Events of the Hollow
~ 2009 Events ~
January 17
Alpaca Field Day/Info Workshop
Virginia State University
Petersburg, VA
Presented by Virginia State University's Small Ruminant Program and co-hosted by the Virginia Alpaca Owners & Breeders Association. This one day indoor informational workshop will be held at the Extension Pavilion at Randolf Farm at Virginia State University in Petersburg, VA. Speakers will include Dr. Philip Sponenburg (genetics); Dr. Chris Lupton (fiber); Dr. Chris Teutsch (grazing system in mid-Atlantic); Dr. Anne Zajac (internal parasites); Dr. Tom Terrill (parasite control) and Dr. Stephan Wildeus on the Alpaca Research Initiative at Virginia State University. Open to all alpaca breeders. See www.vaoba.info for more information and registration form or contact Patty Fuller at 540.953.0439 or alpacas@poplarhill.com.
April 4-5
Palmetto Alpaca Classic
Clemson, SC
3rd Annual Show sponsored by the Alpaca Small Farm Network, an AOBA affiliate based primarily in SC. Sue is Halter Show Superintendent. This is a small show with lots of very friendly people - a very nice weekend event. This year's judges are Stephanie Glyptis for Fleece and Suri Halter and Ken Hibbits for Huacaya Halter and Performance.
TAFS (The Alpaca Fiber Symposium) will take place at the Textile Center in Gaston College in Belmont, NC. It is about 6 miles from Charlotte, NC. There are many hotels in the area and two in Belmont itself.
"Today, Tomorrow and Beyond..."
The "Today" section of the symposium will be represented by various groups that are already making and marketing products out of alpaca fiber on a large scale.
The "Tomorrow" section deals with present day activities that are already engaged in searching for tomorrow's alpaca products..
The "Beyond" section explores and searches for new areas of research and investigation of applications for our alpaca fiber..
Our Saturday keynote speaker will be Dean Godfrey of North Carolina University's College of Textiles. Our Sunday keynote speaker will be John Anderson, the Director of the Textile Center at Gaston College.
While we will be unable to attend the Symposium, Sue is on the Steering Committee and hopes readers will attend this important event!
April 18
6th Annual Shearing Days at Nottingham Hollow
Shearing at the Hollow! Want Fiber? We will have plenty! Shearing will start between 8 & 9 am. This year we will have Fall Line Fiber & Shearing doing the honors. Sarah and Mary Clare do a great job and are very quick as well. Visitors are welcome but know we will probably recruit you to help!
April 22-26
California Classic
Sue will be flying out to California on April 22nd where she will be show superintendent for the California Classic which is held at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton on April 24 - 26th. This will be a Level III show this year and features Jill MacLeod as its judge. The event is brought to us by the CALPACA - the California AOBA affiliate.
July 11
VAOBA Annual Membership Meeting
The meeting this year is special to Sue. Back in 2005, Alpacas of Nottingham Hollow, along with thirteen other farms, founded the VAOBA (Virginia Alpaca Owners & Breeders Association). Sue took over the position of Secretary with the term ending in July of 2006. At that election she became President-Elect which was a three year commitment to the association. On July 11, 2009 she will step down from the board having completed that term. It is truly a "must attend" event for us.
July (date TBD)
Caroline County Fair
This year we will attend the fair with some of our alpacas. We missed last year's fair due to other responsibilities. More later!
October 16-18
4th Annual VAOBA Alpaca Expo Halter & Fleece Show
The Virginia Horse Center
Lexington, Virginia
This show has grown by leaps and bounds since the first show in 2006. That year it was a Level III show with near 400 alpacas. In 2007 it was a Level IV show with around 600 or so alpacas entered. In 2008 the show remained a Level IV but only by 4 alpacas! The 2009 show should be a Level V, no problem!
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