FLEECE SHOW AND SALE

HELD IN THE EAST SIDE OF THE SANTIAM BUILDING

• Click here for entry forms.
• Entry fee: $6 for each fleece for show or for sale.
• Entry deadline extended! All entries must be postmarked by June 6, 2025. NO LATE ENTRIES will be accepted.
• All fleece must be entered in the name of the producer. An agent may enter and retrieve fleece with a letter from the grower. The show clerk will not accept mailed fleece.
• Intake of fleece from 1-8pm, Thursday, June 26, 2025. All entries must be in place by 9am Friday. NO ENTRY CHANGES permitted after Thursday.
• Judging begins 10am Friday. The Fleece Sale for Class 00 also begins at 10am Friday.
• Awards: ribbons will be awarded through 6th place.
• Prizes will be awarded for Champion and Reserve Champion Natural Colored and White Fleeces. The perennial Black Sheep Cup, sponsored by the Black Sheep Newsletter, will be awarded to the winner of the Five Most Valuable Fleeces for Handspinning from a Single Producer. To be considered, growers must enter Class 80 and pay a separate entry fee of $10 (one fee, not per fleece).
• A 10% handling fee will be collected on all fleeces sold at the Fleece Sale.
• All unsold fleece must be claimed by the producer or agent between 3–5pm Sunday, June 29, 2025. No release of "for sale" fleeces before that time. All unclaimed fleece will be destroyed.

FLEECE SHOW AND SALE RULES:

1. THE BSG FLEECE SHOW IS A HANDSPINNERS' SHOW. Fleeces will be judged primarily on the basis of handspinning quality and character, stressing cleanliness, strength and uniformity, along with breed characteristics.
2. A fleece for show must be properly rolled and placed in a clear plastic bag. Clear plastic bags will be available for sale. No tied or washed fleeces. Mohair fleeces do not have to be rolled. Judges reserve the right to carefully unroll fleeces. Fine wool fleeces may be rolled with paper liners to prevent sticking.
3. No fleeces with mothballs will be allowed in the show. Please air your fleeces well, as some people are very sensitive to these chemicals.
4. Each entry must be tagged with a Black Sheep Gathering sticker at check-in. Sellers must sign the fleece receipt, verifying details are correctly entered.
5. Participants must check out, picking up unsold fleeces and signing a release Sunday 3-5 pm. If all fleeces have been sold, this may be done earlier as record-keeping allows. Participants will receive a check via mail for their fleece sales, minus 10% handling fee, within 30 days.
6. Fleece Show judging is limited by time and space on a first-come, first-served basis. Please send entry forms as early as possible.
7. Number of entries: Producers may enter up to 20 fleeces in the FLEECE SHOW. Producers may enter no more than four fleeces per class except for Class 00 which has no limit on entries.
8. For Sale Only Fleeces: Enter Wool, Mohair and Alpaca fleeces in Class 00: For Sale Only. This class allows unlimited entries. Sales for Class 00 begin Friday at 10 am. Promotional material may be included with fleece.
9. Promotional materials may be inserted in Show fleeces only after judging, starting approximately 1 pm Saturday.
10. BSG Fleece Committee Chairs reserve the right to pull fleeces from the show and sale in order to maintain the recognized high standards of quality for handspinning. Fleeces with wool rot, abnormal "vegetation" or other disqualifying issues will be pulled with a note provided as to the cause. Please see the chairperson at the registration table with fleeces that may be questionable.

The Wayne Thompson Memorial Trophy will be presented for the Best Natural Colored Fleece. Wayne cared deeply for the Black Sheep Gathering and our mission of promotion and education regarding natural colored sheep. His decades of service are fondly remembered and deeply missed. This award for the Best Natural Colored Fleece honors his spirit and heart, which remain a part of our community. We hope that it inspires our fleece growers to share his passion for natural colored wool.

FLEECE SHOW

Wool and Alpaca Judge: David Cook • Wakeman, Ohio

The Cook family started raising purebred Merino sheep in 1891 and were showing nationally from railcar by 1906. David has been around the show ring his entire life. David judged his first National Show at Louisville in 1987 and has judged in 29 states. David has bred National Champions in each of the breeds he has raised. He has won Supreme Awards from Maryland to California and from The North American at Louisville to the World Sheep and Wool Congress in Alberta, Canada.

Dave and his wife Lysa won 58 Champion, Reserve Champion, and Premier Breeder awards at Louisville and National Shows over the previous 22 years before dispersing the last of their Columbia and Natural Colored sheep in 2014. They now lamb out 160 Hampshire cross wether dams and enjoy having someone younger do the work of getting sheep ready to show.

