Bowman Angus bulls snapped up

The bull that secured the top-priced price tag was Lot 6 - Bowman Compass R55 - an August 2020-drop bull sired by Baldridge Compass C041 and from the Flower cow line.

Compass R55 was in the top 15 per cent or better for 400-day weight, milk, eye muscle area and Angus breeding index.

R55 was secured by return purchaser Brad Smith, Smith Graziers, Tambo Crossing, for $20,000.

"R55 was a pick bull from a well-respected Angus breeder, and I thought if he thought that much of him then I had to secure him," Mr Smith said.

"We are a mixed sheep and cattle enterprise, running maternal composites alongside a predominantly Angus herd, we have only purchased sires from their (Bowman's) sales.

"The service that we get from [Bowman stud principal] Glenn Bowman is outstanding, and the genetics in the cows that he has sourced are some of the best in the Angus breed.

"Their commercial operation stands out to us, to have 80pc of your produced calves catalogued for sale speaks highly of what they have and what they have done."

Smith Grazing was also the volume buyers for the sale, purchasing six bulls to average $9666.

The second top-priced bull took a little bit longer to come forward being Lot 28 - Bowman Stunner R74, purchased by Daniel Bates, Cascade Park, Neerim East, for $18,000.

R74 was another August 2020-drop bull, from an embryo joining of Musgrave Stunner, out of the Abigail female line, and in the top 1pc of the breed for rib and rump fat.

Cascade Park also bought Lot 29, another Musgrave Stunner son, for $16,000, but out of the Aberdeen Estate Princess cow line.

"I have seen Stunner bulls at a few sales in the last year, but I was yet to purchase his genetics," he said.

"I really admired Lot 28 for his carcase, rib and rump fat and eye muscle area figures.

"I wanted to buy two bulls that were different but still run in the same pens to allow them to stay and work together moving forward, reducing potential injuries.

"This is the third year now I have purchased from Bowman with the docility of the cattle and the effort that Glenn puts in sourcing leading sires and female lines.

"The bulls are only prepared on grass and silage, and they just go on and grow out."

Mr Bowman was happy to see the reach of his program growing as bulls went to the western district, locally and across to Tasmania.

"It was a good clearance rate, and it was good to see new and return customer coming back for our third sale," he said.

"As the demand for our bulls increases we will increase our supply; the new genetics we have coming through are exciting as we look to offer Paratrooper and 38 Special sons next year.

"When we are looking for those cow lines we want the best arm of those families, as there are generations of great building blocks behind them.

"By using those cows, and then using modern genetics over them we are getting that new age data coming through whilst building that female line up in our herd.

"Selling bulls at the age we do gives our clients access to those genetics earlier, giving them genetic gains quicker."