Dreaming of attending the 2018 BFL National show, held during the Black Sheep Gathering in Albany, OR on June 29th!!!
Check recent posts on this site for sheep and fleece classes and information on judging. The deadline to enter is June 1st.
Tag: Black Sheep Gathering
Class listing for the 2018 BFL national show
The classes for the BFL National Show, held during the Black Sheep Gathering in Albany, OR in June are as follows: Yearling Ram
Ram Lamb
Pair of Ram Lambs
Yearling ewe
Ewe lamb
Pair of ewe lambs
Breeders young flock (1 ram lamb, 2 ewe lambs)
You may enter 2 white and 2 natural colored per exhibitor, per class.
The judge is Zane Bone, from College Station, TX. Entries close June 1, or whenever they get 600 entries.
There are 2 classes for BFL fleeces. One is for lambs, the other is for hogget fleece (1-2 yo)
Dr Geof Ruppert, from Fairfield, PA is the wool judge.
The catalog, entry forms, show schedule and anything else you might want to know is now available at the BSG website. www.blacksheepgathering.org
Announcing the judge for the BFL National Show
Zane Bone • College Station, Texas
I am a 4th generation sheep and goat raiser from the Texas Hill Country. My father was a state winning sheep and goat vocational agricultural teacher; my mom was also from a ranching background. My mom’s brother was one of the best known sheep and goat 4-H agents this state has ever had. My grandfather ran a working cattle, horse, sheep and goat ranch for a family estate for 40 years. It was no wonder I ended up liking sheep and goats. I was involved in 4-H and FFA as a youth, and I judged wool and mohair up until attending college at Texas A&M University where I obtained a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Agronomy. Growing up on the ranch, I’ve had my own Rambouillet sheep and Angora goat herds. It was through this diversity that I found my true love for sheep and goats; I work to design breeding programs with different goals in mind.
In the past few years I’ve been invited to judge at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival, the Mountain State Fair in Asheville North Carolina and the Maryland State Fair. It has been a true blessing that I have found to be very rewarding and refreshing. Being involved in these shows has awoken a new desire to see sheep through a different lens again. Who knows? Upon the completion of my children’s show careers, we may just give fiber a new whirl. I think I am again catching the bug you all have.
Every show I am asked to judge has been an honor and brings great rewards. It has been so refreshing to see sheep showing as it was intended, both educational and a time of fellowship. Fiber festivals have renewed my hope that exhibition can be about more than a ribbon; it can be about the love of sheep and the acceptance of the diversity sheep can bring. Each breed fascinates me in different ways. I so look forward to judging the Black Sheep Gathering and seeing what the West Coast has to offer. Thanks in advance and may all of you have safe travels and outstanding lamb crops.
BSG Youth Show Results
The Grand Champion Ram Lamb during the Youth show at the Black Sheep Gathering in Eugene OR is Terra Mia Arthur, owned and shown by Isabelle Pierre. Isabelle is a new youth member, and Arthur is her first lamb in her BFL flock.
The Reserve Champion Ram Lamb is owned by Rhiannon Curley, also a BLU member. Both girls hail from Oregon.
People’s Choice Award!
Winning the People’s Choice award in the Black Sheep Gathering fiber arts competition for the third year in a row was BLU board member Karen Szewc’s entry in the Felting:humanoid or critter category.
Bluefaced Leicester classes full at the recent BSG
There was a great turnout for the BFL classes at the recent Black Sheep Gathering, held in Eugene, OR on June 23-25th. The BSG is the site of next year’s BFL National Show. Here are the class standings for the sheep show.
Yearling Ram
1) Liongate
2) Terra Mia
3) Liongate
Ram Lamb – 11 entries
1) Terra Mia
2) Terra Mia
3) Liongate
4) Custom Colored
5) Liongate
Pair of ram lambs
1) Terra Mia
2) Custom Colored
3) Liongate
4) Irish Hill Farm
Champion Ram – Liongate
Res Champ Ram – Terra Mia
Yearling Ewe
1) Liongate
2) Liongate
Ewe Lamb – 10 entries
1) Liongate
2) Terra Mia
3) Viking Wool Works
4) Custom Colored
5) Terra Mia
Pair of ewe lambs
1) Terra Mia
2) Liongate
3) Custom Colored
Champion Ewe – Liongate
Res Champ Ewe – Terra Mia
Good News from the Black Sheep Gathering
From BLU board member Karen Szewc, with her champion natural colored ewe, Corina.
Be sure to read the attached file and enjoy all the photos from the Black Sheep Gathering! 2015 bsg report (2)
Black Sheep Gathering Report
From Robina Koenig
The Black Sheep Gathering was held in Eugene, OR, last weekend. As usual, we all had a great time in the mild weather. My daughter Callie went with me this year and Jared Lloyd stopped by but didn’t show. I missed Nancy Gilkeson but her granddaughter Brooke was representing the family. This is my ‘sheep friends vacation’ and it was good to see everyone, share thoughts and ideas, enjoy the potluck followed by the Spinner’s Lead, plus the sheep show. Hope all is well with those who were not attending and that they will be back next year.
