JUDGING by the crowds of people who braved the variety of wintery conditions over the three-day Sheepvention Rural Expo earlier this week, the country spirit in the Western District is alive and well.

After being cancelled two years in a row, celebrities, farmers, retailers, and families with postcodes from all over Australia comprised the huge number of visitors who came through the gates for the iconic event, bringing a much-needed boost to the local economy.

There were 519 trade sites, showcasing their products and services as well as numerous other popular events that culminated in what has been heralded as a very successful event, despite the risks of COVID-19 as a potential deterrent, among other concerns.

Sheepvention treasurer, Darren Schurmann, was thrilled with how the event went despite the upheaval caused by the pandemic over the last two years and with the recent threat of Foot and Mouth Disease causing concern amongst the farming community.

“We are very happy with the numbers that came through the gates across the three days and they are very comparable with 2019,” he said.

Mr Schurmann said the Sheepvention committee was pleased with the sheep sale prices at the esteemed Hamilton and Western District Sheep Show and said by all accounts it was a profitable event for producers.

“It was quite a solid result,” he said.

“Considering what we’ve all been through, we were very happy with the way it went.”

The Sheep Show saw 509 sheep entered by 67 exhibitors in 613 sheep show entries.

Combined, there were 86 rams entered into 13 pens of 5, 5 pens of 3, and 2 pens of Corriedales.

The average sale price for Merinos was $4325, for Corriedales it was $3500, and the average sheep sale price overall was $4270.

Journalist and ABC television presenter, Pip Courtney, opened the event in the Sheep Pavilion and said that all the best farmers went to these types of agricultural shows.

“They’re the ones looking to get that extra one per cent,” she said.

Television personality and former AFL footballer, Sam Kekovich, was a notable figure this year after attempting to come to the renowned event for years, but finally made the trip. Australian cricketing legend Merv Hughes was also in attendance.

Sheepvention vice president, David Botterill, said the Sheepvention team were more than happy with how things went over the three days.

“We knew there was going to be some challenges coming out of COVID,” he said.

“But I think we handled those challenges really well.

“We are already preparing to do things bigger and better next year.

“The whole team did really well to put on an event of that scale.

“The feedback has been very positive.”