National Sheepdog Trial Championships

[Perry's Mum]

Hello fellow sheep dog enthusiasts,

The thrills and spills of the National Sheep Dog Trial Championships

will be on again every day between 11-16th March in the Village of

Hall Show grounds just on the outskirts of Canberra..

As you know, there is no better way to to see the extraordinary

relationship between human and dog than when they are working

together on a challenging task. In this case, skill and teamwork

pitted against the irreverent unpredictability of the sheep makes for

great viewing.

This year, the event celebrates its 65th birthday – having been held

in Canberra since 1943.

Some of you are entered in the trial, but for those who are not we

would love you to come along and see handlers and dogs, from the

local area and further afield, demonstrate their skill in this

heritage sport.

Even more, we would love your assistance. I know many of you, give up

some time each year to help and it would be great if you could do so

again. Here's some of the things we need assistance with (just a few

hours of your time would make all the difference):

Sunday 9th March – setting up the course, fencing the oval and

general clean up of grounds

Tuesday 11th March to Friday 14th March – announcing over the PA,

collecting lunches and preparing morning & afternoon teas for judges

and workers, helping in the sheep yards, collecting score cards from

the judges and writing up scores on the results board

Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th March – same as Monday to Friday +

welcoming spectators and collecting entry fee at the gate, and of

course cleaning up after the prize presentations

If you are interested in lending a hand for a few hours, please

contact Barbara Brown by email [email protected]

BBQ for competitors and volunteers

As a volunteer or competitor, you would also be welcome to attend the

annual BBQ on Thursday evening of 13th March at the Hall Show grounds

Pavilion. This year, local Hall band West Texas Crude will be playing

their combination of country rock, rock and roll and blues. As the

Nationals is a not-for-profit organisation they do need to cover some

costs, so there is a charge of $10 per head but this includes a BBQ

with hamburgers, sausages, salads, bread rolls etc... and tea and

coffee (it's BYO any other drinks). Tickets can be organised at the

Hall General Store, or email Barbara.

Be part of living history

In celebration of its 65th birthday in 2008, the National Sheep Dog

Trials Association is starting to document the history of this

heritage event, to preserve it for future generations.They would like

to bring those records to life with more personal accounts and invite

you to contribute any photos, press cuttings or stories you might

have about the event in previous years.If you have any historical

material, photos of any of trials or stories to tell, pop in to the

official caravan at the event.

Best of luck to those competing and look forward to seeing you there

[Perry's Mum]

bump