Shearer's life starts early

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 6, Issue 316, 5 December 1989, Page 3

Shearer's life starts early

BY

donna

McGrath

Summer has arrived and the oiled handpieces are removed from their boxes. The sheep are mustered down off the hills and the shearing season begins.

The Waimarino has six shearing contracting gangs each season, to handle millions of sheep brought down into the catching pens. One of these gangs belongs to contractor Ronnie Jenson. Ronnie's love for shearing began when he was a young boy. He was brought up with the Condon family of Raetihi. Jack Condon is a legendary Waimarino shearer and at 60 years of age is descibed by Shearing Magazine as the "Country's best shearer for his age." Ronnie visited the sheds with Jack until he

became presser for the gang. At 14 he began shearing on and off, and later Jack offered Ronnie a stand with his gang and with it a handpiece of his own. Ronnie respects and appreciates the hours Jack put in teaching him the techniques required to shear sheep adequately and responsibly. Ronnie still recalls Jack's most significant words "The sheep must be pink." Ronnie now preaches this to his own gang members. At 20 years of age, Ronnie left Jack's side and worked for another

in business shearing contractor Gavin Brown. After two years Gavin gave up his run and Ronnie moved to Alan Ritchfield's shearing gang. While shearing for Alan, Ronnie experienced a little of what shearing was really all about. He recalls visiting Lochanvir Station, on the NapierATaupo road where 17 shearers helped to celebrate the station's 50th anniversary, by shearing 8500 lambs in one day on the one farm. It was a total that put them into the Guiness Book of Records. Ronnie's interest in shearing took him across the Tasman to the sharing circuit south of Perth, shearing merino. Ronnie tells of how shearing Australian style is different to that in New Zealand. He says it took four to five minutes to shear one sheep, whereas in New Zealand it takes about a minute. The Merino fleece needs to be cut layer by layer, the wool being so rich in quality and growth. The South Islanders of New Zealand, Ronnie says, are more used to shearing "Merino style." He says also that the

Aussie shearer would take three months to do a one month job here in New Zealand. Ronnie returned to the Waimarino in 1979, back to the romney coupworths and perendales of the area. In the same year he bought Alan Ritchfield's run of 50,000 sheep. His run to date for the 1988/89 season is nearer 150,000. Ronnie runs two gangs, one under the leadership of Trevor Condon, Jack's son. The monotony of the job is lessened by the atmosphere created within the shed by the people there. The heavy sounds of 92.2FM takes away the aching backs and keeps the mind busy. Ronnie laughs as he adds, "The sheep don't go much for heavy metal, and neither do I." Trevor and Ronnie both find self satisfaction from their job. They believe that a becoming a successful shearer comes from respecting and having a responsible attitude towards the 'cockies' and each other. "Clean, quality shearing is very important to me and my gang," says Ronnie.