It’s the time each year when the country comes to town, Melbourne’s main competition of livestock and produce with awards, amusement rides and showbags. But, as Angela Valente reports, more than anything, the Royal Melbourne Show is a family affair.
It’s no surprise Tyson Shea works daily on the family’s hobby dairy farm. He’s simply following in the footsteps of his father, grandfathers and great grandfathers.
The 24-year-old from Bacchus Marsh has been going to shows since he was born.
This year he’ll team up with his dad and grandfather to show 10 dairy cows. Delight, Grace, Topsie, Maygirl and Gretta are among the handful of heifers and cows they will take to the showgrounds.
Heifers are ‘dry’, that is, cows that haven’t yet had a calf. The Sheas will take two breeds to the show, Guernseys, which are tan and white, and black and white Holsteins. All will be judged on their physical appearance.
‘‘Cows have to be shown in a judging ring and some can get very stubborn,’’ Shea says. ‘’You have to have a good cow, with good temperament and patience. She’s got to be able to handle what you’re doing to her.’’
It takes Shea a whole year to prepare for a show.
To be ready, cows have to calve in July or August so they’re in full production and generating their peak amount of milk.
‘‘After pregnancy the cows have to recover. It’s really 12 months of the year they’re on a special feed, a 365-day commitment to the cause.’’
Shea has been exhibiting his own cows, under his own name, for about 16 years, since 1996.
‘‘All like-minded people are there,’’ he says. ‘‘Everyone’s there for the same reason. We’ve all done the hard work. You make lots of friends, lifelong friends.”
The fourth generation dairy farmer had success at the show in 2007 when he won ‘champion dairy cow’, the highest prize on offer.
‘‘I really enjoy working with the cows.
‘‘I’ve learnt everything from both my grandfathers and my dad. They tend to pass down little tricks of the trade. Once you get the bug it’s hard to get rid of it.”
It was much the same for Laura Thomas, who was ‘‘born in the saddle’’.
Also 24, Thomas has been riding at shows and winning since she was two years old, when she won a novice rider section at the Sunbury Pony Club.
‘‘My dad used to show jump, so they used to put me on a Shetland (pony) and it was easier than putting me in a pram.
‘‘Pretty much my whole world is centred around horses, which doesn’t leave much time for a social life.’’
Thomas is taking two thoroughbreds to the show, Rupert and Charlie. The bond she has with them is nothing short of special.
‘‘Rupert is like my boyfriend. Our bond is pretty good. He’s just turned five; he’s really cute and nice to have around.
‘‘Charlie is not so nice … he’s 15 and a bit cranky.’’
The major equestrian competition in Australia is the Garryowen trophy, held annually at the Royal Melbourne Show. It’s named in memory of Violet Murrell’s bravery while trying to save her horse (Garryowen) from a fire at her stables.
For most competitors winning the Garryowen is a dream which requires months of preparation.
It’s the first time Thomas has competed for the prestigious trophy, though she puts no pressure on herself.
‘‘It’s not so much about the ribbons,” she says. “It’s about how you got the ribbons, the hard work you put in.
‘‘It doesn’t matter if you get beaten as long as you are happy with how they went.
‘‘You don’t like to be beaten though,” she jokes.
As a long-time rider, and a former ‘supreme’ champion, it’s surprising to hear that Thomas has never broken a bone riding.
‘‘I have fallen off heaps, though. I used to be called autumn leaves because I used to fall off so much.
‘‘I have had some quite bad falls, but I was always taught to get back on.’’
Wood chopping and sawing have always been a part of Katherine Deverell’s life, although until now, she’s managed to avoid competing.
Deverell’s daughter, son, husband and grandfather compete in the wood chopping arena.
It is a real family tradition for the Monegeetta residents, but it’s a first for Deverell. This week she will compete in a Jill and Jill wood-sawing handicap race with her sawing partner, Rebecca Meyer.
The pair must saw their way through a 15-inch [375mm] log. Their handicap is not yet determined.
‘‘Easter was the first time I picked up the saw,’’ Deverell says. ‘‘I picked one up with my son James and we practised together and then he told me to get serious and start competing.’’
Deverell enjoys the fitness. She and Meyer have been training every third night.
‘‘We do five or six reels, one after another. When I saw with my son we probably do 10 reels at a time.
‘’You have to have upper body strength, good movement in your hips and knees.
“There’s a real technique to it.’’
At their event next Wednesday, September 26, Meyer will take the first pull of the saw.
‘‘It could be over within a couple of minutes, but you have to do so much training to prepare.
‘‘As soon as you start you’re more or less finished.’’
Exhibiting in the Royal Show will also be a first for Point Cook milliner Brooke Simon, who’s following in the footsteps of her uncle.
‘‘He used to exhibit in cake decorating and take out the prize every year,” Simon recalls.
‘‘He also did floristry and dress design. I didn’t pick up the cake-making skills though.’’
Simon will enter a Melbourne Cup hat in the millinery section. It has to be fully handmade, from shaping the hat base to crafting intricate rosettes by hand.
The self-taught milliner says most of the work has been trial and error.
‘‘This is the first time I put an idea down on paper and it hasn’t turned out anything like it.
‘‘First I set up my supplies. I have a colour in mind and then it grows from there.’’
Simon has crafted a cobalt blue hat with peacock feathers and handmade gold rosettes.
From start to finish it’s taken her about five hours to complete.
‘‘They are very fiddly. After you’re finished you need to figure out how to attach it to someone’s head.’’
Whether it is craft, equestrian, dairy cattle or wood chop competitions, the Royal Melbourne Show sees hundreds of people preparing for many hours to bring out their best. The show starts this Saturday, September 22, and runs until October 2 at the Melbourne Showgrounds. For more information, visit royalshow.com.au
