Kiwi shearing great dies

Former top shearer Ray Alabaster, who has died at the age of 65, became one of the greatest shearers to compete in Masterton's Golden Shears without winning its coveted Open title.

He was in the six-man, 20-sheep final nine times from 1971 to 1981, and was runner-up in 1974 and 1979 and third in 1978 to inaugural World champion Roger Cox, when less than six-tenths of a point covered the first four placings.

In the year of his last final there were strong hopes of a dream result when he qualified best of the 12 for the semi-finals, but had to settle for sixth in the showdown won by Ivan Rosandich.

He was to finally achieve victory at Masterton two years later when he and Rei Rangiawha won the Golden Shears Maori-Pakeha teams event.

He also represented New Zealand in two trans-Tasman shearing tests, in 1979, in Masterton and in Victoria.

A modest man, he often said it would have been nice to have won the Open, but many world-class shearers had never made the final, and he was one of the lucky ones.

Alabaster competed as a teenager at the first Golden Shears in 1961,

He was also known for his woolshed tallies as a young shearer and in late 1969 led his own gang to an official four-stand record, with 417 of the 1562 shorn that day in a shed near Waiouru.

Alabaster was a long-time contractor in the Taihape area, and when he ended his competitive shearing days maintained a strong association with the sport, becoming a judge with wife Libby.

The pair's daughter, schoolteacher Sheree Alabaster, is one of the country's top woolhandlers, winning the World individual and teams titles in Norway in 2008.

Alabaster died on Wednesday in Taihape.

- NZPA