More than 400 competitors and spectators were warmly welcomed in the picturesque country town of Northam on the weekend of 14-16 November for the inaugural  “Wellard Star of the West” campdraft.

Over 120 drafters and more than 200 horses participated in the competition which was held at the local Equestrian Park, alongside the shady banks of the tranquil Avon River.

The first series of over 140 runs took place on Friday afternoon in the Fawcett Cattle Company Maiden Draft and went on until dinner time, when the hungry crowd were ready to enjoy the free sausage sizzle prepared by the organizers. An early start on Saturday morning saw the youngest drafters on their saddles by 7.00am for the Farmworks Juvenile and AON Insurance Brokers Junior Drafts. The action continued all day long with the Wellard Rural Exports Open and Hampton Livestock Transport Novice Drafts, and the Glenvar Stallion and MLA Livecorp Restricted Open Shoot Out Drafts. After dinner, when energy levels had been restored, Gunedah boy Dan Murphy entertained the audience with his lively country songs and ballads until well into the wee small hours.

The Arena was busy again on Sunday morning from 7.30am, with all Round 2s and Finals taking place at a fast (or we should say ‘galloping’) pace! The event Calcutta run on the Glenvar Stallion Shoot Out was brilliantly auctioned by Farmwork’s Harold Sealy and together with a raffle and gold coins donations over the weekend contributed to the total amount raised of $6,000. All of which will be donated to the Royal Flying Doctor Service and the Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation.

By mid-afternoon, Judge Wayne Bean had finished his knowledgeable job and was ready to proclaim the results.

The list of all winners can be found here .

Wellard wishes to thank everyone involved in the organization of the event, including all sponsors, the judge, entertainers, caterers, the auctioneer, all restless volunteering staff, and the zealous committee for the wonderful job done.

Some positive comments have already been received from spectators, for example Bob said: "Thanks for putting together a great campdraft. I really enjoyed all the action!" and Rose added: "Fantastic!.. Great!... Wonderful!.. Congratulations on a well run event... Hope to see it again next year!".  However, we hope to receive more. Any feedback and ideas will be very welcomed and will help us further improve the event for next year.

           

           

More photos of the event will come soon, so keep an eye on the Wellard Star of the West campdraft website!