Champion shearer Roger Mifsud says there will be no friendly rivalry when he takes on his son Corey in a 24-hour Shear-A-Thon at Warrnambool next month to raise money to fight muscular dystrophy.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Roger, 52, said it will be ‘no holds barred’ in the Mifsud competitive tradition as he seeks to defend his marathon shearing tally against son Corey, 30, as well as support the fund raising efforts by family friend Chris Gillin of Warrnambool.
Roger said he and Corey had been long time friends with the Gillin family whose sons, Chris and Aaron, have Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
Aaron Gillin died last year at the age of 24 but his older brother Chris, 27, continues to be an active fund raiser for Muscular Dystrophy Australia.
Roger Mifsud said he did a previous shear-a-thon in 1999 when he shore 636 sheep in 20 hours, averaging 31 an hour.
He had aimed to shear for 24 hours in the marathon but had to stop at 20 because he ran out of sheep when they got wet.
He did that herculean effort for Melbourne’s Mercy hospital in gratitude for the help given to his son Brody who was born two months premature.
The idea for this year’s shear-a-thon came from Corey who wanted to beat the tally of 636 set by his father in the previous shear-a-thon.
Roger Mifsud, of Mortlake, is a four times Australian Coopworth shearing champion and also has an Australian cross bred lamb title.
He has been shearing for 30 years and still competes in national shearing competitions. He has been among Australia’s top eight shearers for the past few years.
His son Corey, 30, of Stawell, is also an accomplished competitive shearer and has been number two in the national intermediate section.
Roger Mifsud said he and Corey had set themselves a goal to shear 1500 composite lambs between them in the 24 hours but Corey was determined to contribute more to the total than him.
Roger Mifsud said the marathon were a painful experience but pain was a common experience for shearers.
“You just shut it out and go fishing (in your head),” he said.
The shear-a-thon will be held at the Warrnambool showgrounds from November 2-3.
Entry will be by gold coin donation. The event will also include live music by artists including Nancie Schipper, a barbecue and a coffee van.
People can also donate to the cause through the Muscular Dystrophy Awareness Warrnambool Facebook page that will have links to donation sites.
Mesages will also be left on the Muscular Dystrophy 24-hour Shear-A-Thon Facebook page on how people can donate.
