A RENOWNED Cumbrian Limousin breeder saw his bull capture the top price at the recent breed sale at Carlisle.

Craig Ridley, whose family run one of the foremost pedigree Limousin names in the UK, saw his senior bull Westpit Omaha, take the day's top price of £18,000 gns when it came under the hammer in the ring at Borderway Mart.

Haltcliffe Limousin herd hit the headlines back in 2006 when the bull Haltcliffe Vermount sold for the world record price of 100,000gns.

Craig runs the farm carrying the prefix Haltcliffe, a name the family took from the hamlet of Haltcliffe, in which the farmstead lies, and which is known all over Cumbria and further afield.

Bred by Messrs A & J Gammie of the Wespit herd, Laurencekirk, Omaha is by Ampertaine Foreman out of Brockhurst Holy (a daughter of Wilodge Vantastic/Brockhurst Bolshoi) and has been the stock bull in the Haltcliffe herd since he was purchased privately at 17 months of age in 2019.

He has had considerable breeding success in the time since, producing multiple animals that have gone on to sell for five figure sums, topping at 32,000gns for Haltcliffe Raquel purchased by the Drumhilla herd in 2021. With Myostatin F94L/Q204X and calving EBVs in the Top 10 per cent of the breed, keen bidding saw him knocked down to the Pabo pedigree herd of WP Hughes and Sons, Fferam Gyd, Anglesey.

A further senior entry took the second leading price of the day. Frogmore Ronaldo, a 2020-born bull, was offered for sale by the Norman Farming Company (Norman herd) and ran to 12,000gns for commercial buyer Messrs G&P Middleton, Low House Farm, Sedburgh. Bred by Chris White of the Frogmore herd in Gloucestershire, Ronaldo was originally sold to the Norman herd at the Carlisle February 2022 sale for 15000gns. He has Myostatin F94L/F94L and also has calving traits in the Top 10 per cent and 1 per cent of the breed and is sired by Ampertaine Magnum out of dam Foxhillfarm Oriel (a daughter of Ampertaine Gigolo/Foxhillfarm Gracie).

Glenrock Unionjack, a January 2023-born bull by Ampertaine Elgin out of Glenrock Royalhighness from S. and T. Illingworth, Lockerbie, made 5,500gns to Messrs Strong and Son, Hesket Newmarket.