WOOL FLEECE CLASSES

00. FOR SALE ONLY (see description below)
1. Primitive/double coated
2. Solid colored longwool/coarse 36-48 (32-40+ microns)
3. Solid colored medium 50-62 (23-31 microns)
4. Solid colored fine 64+ (17-22 microns)
5. Variegated longwool / coarse 36-48 (32-40+ microns)
6. Variegated medium 50-62 (23-31 microns)
7. Variegated fine 64+ (17-22 microns)
8. Purebred colored longwool / coarse 36-48 (32-40+ microns)
9. Purebred colored medium 50-62 (23-31 microns)
10. Purebred colored fine 64+ (17-22 microns)
11. Colored Romney
12. Jacob
13. Icelandic
14. Gotland
15. Shetland yearling and younger
16. Shetland Mature
17. Colored Corriedale
18. Colored Merino
 
 
19. Purebred white longwool/coarse 36-48 (32-40+ microns)
20. Purebred white medium 50-62 (23-31 microns)
21. Purebred white fine 64+ (17-22 microns)
22. White longwool/coarse 36-48 (32-40+ microns)
23. White medium 50-62 (23-31 microns)
24. White fine 64+ (17-22 microns)
25. White Lincoln
26. White Romney
27. White Corriedale
28. White Cormo
29. White Merino
30. NCWGA Primitive *
31. NCWGA Longwool *
32. NCWGA Medium *
33. NCWGA Fine *

• G1. AGSS Yearling Rams**
• G2. AGSS Mature Rams**
• G3. AGSS Yearling Ewes**
• G4. AGSS Mature Ewes**
• G5. AGSS Lambs (must exhibit lamb tips) **
• G6. AGSS Best Pair of Fleeces**
• *Natural Colored Wool Growers Association.
• **American Gotland Sheep Society (AGSS). The society’s National Wool Show Champion Ewe, Champion Ram and Grand Champion Fleece will be awarded from the winners of these classes. The Premier Breeder Award will also be given based on total points earned across these classes.
• 80. Five Most Valuable Fleeces for Handspinning from a Single Producer (see description below)

ALPACA FLEECE CLASSES

SURI FLEECES

00. FOR SALE ONLY (see description below)
60. For Sale Only (see description below)
61. Suri Juvenile (under 1 year) white, beige, light fawn
62. Suri Juvenile (under 1 year) all other colors
63. Suri Adult (1-3 yrs old) white, beige, light fawn
64. Suri Adult (1-3 yrs old) all other colors
65. Suri Mature (3+ yrs) white, beige, light fawn
66. Suri Mature (3+ yrs) all other colors

HUACAYA FLEECES

69. Huacaya Juvenile (under 1 year) white, beige, light fawn
70. Huacaya Juvenile (under 1 year) all other colors
71. Huacaya Adult (1-3 yrs) white, beige, light fawn
72. Huacaya Adult (1-3 yrs) all other colors
73. Huacaya Mature (3+ yrs old) white, beige, light fawn
74. Huacaya Mature (3+ yrs old) all other colors
80. Five Most Valuable Fleeces for Handspinning from a Single Producer

Mohair Judge: Sharon Chestnutt • Monroe, Oregon

Sharon fell in love with Angora goats shortly after graduating with her Animal Science degree from the University of British Columbia (UBC). She is an avid spinner and dyer, and author of Raising Angora Goats for Beautiful Mohair. Sharon will bring her knowledge of fleece production and experience as a fiber artist to the mohair show.

MOHAIR FLEECE CLASSES

00. FOR SALE ONLY (see description below)
40. White fall doe kid
41. White fall buck kid
42. White spring doe kid
43. White spring buck kid
44. White yearling doe
45. White yearling buck
46. White aged doe
47. White wether
48. Colored fall doe kid
49. Colored fall buck kid
50. Colored spring doe kid
51. Colored spring buck kid
52. Colored yearling doe
53. Colored yearling buck
54. Colored aged doe
55. Colored wether
80. Five Most Valuable Fleeces for Handspinning from a Single Producer

Classes 00 and 80

00. FOR SALE ONLY. This class is not judged and there is no limit on the number of entries. Fleeces with wool rot or other extensive problems will be pulled by the committee chair.
80. FIVE MOST VALUABLE FLEECES FOR HANDSPINNING FROM A SINGLE PRODUCER. Each fleece will be judged in strength, elasticity, uniformity, section characteristics, cleanliness and spinning quality. Exhibitor must preselect and indicate with an * in the class column, the five fleeces to be judged. A one-time fee of $10 is required.