Tough day at office as shearing record bid called off early

Broken and refusing to give up until his offsider said so, Rotorua shearer Jamie Skiffington was soon able to wipe away the emotion and pledge he will have another crack at the record that eluded him in Tararua District on Monday.

Jamie Skiffington during his shearing record attempt near Dannevirke on Monday, urged on by contractor Rodney Sutton and on-board "second" Justin Bell, both former holders of the record. Behind the pace the attempt to beat a record 872 lambs in nine hours, it was called off with 1hr 20m to go and the target out of reach, but the shearer was soon saying he'd be keen and doing it again. Photo / Doug Laing

The end came when on-board “second”, Weber farmer, shearing trainer and former record holder Justin Bell, told him it would be the last sheep seven hours and 40 minutes into the attempt on the men’s solo nine hours strongwool lambs shearing record of 872 at Waewaepa Station, Waitahora, east of Dannevirke.

It’s a record with a big Hawke’s Bay influence, with two former holders in contractor Rodney Sutton (829 in 2000) and Bell (851 in 2004) at the forefront in the crew, and current holder Stu Connor on to watch and ultimately commiserate, having moved to New Zealand from England where he broke the record in 2021.

But still in mind was a record of 866 shorn by Hawke’s Bay shearer and held until 2016 when Irish shearer Ivan Scott took the record away from New Zealand for the first time.

“We’ll get it back to New Zealand sometime,” Skiffington vowed minutes after the machine was turned off for the last time at 3.42pm, ending a day a couple of years in the making with 733 lambs counted since the 5am start, the target still 140 away and, finally, out of reach.

He said he wanted to keep going, for those who’d put so much effort and time in helping.

Bell, and Rotorua contractor Jeff Dorset, who has known the shearer since Skiffington was 2 years old, were sure of the capabilities of the gun, whose family ultimately seemed almost more devastated than the man himself, although sister Karen said he had deserved the record and she’d support another attempt.

Bell said it couldn’t have been better prepared for a shearer who has shorn 913 in nine hours, but without the watchful eye of the judges, but on the day it just didn’t happen.

The hopes dwindled during the day, with Skiffington reaching lunch five hours and 30 minutes in, with 526 counted, after six had been ruled out by the judges – essentially the difference between Skiffington and Connor’s lunchtime tally of 532.

It meant the average requirement had climbed from 97 an hour (one every 37 seconds) at the start to almost 100 an hour, and the last run started with at least 181 needed, nine more than the record for a 1hr 45m run in a world record attempt.

In his record Connor opened with 193 in the first two hours followed by successive 1hr 45m runs of 168, 171, 172 and 168, to which Skiffington responded with 191, 165, 170, 166 and 41 before it stopped.

Doug Laing is a senior reporter based in Napier with Hawke’s Bay Today, and has 51 years of journalism experience, 41 of them in Hawke’s Bay, in news gathering, including breaking news, sports, local events, issues, and personalities.