Fencing

Oct 14, 2023  •  General

The young farmers gathered on Saturday 14th October, a clear, but cold, sunny day to take part in their annual Fence Erecting competition, held at Yanwath Woodhouse Farm, near Eamont Bridge by kind permission of the Messrs Fisher.

Teams from around the county were tasked with erecting a 15 metre stock proof boundary fence using posts, netting and barbed wire. The task proved a challenging one in terms of timings and called for teams to use all their skill and determination to complete the task on the day. Wire and netting for the event were kindly donated by T.W. Relph and Sons who for many years have kindly supported Cumbria YFC by sponsoring the competition.

Judge Mr Alex Sibbald faced a tough task judging the finished fences and spent a good deal of time alongside steward Mr Chris Roe looking at every aspect of the young farmers’ work in great detail.  After much deliberation the results were announced with the Kent Estuary YFC’s team of Will Knipe, Sam Howard and James Walmsley placed first for the sixth year running, with an outstanding 93 points. Hot on their heels, only a point behind were Carlisle YFC’s team of Lewis Walton, Richard Graham and Louis Metcalfe with 92 points. The Penrith YFC team of Mark Fisher, Murray Craig and Ellie Fisher were placed third with 86 points. Fourth place was awarded to Crook YFC’s Robert Smith, Lewis Hodgson and Will Black. Joint fifth place went to Egremont and Skelton YFCs and Wigton YFC was placed 7th. 

Mr Alex Sibbald presented the trophy and certificates to the winning teams and commended everyone on their hard work during the competition. Kent Estuary’s Will Knipe thanked the judge and steward, the Fisher families for hosting the competition and Brian Hulme for providing the catering. He also thanked T.W. Relph and Sons for their continued support of the competition. The top 3 teams will now compete at the Northern Area Field Day hosted by County Durham YFC in June 2024.