WE knew Samurai was special the moment he hit the ground! Coverage, hand, blinding luster, density, staple...he just does not have any shortcomings. We were of course anxious to get him into the ring to see how he stacked up against the competiton; and we were not disappointed...well, maybe a little as you'll see. His debut show was in Arkansas at a new show, not much competition, but Judge Diana Timmerman said his Blue was very much deserved and regretted he did not have the competion to prove it. Well, a few weeks later in Denver at the GWAS he was First against some very tough competition. Judge Jane Tellier had previously made us a little nervous when she stated that she rarely gave championships to juveniles as they could change so much over the next year or more. To make matters worse, they combined the patterns and grays for the championship, so there were many outstanding animals in the ring when Jane awarded him the Champion banner...made all that much sweeter with her previous comments and all the fine competition. We came off that high to AOBA Nationals. Judge Amanda Vandenbosch took a very long time to determine the winner; alas, Samurai got second. While we were somewhat disappointed...hey, a second place at Nationals is nothing to sneeze at! After shearing, Samurai is growing out very nicely, good tight lock, staple...we anticipate he will be showing full fleece by late October, something his sire (Ricochet) has always done. I think staple is something many people overlook...Samurai has 8" of fleece 11 months after shearing! Samurai continues to place First in shows this spring, you can see his impressive show record below. We are SO anxious to see how he does as a herdsire.