TWENTY-year-old Clay Harris hopes to travel to the United Kingdom later this year. PHOTO SUPPLIED
WITHOUT a previous national title to his name, Clay Harris seemed to come out of nowhere to win the senior title at the Golden Shears earlier this month.
The lanky 20-year-old’s meteoric rise has even surprised his near and dear.
Those shaking heads include Clay’s parents, Karen and Ross Harris, who farm at Mokauiti, his employer, experienced sheep farmer Mark Barrowcliffe and valued mentor, Alan (Mickey) MacDonald, of Te Wharua Station.
It seems they all knew he was good, “but that good”?
“Everyone can’t believe it, because they said he’s so tall and there’s not really much to him and he hasn’t really got a shearing kind of build,” Karen said.
“Clay’s a tall willowy sort of fella; they’re normally a bit more thick-set, stockier and stronger through the back.”
But Clay’s success has confounded all those with preconceived ideas.
Despite a mediocre start to the season, in the last few weeks the former Piopio College student began to rack up consecutive senior class wins at shows around the country.
Recent victories included Aria, Gore, Balclutha, Taumarunui and Apiti, (a weekend off for trail riding instead of contesting the Pahiatua Show), and then taking out the top senior title at Golden Shears.
“What’s more, at “The Goldies,” Clay took additional prizes for both speed shearing and quality,” Karen pointed out.
He is now working with Mickey to prepare for the New Zealand Shearing Championships at Te Kūiti on March 30, and beyond that he has an appetite to see the world.
He and friend David Woolston of Piopio, hope to leave in May to shear in the British Isles.
But how did this rising star get to where he is today?
Karen said an unusual drive to shear became evident from about seven or eight years of age.
“One day when he was a little fellow, he told us he was going down to the shed to get a few sheep. He said, ‘right I’m going to do some shearing.’
“The sheep would get away and they would be half shorn. He’d grab [a ewe] and he’d drag it back and he’d be pulling the wool off. There was blood on the floor and the sheep would come out all covered in cuts and bruises.”
Clay’s determination to shear was undiminished throughout childhood and by the time he reached years 9 and 10 at Piopio College, he was attending school by day and shearing at night.
At 16, he left school to work for Mark Barrowcliffe of Piopio, whose mentoring proved pivotal.
“Mark’s been wonderful,” Karen said.
“He would take a van full of young fellows, including Clay and his own sons, to shearing events around the country. They’d just sort of jump in there and go to all the shows and take part in [novice] events.
“After Clay went to work for him, Mark ensured Clay tackled all relevant industry qualifications, such as wool harvesting industry online training courses.
“Yes, Clay’s recent success has come as a surprise, because he was struggling earlier on in the season. He didn’t feel like even carrying on with the shows because he was not doing that well.
“I went with him over to a couple of shows in Hastings where he was lucky just to get into the semi-finals. He had some rough times there; we just had to carry on through.”
With his mum reminding him “life’s a journey,” Clay persevered, and then suddenly it all just clicked.
Meanwhile, input from Mickey MacDonald has been integral to Clay’s development.
“Mickey’s a world class shearer himself but very patient. He always just taught him one or two things at a time; he sort of knows how to hold back,” Karen said.
“There’s lots of little things that you and I wouldn’t know anything about. It might be to lift the comb a little bit here, or find the widest part of the sheep there. Just tiny little things that he can see. But they all add up to championship performances.”
Karen said Mickey had been instrumental in challenging Clay to keep contesting shows when he felt like doing other things.
“He rang the day after Clay won the seniors at Aria and then he said, you know you really need to stick with the shows and said it was good for his shearing and so forth. Then Clay flew down to Lawrence and did the two shows down there and won them both. Micky couldn’t believe it, he said to me ‘I thought he might get his arse kicked down there, but no, he did alright’.”
Clay said he found shearing to be the greatest challenge imaginable.
“You never stand still; you’re always trying to better yourself. There’s good money to be earned, it’s taken me around the country and I’d like it to take me around the world.”
He has previously sheared 500 sheep in eight hours. With shearing his main exercise, he hasn’t seen the necessity to work out at the gym. This could change in future with the challenge of the ultimate open class to pit himself against.
Clay enjoys trout fishing, hunting and riding his 250cc Honda trail bike, though he hastens to add that he is no great motocrosser.
Karen said with the pressure of competition high, Clay seemed to enjoy his outdoor hobbies, particularly the trout fishing, to get away from constant shearing.
However, it is clear that shearing remains the young man’s number one passion.
“He’ll shear all day and then come home exhausted. Even then he’ll be on his phone watching videos of open class shearers who are better than him. Men like Jack Fagan and Jimmy Samuels. I’ll be cooking tea and Clay will be studying these top shearers and observing their technique.”
