Crowd flocks in to Te Kuiti

MARK TAYLOR/Waikato Times

NO HURRY: Sheep take their time to make their way down Te Kuiti's main street in Saturday's Running of the Sheep.

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Te Kuiti's Running of the Sheep was a tame affair compared to last year's rampage.

Last year about 1000 sheep jumped the barriers and ran down side streets and through private properties on to State Highway 3. Saturday's run was the complete opposite with the 1079-strong mob stopping midway during the event for a five-minute break.

Scanda New Zealand Shears Running of the Sheep co-organiser John Fagan said they had to wait patiently until the sheep decided to get on their way.

"They got started well, but then they stopped in the middle of town. Sheep very much follow each other and once they start milling around in a circle it holds the whole mob up. We just had to stand back and wait until they were ready. It was a real success in the end,"he said.

Mr Fagan said he had visions of last year for a brief moment thinking the sheep were going to turn and make a run for it. Mr Fagan estimated between 6000 and 7000 people attended. Meanwhile John Fagan's brother, veteran shearing champion David, won his 17th New Zealand Championship open title at the nearby Waitomo Cultural and Arts Centre.

Fagan finished the 20 sheep in 14 minutes, 52.7 seconds, four seconds ahead of John Kirkpatrick.

- © Fairfax NZ News