Supreme Champion Cow for 2026 Windy Vale ATW Frosty in the ring.
Photo by
Sophie Baldwin
International Dairy Week Holstein judge Mark Nutsford couldn’t take his eyes off seven-year-old Windy Vale ATW Frosty 2, crowning her supreme champion of the show.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
It was the same sentiment for Geoff Peatling, who purchased the cow for $25,000 late last year in an on-farm sale hosted by Somerelle Holsteins.
“I was just going to the sale to have a look and I certainly wasn’t going to buy anything, but for some reason I put a couple of bids in and ended up coming home with her,” Geoff said.
“I just loved the look of her and her frame.
“She was dry at the time, and you certainly couldn’t say she was going to win champion cow at IDW, but there was definitely something about her.”
Geoff said he couldn’t explain how he felt after the win, but his young grandson Sam summed it up saying “it was the best”.
Geoff and his wife Christine retired from dairying 12 months ago and son Anthony has now taken over running the farm.
Geoff said he still liked looking at sales and buying nice cows, although wife Christine doesn’t agree.
“If Christine has her way this will be our last buy, but you never know,” Geoff said.
Christine is quick to add, she always enjoyed milking decent looking cows, and over the years, Geoff had purchased a few.
There are plans afoot to take Frosty to the Sydney Royal; however, that will be the responsibility of new owners Cherrylock and Polson.
Brad and Jess Gavenlock from Cherrylock said without a doubt, Frosty was the best and easiest cow he had ever worked with.
Former owners Geoff and Christine Peatling and new owners Brad and Jess Gavenlock.
“She is the complete package and ticks every box, which is very rare,” Brad said.
“You would never pick she was just six weeks fresh.
“We have had her since October.
“She came to us when she was dry and calved on December 5, and she has done everything you could ask for since.”
Brad said this year’s IDW was the best show they had attended, taking 34 head in their string — 22 placed in the top two of their class and 16 champion ribbons were won
Of the cattle that went to IDW, 17 were owned by Cherrylock and Paulson and the rest were shown on behalf of other owners.
“IDW 2026 was exceptional, and from an exhibitor perspective, everything ran smoothly and there was no drama at all.”
He said all exhibitors were upping the anti with their preparation and the quality of cows across all the breeds, particularly the minor breeds just gets better every year.
“We don’t have any secrets when it comes to preparing the cows, and we are always happy to share our knowledge and our learnings — we just come up with a plan and stick to it, and we have a great team around us,” Brad said.
Jess said with their three daughters getting older, they add a different spin to IDW.
“The kids were great this year,” Jess said.
“They were a great helping us get the cows ready and they each had their own jobs to do — putting out the feed tubs, rinsing off cows and bringing the tubs in.”
26°C