Have you ever heard the phrase “I got Meekered”? From the beginning in 1987 the Meeker Sheep
have earned a reputation of challenging both dog and handler. Herbert Holmes used the phrase when describing his first run on that first trial. Since then the sheep have contributed to what has become the challenge of all challenges in the sheepdog trialing world. We are grateful for the words of Keith Chamberlain as he writes the story . . . .
As the first light of day brightened the sky over the White River Valley, the chilly temperature betokened a change of season. Among folks gathered out at the Seely Ranch a few miles from Meeker there was keen anticipation to match the crispness in the air. In the growing light, handlers could be seen walking among fence panels, pacing off distances, committing fetch and drive lines to memory, toting up the small landmarks that might serve as aids to navigation in their run. Out at the far end of the field, a goodly herd of woolly Columbia ewes were packed tight into holding pens. They pricked up their ears when a chorus of howls and yips erupted from the throats of three score and ten eager Border Collies. The voices swelled to a brief crescendo, then faded away. On this, the first many such mornings, the actors were gathered, the stage was set and all was in readiness.
Davy McTier (left) and Herbert Holmes (right) – Davy was the Official Judge for the First Meeker Classic in 1987 – photo courtesy of Herbert Holmes
Then, with the dazzling new-risen sun chasing the chill, months of preparation came to an end. Judge David McTier assembled the contestants for the morning handlers’ meeting. In a rich Scottish brogue he outlined the work to be done and reminded them that he’d be looking for straight lines, smooth corners and a steady pace. Herbert Holmes and his dog Nell came to the handler’s post. The dog spied the packet of five sheep moving to the set out post atop a gentle rise 500 yards away and she strained forward, eyes locked on her sheep. Holmes waited for the sheep to settle a bit, then gave Nell the command she so much wanted and she rocketed away in a blur of black and white. It was Thursday, September 17, 1987, and the first Meeker sheepdog trials were underway. Holmes and Nell were about to discover something interesting about the sheep in this neck of the woods.
The sheep and the rough, high altitude course, have led many a competitor whose dog was flummoxed to exclaim “I’ve been Meekered!”
. . . . . . continuing on with Holmes and Nell. At the end of her outrun that first morning Nell shimmied into position behind the packet of five and up came their heads. They studied her and she studied them back. When she finally got them moving things went downhill fast. Recounting that historic first Meeker run, Holmes says flatly, “It was terrible, absolutely terrible. Barely movin’ the sheep and if they were movin’ they were goin’ all over the place.” Nell and Holmes quickly realized these gals weren’t docile farm flock ewes. After a few minutes of chasing them all over the far end of the field, Holmes called out, “That’ll do, Nell!” and retired. He would soon regret it.
The sheep stymied dogs and handlers all day and a lot of scores were miserably low. From the sidelines, the light began to dawn on Holmes. “Now it’s a historical fact that the Meeker sheep are hard to deal with but because I didn’t know how bad the runs could be there I walked away before my time had expired, probably with enough points to get to the semifinals. However, I didn’t know that at the time.” He fared better with his second dog but on the first run of the first day of the first trials ever at Meeker, Herbert Holmes and Nell established a brand new tradition: They got Meekered. And so the story goes . . . . stay tuned for more Meeker Classic stories . . .
Herbert Holmes & Bob in 2015 with a successful pen. Photo by PiperAnne Worcester