The Charolais breed, as it often has before, lifted the Stirling October Bull Sale averages and provided a suitable finale for the three-day event.
By the end of Wednesday’s sale 84 had sold through the ring to average £6,654.
This is an increase of £76 on last year’s sale when eight more sold.
The clearance rate was 77%.
British Charolais Cattle Society chief executive David Benson was delighted with the trade, pointing out that 10 bulls had sold at more than 10,000gns and 54 at more than 5,000gns.
“It is all to do with the fact that Charolais sired calves sell at a premium at the store sales,” Mr Benson said.
“It was noticeable also that the bulls with better calving figures sold well today.”
The top price of the day was the 22,000gns paid to Welsh vet and long-term breed stalwart Esmor Evans, Monfa, Mold, for his 19-month-old Maerdy Ignition.
A Blelack Fabulous son, Ignition is out of Maerdy Bardy which was also the dam of Maerdy Express, the 45,000gns Stirling junior champion in February 2011.
A third prize winner in the pre-sale show, Ignition was bought in a three-way consortium consisting of Archie MacGregor, Allanfauld, Kilsyth, Hamish Goldie, South Bowerhouses, Dumfries, and Wallace Brown, Caprickhill, Kilmarnock.
The intermediate reserve from Alasdair Houston, Gretna House, Gretna, was next on the price list after being knocked down to pedigree breeder Peter Foulger, Flitchwood, West Sussex, for 18,000gns.
Gretnahouse Indian is an AI son of Lochend Apache and a maternal line granddaughter of Balmyle Paradise which Mr Houston rates as one of the best cows in his 50-strong herd.
Indian was male champion at the national show this year.
Bill Bruce, Balmyle, Meigle, saw Balmyle Impression, only the third son yet sold from Maerdy Egret make 12,500gns.
Of the others one made 9,000gns and the other, Balmyle Headline, sold for the top price of 22,000gns at Stirling last October.
Impression has good breeding on his dam’s side too with Balmyle Solitude also being the mother of stock bull Balmyle Eclipse.
The buyer on Wednesday was Welsh pedigree breeder Kevin Thomas, Llechwedd, Newcastle Emlyn .
Mr Bruce also sold at 10,000 gns to commercial producer Balbirnie Farms, Markinch.
Balmyle Inevitable is the first son sold from the 22,000gns Blelack Forester and is out of Balmyle Galaxy, which is reckoned to be one of the best breeding cows in the 40-strong Balmyle herd.
The intermediate champion from Michael Massie, Mains of Elrick, Ellon, justified the judge’s selection by selling at 12,000gns to J and W Kellas, Raws Farm, Dufftown.
Previously unshown, Elrick Iceman is by the 14,000gns Carlisle purchase, Maerdy Dublin.
John Jeffrey, Kersknowe, Kelso, sold the second prize bull Kersknowe Iron for 10,500gns.
Showing a useful Terminal Sire Index (TSI) of +62 this one sold to large scale commercial producers Ross Farms, Wester Middleton, Gorebridge.
Among a clutch of bulls selling at the 10,000gns mark was the senior and overall champion from Robert Tremayne and Michelle Hanson, Higher Marne Farm, Helston, Truro.
Remarkably this was the first bull the pair had ever sold at Stirling but winning the top show honours plus gaining a five-figure price made the long journey from Cornwall well worthwhile.
They only started their herd five years ago and it now numbers 18 cows.
Their bull, Marne Impeccable, was reserve male at the breed national show at the National Exhibition Centre and is by 2014 Royal Highland champion Rumsden Fawkes.
His new owner is WJ Fraser and Son, Auchnarrow, Glenlivet.
Former Charolais president Gilbert Crawford, Coolnaslee, Co Londonderry, was another to receive 10,000gns with his Coolnaslee Ivanhoe by Maerdy Fiend going to Peter Donger, Seawell Grounds, Towcester.
Ivanhoe was a first prize winner at this year’s Balmoral Show.
Andrew Brown, Swallow Cottage, Selby, sold at 10,000gns with his Ellerton Independent by Lowerffrydd Benhurr off to join Victor Chestnut’s herd at Bushmills, Northern Ireland.
The last of the day to make 10,000gns was Swalesmoor Immortal from Danny Sawrij’s Swalesmoor herd at Kedzlie, Galashiels.
Immortal’s sire was Swalesmoor Cupid, supreme champion at the 2008 Perth October sale.
The purchaser was J Warnock, Dreva, Broughton, Biggar.
Major David Walter, Balthayock, Glencarse, sold to 9,500gns for a Barbican Lancer son Balthayock Ivo.
This one is a heifer’s calf, with Major Walter noting that Lancer had proved notable for siring bulls with easy calving characteristics.
Ivo is off to Orkney to his new home with JR and DB Rendall, Whitehow, Papa Westray.
Another to be knocked down at 9,500gns was the junior bull Goldies Inferno from Hamish Goldie, South Bowerhouses, Dumfries. The buyer was JWW Sutherland and Son, Stainland, Caithness.
The top price in the females sale of 5,800gn went to the champion from Hamish Goldie, South Bowerhouses, Ruthwell, Dumfries.
Goldies Hilary, by Blelack Edition and out of Goldies Ali, sold in-calf to Blelack Digger to Boden & Davies, Mellor Hall Farms, Cheshire.
Next best at 4,600gn was an in-calf heifer from the Caithness herd of D&M Campbell, Cruachan, Lingland, Occumster, Lybster.
Caithness Hannah, by Harviestoun Casino and out of Caithness Clover, was snapped up by G Russell, Lesliepark, Denny, Stirlingshire.
* Champions were as follow (judged by Griff Morris, Carmarthen).
Senior and overall Mr R Tremayne, Higher Marne, Helston, Truro, with Marne Impeccable by Rumsden Fawkes.
Senior reserve HP Whittaker, Stickle Heaton, Cornhill on Tweed, with Bonnybrae Invincibull by Blelack Digger.
Intermediate Michael Massie, Mains of Elrick, Ellon, with Elrick Iceman by Maerdy Dublin.
Intermediate reserve Alasdair Houston, Gretna House, Gretna, with Gretnahouse Indian by Lochend Apache.
Junior and overall reserve Esmor Evans, Monfa, Mold, with Maerdy Innes by Maerdy Dynamite.
Junior reserve Peter Vasey, Holmhouse, Carlisle with Edenhurst Imperator by Sportsmans Columbo.