Bower Young Farmers Club is based within the Caithness District, the northernmost mainland club within the SAYFC, located just 11 miles from Dunnet Head.
Originally established in 1945, the club now boasts around 75 members. Just last year, the Caithness district celebrated 100 years of Young Farmers Clubs, with the first club being held at Lannergill, Watten.
Events
The club hosts a range of events throughout the year, including their annual stock judging event located within the local mart, Quoybrae, which is run by Aberdeen and Northern Marts.
Held during January, this event is very well-attended, with 200 individuals competing this year alone, topped with a packed ringside.
Six classes of livestock were presented, including a class of peacocks, which members described as ‘rather entertaining!’
The event was catered by members, supplying soup, sandwiches, and sweet treats for everyone, followed by a raffle and auction that raised £4000 towards club development and the Caithness Heart Support Group.
The Highland Rally also held this year at Quoybrae Mart. It rotates between each location to make it fairer for all clubs travelling so far.
This popular event attracts many members and encourages a competitive spirit through activities such as baking, handicrafts, sports, stock judging, and practical competitions. Some examples of practical competitions are identification, quizzes, fault finding, constructing a planter, and halter making.
Achievements
A notable achievement for the club last year was being awarded ‘Club of the Year’ at the 2023 Royal Highland Show. The club’s involvement included many junior and senior teams competing in stock judging. One of the junior teams placed first within the RHS stockmanship program. This team consisted of Benjamin Rogers, Isla Mackay, and Abbie Gunn, out of 30 other competing teams. Participants were required to judge six classes, including dairy, beef, and sheep, finishing with a five-minute challenge to judge four animals being shown.
Last year also saw two senior teams and a junior team compete in a speechmaking competition, marking the first time Bower Young Farmers had competed in the competition for a number of years with the return of the district competition, which gave the club that push it needed to encourage members to compete and train hard for the competition with help from trainers.
The teams travelled to Orkney at the beginning of November to compete in the north region speechmaking competition held at Papdale primary school, with four junior teams and four senior teams taking part in the competition. The island-hopping venture paid off as the junior team, including Adelle Swanson, Charlotte Gillon, and Danielle Sinclair, placed third, and the two senior teams placed second and third, featuring Jak Murray, Jayden Alexander, Benjamin Rogers, and Ryan Steven. The senior second-place team, including Beth Douglas, William Campbell, John Forbes, and Stephen Dunnett, then headed to the National competition in Dundee for the speechmaking and quiz final. Against tough competition, sadly, the team never placed, but described the experience as amazing.
Working hard but partying harder
Each year, members also help local farmers cover their silage pits, with 70% of funds raised from covering the silage pits and donations from the farmers going towards the club’s developments. The remaining 30% funding a club day out for members to enjoy together. In recent years, this has included a day trip on a bus down to Inverness and going bowling and go-karting followed by dinner together on the return trip.
Conclusion
“As a new committee, we would like to keep growing the club membership numbers, do some more fundraising, and help the community out to grow our connections with other local communities'” said Abbie Gunn, club secretary 2024-25.
Club logo: The club also recently released their new personalised logo which was been designed by local school children and club members.
Club slogan: Don’t delay another hour, come and join us here in Bower!
Social media: Find Bower Young Farmers on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok: @boweryoungfarmers
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