A24-Lancast«r Farming, Saturday, April 6,1985 Ag Arena hosts 12th Pa. Bull Test Sale BY JACK HUBLEY STATE COLLEGE - Any way you look at it, this year’s Penn sylvania Performance Tested Bull Sale was a cut above its 1984 counterpart. Last year’s event failed to get off the ground (literally) when a late March blizzard dropped a foot of snow on State College and collapsed the sale tent, delaying the sale for a week. But with last Friday’s sale staged for the first time in Penn State’s shiny new Ag Arena, Mother Nature knew better than to try to crash the party, and sunny skies prevailed. Attendance, spirits and prices all ran high, and it took a thousand dollars more to go home with this year’s number-one bull. Of the 55 performance tested bulls offered, a Polled Hereford owned by Egleston’s Polled Herefords of Elkland, Tioga County, turned out to be the most popular. Posting the test’s highest index of 120, and an average daily gain on test of 4.18 pounds, EPH Klondike Banner 401 convinced Jay Wysocki of American breeders Service, DeForest, Wise., to offer the winning bid of $3,600. “This bull combined a variety of outstanding traits that propelled him into the top selling category,” commented Meat Animal Evaluation Center director Glenn Eberly. “He was a very sound bull, An army of Penn State Block and Bridle Club members made sure that each bull looked his best at sale time. Egleston Polled Here and very consistent from birth through the end of the test period.” Eberly also noted that this was the first time in its 12 years of per formance testing that the center has sent a bull to a major breeding concern outside of Pennsylvania. And with plenty of royalty in his pedigree, it was easy to see why the Egleston entry was able to compile the winning statistics. Sired by the famous Klondike Banner 469 L, the young bull was out of the Egleston dam that manufactured this year’s Farm Show grand champion female. “It’s fun to come here and compete with some of the top breeders-ifs a good measuring stick,” commented a smiling Mike Egleston, after his bull left the sale ring. “A humble operation at best,” is Egleston’s assessment of the northern Pennsylvania dairy and beef operation owned by himself and his father. On their two farms totalling 750 acres, the Eglestons milk 40 Holsteins in addition to running 40 Polled Hereford brood cows. And in spite of the fact that all the farm work is done by Mike and his father, the younger Egleston still finds time to teach school. % Egleston notes that both his dairy and beef herds are bred AI to take advantage of the top sires available. The value of this strategy was apparent elsewhere ord garners top bid The sun shone on Pennsylvania's Bull Test Sale last Friday, held for the first time in Penn State’s Ag Arena. Both attendance and prices were up. among the ranks of Polled Herefords, with Klondike Banner siring three out of the top four indexing bulls, and four out of the top five bulls being out of Vin dicator daughters. The sale’s second highest selling bull was an Angus that posted the top daily gam for the test’s 140-day duration. Consigned by Richard Stokes of Flemmgton, NJ, HSF Skywalker 415 recorded an average daily gam of 4.66 pounds and an index of 116. (The index incorporates average daily gam, adjusted 365-day weight and ad justed fat thickness scores, and reveals a bull’s ranking only within other members of his breed. In the above example, an index of 116 means that this bull’s overall performance was 16 percent better than the average of all Angus bulls James Bennett, (left) director of the American Polled Hereford Association, congratulates Mike Egleston on his high-indexing and high-selling Polled Hereford bull. Jay Wysocki (center) of American Breeders Service, was the buyer at $3,600. MEDIA - Interested in starting a small business, a part-time business, home industry, part-time farming operation or a family business enterprise? The Cooperative Extension Service of The Pennsylvania State University will conduct two four-part Seminars that will provide you with the information needed to get off to a good start, says Greta C. Vario, Extension Home Economist with the Penn State Extension on test.) The top indexing bull among all Angus entries, this Pine Drive Big Sky son went to Edwin Yeo of Lowellville, Ohio, for $2,900. Another Angus bull, HF Her cules 415, consigned by Huntingdon Farm of Alexandria, earned the third highest price, when Holder Brothers of Gamaliel, Ky., offered a final bid of $2,550. The only 7- frame bull among all of the British breeds offered, this big Angus posted an average daily gam of 3.63 pounds on test and a final index of 109. In addition to the Polled Hereford and Angus breeds, Simmentals were well represented at the sale. This year’s top selling Simmental was MF Salvation 4, consigned by Messick Farms of Middletown. Post*"" average Small business seminars set The Seminars will include; analyzing your market, optimizing your location and facilities; financial records necessary for successful and legal business management; taxes and tax records; sources of financial assistance-how to qualify and who qualifies; planning advertising; management techniques and legal aspects of starting a business. The Seminars will be held at daily gain on test of 4.21 pounds, and a final index of 113, this son of Canadian Salvatore went to Byerly Farms of Milton for $1,300. The race for high sale average could hardly have been closer, with the sale’s 16 Angus finally coming out on top by only 46 cents. Angus bulls averaged $1,232.82, with the<-17 Polled Hereford bulls going for $1,232.36. Other sale averages included 18 Simmentals at $940.28, two Charolais at $1,025, and a pair of Chianinas for $737.50. By sale’s end, 98 registered bidders had offered a total of $61,125 for the 55 bulls. "This was our best attendance ever,” concluded Eberly, “ and in light of beef prices during the past three weeks, I think we had a very successful sale ” i •O Penn State’s Delaware County Campus in Media, on April 25, May 2,9, 16 and at the Willow Grove Mall on April 24, May 1,8, IS. Both seminars will be from 7:30 to 10 p.m. The Penn State Campus is located on Middletown Rd., Route 352 north of the Granite Run Mall. Register by April 15 by calling 565-9070 for the Media location or 489-4315 for the Willow Grove location. ♦ * P * , * *<V * % i* - * ■«*>* - * ♦>*■ -v -vs
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