The Boundary Rider's Report October 2026
(photos at bottom of post)
The Boundary Rider’s Report October 2026
We have all been flat out feeding, AI’ing and praying for rain. Thankfully we received 20mm at Bald Blair, 25mm at Kolora on Tuesday. Such a huge relief. So far this year we have received 264mm YTD at Bald Blair and 304mm YTD at Kolora. Hopefully this is the break in the season we need and the grass will grow again!
We are still confinement feeding our stud cows and supplementary feeding everything else. The lagoon has dried out again, and indeed is grassing up. A new pump has just been installed for the new bore at Kolora - we just need to lay the pipe now. Dam water is evaporating and we are very dependent on our bore water.
Another day and another delivery of feed commodities, we are constantly taking delivery of hay, DDG, cotton seed and grain as it takes a bit of feed and coordination to keep the stock fed. We feed everything on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and the stud cows get extra feeds on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and even a bale of hay on Sunday.
We are working closely with Adam Turnbull, Elders animal nutritionist to ensure we get the nutrition right and our joining season is a success. As with all cow/calf operators getting pregnancies and live calves on the ground is the name of the game. We are also providing licks and StateDry Beta Breed :
https://www.staydry.net.au/cattle/staydry-beta-breed
2027 Open Day and Bull Sale dates.
With this in mind please save the date for our Open Day on
Wednesday, 21st of July 2027 with special guest speaker Simon Quilty, followed by our Bull Sale on
Tuesday 3rd of August. Please click on blue highlighted dates to add to your calendar.
We are in the middle of our AI program. The stud heifers were synchronised and AI on the 6th. Stud cows have been AI on 12th October. Thank you to Sean, Arthur, Tilly, Troy -, Packsaddle Ag & Equine, Michael, Jorja and Bovine Breeders for all your hard work in getting this year’s spring AI done.
If you are selling stock on AuctionsPlus that are Bald Blair bloodlines, please ask your agent to claim the Bald Blair Angus bloodline in the listing. We will then receive a notification, check that Bald Blair Angus bulls were purchased recently and approve the request. The stock will then receive a Bald Blair Angus Verified badge. We can then promote the sale on our social media, with 13K followers on FB and 3K followers on instagram we can hopefully get some interest in your sale. For more information CLICK HERE
https://pages.auctionsplus.com.au/abloodlines
The same applies if you are selling cattle that are Bald Blair bloodlines in the cattleyards. Please ask your agent to let us know or call us yourself. If the agent has done a social media post please ask the agent to tag us, so we can share it. Sam is regularly attending the Armidale saleyards, but if you are selling stock at any other cattleyards please let us know. We want to support our clients to receive the best prices for their cattle and this is a small way we can do that.
The Weekly Times article by Fiona Myers “Genetics Drive Herd” was published on 7th October talking about
heifer select and
steer select. Thank you Fiona for the opportunity to have a chat.
CLICK HERE to read the article.
We have said farewell to 4 Optiweight Agscent machines as part of the Research project called "Beef with lower ultimate emissions through a global research alliance in sustainable selection"! The research aims to explore the genetic variation in methane production and genetic correlations between methane production and economically important traits in beef cattle. Thank you to Bill and Jacqui Mitchell and the Optiweight team, Dr Michael Alridge, Dr Steve Miller and Dr Andrew Lakamp, AGBU & UNE for the opportunity and support.
We have been speaking to our 2026 bull sale clients to see how their new bulls have settled into their new environment. A common theme was that our bulls have settled into their new commercial operations with comments like “nice and quiet” “quiet & compliant” “Quiet” “nice and quiet.” There were also some great results for our clients including: “100% calving out of heifers. Only five dry cows. No dramas calving.” “Heifer calving improved out of sight.” “100% — calves even — magic to see it.” “U153 going well. Chucks out some good calves.” If you have any feedback on how your Bald Blair bull is going and we have not been able to contact you yet please let us know at
samwhite@baldblair.com.au or call Sam on 0438 792 1240.
Our commercial calves have all been marked and teams of bulls are out working on our commercial cows and heifers. It is a very exciting time of the farm calendar to see the next crop of calves being so well cared for by their mothers and see the bulls out for the spring joining season. We will keep a close eye on the bulls to ensure joining goes well and make any changes if need be.
Bulls for Sale
We only have two out of the seven paddock bulls left for sale by private treaty. These bulls have all met our stringent criteria for structure, bull check and are fully vaccinated and ready to work. So if you missed out on a bull at the sale, please give Sam a call on 0438 792 140 and he can provide you with the details of the bulls for sale, or you can view the bulls available on our website on the bull sale page - https://www.baldblairangus.com.au/bull-sale
Thank you to the clients that have purchased the other five bulls. We really appreciate your support. If you still need a bull, please don’t hesitate to contact us so we can discuss your bull needs.
Semen for Sale
Bald Blair FairnSquare U207 (PV) HBR
A son of Myers Fair-N-Square M39, who is being used as an outcross sire in the Bald Blair Herd, in both Spring and Autumn. Out of an NORL519 daughter NBBP136 recently sold to clients at our most recent female sale. He is an outstanding sire in terms of growth and carcase but has added thickness, is structurally very sound and is a very appealing bull. U207 will be retained within the Bald Blair Stud Herd, he has been used as a yearling in Spring 2024, and then again in the Autumn of 2025 at 18 Months of Age, and is lining up for Spring of 2026. Great spread of EBVs from Birth to Growth, with impressive Carcase data as well. IMF in top 10% of breed.
