Centre records for a store animal were smashed at Skipton Auction Mart, when the Walkers from Brennand, Dunsop Bridge, sold a Limousin cross heifer for £5500.

The heifer from father Geoff Walker and sons John and Rob, first secured the female and overall championship at the pre-sale show – for an unprecedented ninth time – when selected by judge Craig Bentley, of Kepwick, Thirsk.

Their all black nine-month-old is by the home-bred bull, Maverick, a son of Lodge Hamlet, and bred from a daughter of the Walkers’ former British Blue stock bull, Cromwell Fendt, which has sired previous champion winners here for the family. In fact, their latest title winner’s great grand-dam bred the family's first supreme winner at Skipton.

The heifer sold to local husband and wife team, John and Clare Mellin, of Mill House Farm, Long Preston, who hope their new acquisition on the local and national show circuit.

All of the Walkers' five-strong consignment of nine to 12-month-old British Blue and Limousin-cross calves ended in the prizes with all bar one taking red rosettes. Their sole blue ticket winner, stood second in its class to the champion and went on to sell for £2800 to Michael Robertson, Fodderletter Farms, Tomintoul, who also went to £2700 the the reserve overall champion. She is the same way bred as the champion.

Another Blue-cross heifer by Fendt, a first prize un-haltered winner, made £1800 to Calderdale with Luddendenfoot’s DP Moore.

The Walkers also claimed the top two awards amongst the males. Supreme in this section was a haltered Blue-cross bullock, again by Fendt, while the reserve was an un-haltered Limousin-cross bullock, by Maverick out of a pure Limousin cow. They made £1750 and £1900, respectively, to North Craven father and son, Francis and Andrew Smith, of Masongill, and JK Beckitt and Son, of Newark.

The reserve overall, the first prize haltered Blue heifer and runner-up female from Upper Nidderdale husband and wife, Mark and Fee Ewbank, Intake, Middlesmoor, made £2700, to Michael Robertson.

Fondly known as Margaret, this six-month-old baby beef heifer is by Brennand Jimmy, acquired some seven years ago from the Walkers, which was also responsible for the couple’s first-ever Craven Champions supreme champion in 2020 and last year’s male champion.

The Ewbanks, whose Intake pedigree herd comprises half a dozen pure Blues, also stood runners-up with same-way bred entries in both the un-haltered heifer and haltered Blue bullock show classes, which got away at £1500 and £1550 respectively on joining John and Jean Bradley in Giggleswick, and the show judge.