The Blues had their own show again this year, showing both white and natural coloreds together. The classes were well represented. The judge was David Cook. This year I only showed three ewe lambs and three ram lambs. Bearhill Farms (CA) won Champion Ram with a yearling and Liongate Farm (OR) won Champion Ewe with her yearling. This was a first-time showing at BSG for Karen—well done! Here are the winners of all classes. Congratulations to all who entered. Robina @ Tumble Creek Farm
Yearling Ram
1 Bearhill Farms
2 B Jakubos
Ram Lamb
1 Bearhill Farms
2 Tumble Creek Farm
3 Four Oaks Farm
4 Bearhill Farms
5 Liongate Farm
6 Tumble Creek Farm
Pair of Ram Lambs
1 Bearhill Farms
2 Liongate Farm
3 Tumble Creek Farm
Champion Ram, yearling—Bearhill Farms
Res Champion Ram, lamb—Bearhill Farms
Yearling Ewe
1 Liongate Farm
2 Liongate Farm
3 Four Oaks Farm
4 Four Oaks Farm
Ewe Lamb
1 Tumble Creek Farm
2 Bearhill Farms
3 Four Oaks Farm
4 Tumble Creek Farm
5 Tumble Creek Farm
6 Four Oaks Farm
Pair of Ewe Lambs
1 Tumble Creek Farm
2 Four Oaks Farm
Champion Ewe, yearling—Liongate Farm
Res Champion Ewe, lamb— Liongate Farm
Breeder’s Young Flock
1 Tumble Creek Farm
2 Four Oaks Farm
The 2011 Black Sheep Gathering Report
Submitted by Jared Lloyd
-Eugene, Oregon.
There was quite a turn out for the Bluefaced Leicester breed and breeders at this year’s event. It was exciting to see many familiar friends and to meet new ones. Breeders and buyers in attendance (I may have forgotten someone) were Robina and Callie Koenig (OR), Mike and Margaret Fryatt (BC), Jeff and Patricia Keeley-Seldomridge (WA), Sue Gustafson (CA), Ann Morrison (WY), Robyn West (MT), Garrett Ramsay (MN), Nancy Gilkeson (OR), Marybeth Bullington-Bury (OR), Kelly Wilder (CA), Janet Tulloch (CA), Lorraine Powell (CA), Brenda Searle (OR), Carol Leyh (CA), Robin Lynde (CA), Virginia Hall (OR) and a tall, gangly cowboy from Colorado…(Jared Lloyd)
Some good friends of the breed, Roy and Myrtle Dow, Steve and Terry Mendenhall, Martin and Joy Dally, Shirley DeMaris, Joyce Torigino, Amy Hamilton and our new friends Harry and Denise from Victoria, BC, were there supporting Bluefaced Leicesters.
The show serves as a hub of breeding stock exchange with many sires being distributed from California to British Columbia to Montana, and ewes going as far away as Minnesota.
The judging was fair and well-balanced with good emphasis on both structure and fleeces. If my notes are correct, there were thirty-eight entries in the Bluefaced Leicester classes. The championship ring was particularly exciting when Robina’s yearling ram, Koenig Langston (brilliantly named after John Cleese’s character in ‘Silverado’), was selected from dozens of champions with six other animals and was pulled to the center of the ring for special recognition. The judge commented that this ram “had the merit that would push the breed forward.” This is a tremendous testimony to his breeder as we all know that producing quality breeding stock is no easy accomplishment!
Show Report-
Yearling Ram;
1st- Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
2nd- Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
3rd– Four Oaks Farm (CA)
Ram Lamb;
1st- Ramona Valley (CA)
2nd- Four Oaks Farm (CA)
3rd– Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
Pair of Ram Lambs;
1st- Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
2nd- Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
3rd– SonCroft/Jehovah-jireh Sheep and Cattle (CO)
Champion Ram- Tumble Creek Farm (OR), Yearling
Reserve Champion Ram- Ramona Valley (CA), Ram Lamb
Yearling Ewe;
1st- Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
2nd- Four Oaks Farm (CA)
3rd– Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
4th– Autumn Hills Woolens (WA)
Ewe Lamb;
1st- Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
2nd- Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
3rd– Four Oaks Farm (CA)
Pairs of Ewe Lambs;
1st- Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
2nd- Tumble Creek Farm (OR)
3rd– Autumn Hills Woolens (WA)
Champion Ewe- Tumble Creek Farm (OR), Yearling
Reserve Champion Ewe- Tumble Creek Farm (OR), Ewe Lamb
Breeders Small Flock;
1st– Tumble Creek Farm (OR- White)
2nd– Tumble Creek Farm (OR- Natural Colored)
3rd– Autumn Hills Woolens (WA)
Black Sheep Gathering news
Shown is Wes Limesand, judging for overall champion. In the foreground is Robina Koenig with the champion BFL ram, and her daughter, Callie, with the champion ewe.