ARCOLA - There was little room to park at Blair Athol Farms, located north of Arcola, as the driveway was lined with pickup trucks and trailers.
On Oct. 15, the 26th annual heifer sale by Blair Athol, Haroldson and friends was held with nearly 70 registered polled Hereford weanlings and heifers offered.
The cattle were housed close to the shop for potential buyers to view the docile breed.
As people entered the corrals, these heifers barely moved and continued to munch down on their hay as they were viewed.
Duncan and Jeff Lees have a large, heated shop which is converted into a sales ring just for this event.
Black curtains separated the sales ring from the eating area while people socialized.
Upon entering the building, folks were asked to sign the guest book, so the family could look back to see where all the people came from.
Bidders from Wisconsin, Montana, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Manitoba attended the sale, but bidding on line was from all over Canada and the United States.
Lunch was prepared by Weir’s Catering, and everyone was encouraged to fill their stomach with roast beef and enjoy some cooling beverages.
The atmosphere was warm and welcoming as people chatted. Some of them only see each other once a year at the sale.
Casey van Kessel from Barrie, Ont., has been attending for 20 years. He flies in and enjoys the company of others he has not seen in a while.
He was planning on possibly purchasing a heifer which would remain on the farm.
A man from Eritrea, Africa came the furthest. He came to visit his daughter, who lives in Regina, and they felt it would be a good experience to attend such a sale with Duncan's daughter Lynn.
Duncan welcomed everyone to what was called Super Sunday, as this is one of three sales that are held in a row and in the area.
Jeff gave his father Duncan a great deal of credit for all the work he does on the farm, while Jeff goes out to work. Jeff thanked his parents and family for all their support.
Jeff went on to say that Chad and Lenna Wilson from Haroldson’s Polled Herefords set the bar high for their exceptional cattle.
The crowd took their seats, as Chris Poley from Saskatoon took his place at the auctioneers microphone, while Ben Wright and Shane Mickelson took to the floor watching for bids.
Poley is from T Bar C Cattle Co Ltd., and he brings a whole crew for the three sales here called the Saskatchewan Sweepstakes.
As the gates opened and the first set of weanlings entered the ring like old pros, the sale began. The two animals brought in $31,000 each.
Every aspect of the sale is covered: trucking, vet checks to ensure the animal is healthy, pregnancy checks for an estimated date on calving, insurance and hotels for those from afar.
