Many hands make light work!

I can finally sit down and write a little bit about my experience organising the first annual Vastrap Boran auction. Wow, it really was a steep learning curve and a very exhausting week, but I’m so relieved that everything went off smoothly with no horrible surprises. I could not have done it without the help of many friends and family members who all mucked in to get things done. As someone commented during a particularly frenetic time, “this really is a case of many hands make light work, rather than too many cooks spoil the broth!” I was in charge of marketing and catering, while Quentin took care of all the cattle logistics and making sure that the building of our new cattle facilities was finished on time. I stepped in at the last minute to finish off the decor. It was a real team effort! So much of the work we did this year will not have to be repeated next year so hopefully it will not be quite as stressful the second time round.

We hosted a whisky tasting and dinner for 50 people at Vastrap on the night before the auction. The next day we provided hot drinks and refreshments before the start of the auction followed by a lunch for 100 people. I have never catered on this scale before and really didn’t know what to expect. Thank goodness for two angels who really helped me so much – my friend Vicky Barnard from Mequatling Angus and my sister Beatrice. They really do deserve special mention even though many other people also helped. Vicky is a seasoned auction organiser, having run one of the most successful Angus auctions in the country for the past eight years. She and her husband Philip have endured relentless questioning by me and Quentin over the past few months and very generously shared all their secrets about what works and what doesn’t. My eyes were truly opened when I went to help Vicky at their sale in July. It made such a difference to see everything in action. As a result, I pretty much knew what to expect on the day and made sure that I had my lists and instructions in place.

Beatrice came up specially from Stellenbosch to help us for the week. She is an absolute star in the kitchen and stepped in to help with a big smile on her face. And boy, did I need the help! With the Coco and the puppies needing to go to the vet and unanticipated errands cropping up all over the place, it was great to know that someone was at home getting on with the cooking and doing it better than I ever could! We had partners in the auction and fortunately some of them arrived the day before and helped with preparations. Debbie Johnson got stuck in with the flower arrangements and Karen Peinke immediately bonded with Beatrice in the kitchen. A real dream team! Not to mention the delicious steak and guinness pie made by Laura and patès made by Heidi for the whisky tasting, and the rusks made by Jenny!

I couldn’t have done it without Vicky!

… and beautiful Beatrice!

Preparations for the whisky tasting.

For the auction lunch, we kept things simple. A steak braai with pepper sauce and sides of green bean, baby potato and red onion salad and a rocket, feta and roasted pumpkin salad. I ordered the most delicious mini koeksisters (a typically South African dessert) from Bloemfontein, which were devoured by all. A great trick we learnt from Philip and Vicky is to put some snack packs on each seat in the auction tent so that people don’t get too bored and hungry during the auction. We received many compliments for this little extra touch.

All in all, we couldn’t have asked for a better turnout and better day. The weather played along, although it was a tad chilly, but the sun was shining and the wind stayed away. All the cattle were sold and our beautiful white cow Hope MHB 04-11 achieved the top price on the day followed closely by Kelly MHB 04-24. We are sad to see them go, but know that they will be happy in their new homes. Now it’s time for a little break before life returns to normal and we start to think about doing it again next year!

Karen and Matshepang making sandwiches on auction day.

Posters for the cattle pens.

Tea station.

Stylish Debbie and her beautiful flower arrangements.

The lunch tent.

The auction ring.

Let the bidding begin!

Gary and Andre, the steak braaiers.