been left together with a fridge full of beer and the menu for the local takeaway.
The first clue that I had that Tsar had survived the weekend was that I had to chase him around the shed to catch him. A good sign indeed. The scales revealed that he had put on another kilo over the weekend!
Today the sun came out and the snow was melting so I let Thor and Tsar out to get some fresh air. I have attached a couple of video clips which will tell you that he is very much on the mend! I do apologise for the quality and for the fact that I found myself stuck behind a horse trailer. What a muppet!
6 comments:
Well done to all the team (great photo of Gus) boy was the standard high this year. Agree outstanding organisation by the Futurity team!
Looks like time for the next size coat for little Tsar although...he's looking just great so maybe he'll soon be able to go naked again...provided the snow stays away from Patou Land!
Congratulations!
Lovely photo and cracking videos!
Half a story Mark ! We need a full poo account as well ! Well done at the show.
22Great to meet you at The Futurity and we thought it was a brilliant showcase for the alpaca industry and really enjoyed our day there on Friday. It was amazing to see so many alpacas in show condition after the Winter we have had and of course the youngsters will no doubt have been halter trained in the mud and rain! We think every herd that entered deserves a pat on the back just for getting there.
Lovely to see Tsar so full of fun and mischief in the video clips - what a cute little fella.
Tsar looks like he is bursting out of his jacket !! and he looks in top spirit .. Well done at the Futurity sounds like it was a great weekend had by all .... Jayne
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