BALD BLAIR QUARTERBACK V227 (PV) HBR
A Son of Murdeduke Quarterback Q011 PV out of dam Bald Blair Q287 PV a S Powerpoint WS 5503 PV daughter. V227 has had use as a yearling in the 2025 Spring Joining season, then again in the Autumn Joining Season. He has an unbelievable set of data, with a birth to 600 Day growth spread unmatched by any other. Great set of Carcase data, CWT in top 5% of breed, IMF in top 10% of breed. His first set of calves are on the ground, and they look great.
This bull is a must for consideration in breeding to heifers, either Stud or Commercial.
Please call Sam on 0438 792 140 for more information
https://www.baldblairangus.com.au/semen-sales
What’s Happening Outside Bald Blair
NLIS Database
When was the last time you did your PIC Reconciliation Report? If you are like us and it has been a while - please click the link below for instructions and go for it.
https://www.nlis.com.au/NLISDocuments/PIC%20Reconciliation.pdf
Events
The Future of Beef 2026
Congratulations to the Ebor Beef Team for organising this tremendous event. It was great to see it so well attended, great speakers and industry representation enabling local producers to catch up, listen and learn. If you have not already - check them out here http://www.eborbeef.com.au/
Stock and Crop Club
Congratulations to the team behind the TAS Stock and Crop Club networking and lunch held recently at the TAS farm. The panel discussion was excellent, the tour of the farm by one of the enthusiastic TAS students was educational and the lunch was delicious. This is an excellent opportunity to support agriculture at TAS and all proceeds go to new sporting facilities. The fundraising goal was $20,000 and they have already doubled it. For more information and to become a member click on the link below.
TAS Foundation Stock and Crop Club - The Armidale School
The Guyra Campdraft
Timepiece Campdraft hosted annually on the 4th weekend in November at the picturesque Guyra Showground 🍀. ⭐️Treasured History ⭐️Exciting Future
☎️President Lock Rogers 0429 020 577
☎️Secretary Nicola Robinson 0437 55 783
https://www.facebook.com/p/Guyra-Campdraft-Club-61567114017738/
The Guyra Show Society
Information Evening 6pm 28 October 2026 at the Guyra Bowling Club. Refreshments supplied. All your questions answered about our local show society, how to become a member, how to enter something in the pavilion, entering the young women competition, entering the lamb show and sale, how to become a volunteer, anything that you would like to know.
The SundayK - community Swim
Same pool, same people, better you. Join locals every Sunday at 9am for a timed 1k in lane groups matched to your pace. It's free - thanks to local sponsors.
Get to the Guyra, Armidale, Inverell or Tenterfield pool!
https://www.instagram.com/thesundayk/
Feeder Steer School 8-11 Feb 2027
The University of New England (UNE), in partnership with Northern Tablelands Local Land Services (NTLLS), Feeder Steer School. Running from the evening of Monday, the 8th to Thursday, the 11th of February 2027 at the UNE Armidale campus, this intensive three-day conference is designed to equip beef producers, lot feeders, and industry professionals with the latest tools and insights to optimise feeder steer and heifer performance.
From the paddock to the processor, this comprehensive program will dive deep into best practices for management, genetics, nutrition, risk mitigation, and data utilisation to maximise carcase value.
https://www.trybooking.com/au/event/1628372
Listening
The Angus Table podcast
Data-Driven Cattle Breeding in the North with Darryl Savage, NAPCo
Great to hear about Darryl’s career, passion for agriculture and more.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/7x31oSwAIuooLi92oEba9c?si=P-qhmdtRTl-14ULvaskCPQ
The Beef Podcast Show
Dr Temple Grandin: Grazing, Welfare and Cattle Handling
In this special 200th episode of The Beef Podcast Show, Dr. Temple Grandin, professor at Colorado State University, explains how grazing management and low-stress cattle handling can support land stewardship, animal welfare, and productivity.
Watching
Former Wallabies hooker Nathan Charles has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease. The 37-year-old, who played four Tests for Australia in 2014, shared the painful news with the public in an emotional interview with Stan Sport’s Justin Harrison.
Truly such an inspiration.
Reading (or listening on audio books)
Angus Bulletin
The Spring Edition of Angus Bulletin is now available to read online
Plant Lady by Minyoung Kang
A chilling feminist horror tale in which a troubled young woman exacts revenge on male customers at her plant shop, using their remains as fertilizer. Bad men make excellent fertilizer ...
The cult Korean psychological horror tale of revenge, reinvention, and what it takes to grow back.
https://www.penguin.com.au/books/plant-lady-9781529958997
The Things We Never Say: Elizabeth Strout
The stunning Booker Prize-longlisted, instant Sunday Times bestselling novel about love, loneliness and new beginnings from Elizabeth Strout. With exquisite prose and profound insight, Elizabeth Strout captures the way grief reverberates through decades, the comfort found in deep friendships and the freedom that comes when we break free of our secrets. The Things We Never Say is a stunning new novel from one of our most acclaimed observers of the human heart.
https://www.penguin.com.au/books/the-things-we-never-say-9780241814307
Pandaemonium Rural Newspaper
The latest edition is outstanding - such great stories - especially loved the love letters from Africa and Muster Club. Subscribe here: https://www.pandaemonium.org/getthepaper
Above all, keep well and be positive.
Kind regards
Kirsty, Sam, Abbott and Arthur
