By Fiona Gowers
A top gun and a young gun have clinched major victories in the esteemed Condamine Bell Campdraft, sparking a thrilling start to the 2021 Triple Crown series.
From a field of 440 riders, champion Ben Hall of Muttaburra won the open draft, claiming a $50,000 slice of Condamine’s largest prize pool of $170,000.
Charli Curr of Julia Creek secured the Joyce Campbell Memorial ladies’ draft with 179 points, just beating JJ Lamb on Foster and Rylee Turner on Condalilly, who were equal second on 178 points.
Coralie Daly of Roma won the novice draft.
Mr Hall, 44, said he was thrilled to hold the iconic Condamine Bell trophy for the seventh time.
“I always enjoy coming to Condamine because it’s probably one of the best surfaces we ride on all year,” he said. “They line up quality cattle for us and offer good money.”
Mr Hall rode Jackson, a 12-year-old gelding by the sire Playrio bred at he and wife Jaye Hall’s Bibil Station at Muttaburra. The pair scored 269.5 points.
He also shared second place on Classy Dove with campdrafter Joe Payne on Cole Black, while Charters Towers rider Will Durkin took out fourth, fifth and sixth place.
“At Condamine the competition is always tough the whole way through,” Mr Hall said.
“But Jackson, who we bred and trained and is a family horse, is pretty casual. He does what you want him to do and is pretty consistent. He turns up every weekend for you.”
The Chinchilla Grandfather Clock Campdraft on 23 October and Warwick Gold Cup on 30 October comprise the Triple Crown series.
No competitor has won the trifecta in one year to claim the $30,000 bonus.
As well as seven Condamine Bells, Mr Hall has won three Grandfather Clocks and three Gold Cups. This year he hopes to win all three events to make campdrafting history.
“It would be good,” he said. “I had a crack another year but couldn’t pull it off.”
For Charli Curr, 20, it was her first time competing at Condamine after success this year on gelding, Spook through the North Queensland campdrafting circuit.
She said it was exciting to win in a category boasting 118 other women and is looking forward to competing at Chinchilla and Warwick.
“I started campdrafting when I was young but have become a lot more interested in it over the past couple of years, since leaving school,” Charli said.
“I heard Condamine was a great draft and it has been amazing. The cattle are really good and there’s such strong competition here. It’s really exciting.”
* Queensland Farmer Today will publish reports and photos from the Chinchilla Grandfather Clock Campdraft and Warwick Gold Cup in its next edition on November 25.
