Yorkshire farrier charges to third Stampede world crown

Beane won the World Championship title for the third year in a row and says this year’s competition was extra special.

He was competing against the top farriers in the world and the five-man final on the Sunday of the competition provided his stiffest challenge yet.

All the finalists were from the UK and included Grant Moon from Cardiff who has six world titles to his credit; Billy Crothers, also from Cardiff, with five Stampede wins and Paul Robinson from Northern Ireland who won the title in 2008, in the final year before Beane began his current run of success.

The farriers compete in different forging and shoeing classes over four days.

A total of 566 people took part from 14 different countries.

This year Beane went into the lead from day one and finished with a total of 152 points. Robinson came second with 115 points.

“I just enjoy competing. The title has never really been the thing for me, it’s more the competition and the fact that all the best farriers in the world are there,” said Beane.

“I definitely plan to return and defend my title next year.”

His success in competition – he is also a member of the English Horseshoeing team – has led to numerous invitations to travel abroad to give demonstrations and judge competitions.

But Calgary is always the big one.

“I put in a lot of time preparing for it and you have to get fitter because of the heat,” said Steven.

This year the Stampede had the added bonus of a visit from Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge.

Beane missed their appearance at the rodeo and the grand parade because he was competing but says: “They were a massive hit, every day on the news and more than 12 or 13 pages in the paper.”

Back home at Trenholme Bar near Northallerton, Beane has been receiving congratulations from his regular customers who followed his progress in Calgary on the internet.

He has worked self-employed for the past 12 years and because he now has a waiting list of customers thanks to his recent fame, he has just been able to take on his first apprentice.

“Competing is all about attention to detail and that makes you a better farrier,” said Beane, who also runs a series of regular clinics for qualified farriers.

He returned home from Calgary with a cheque for $10,000, a gold and silver Stampede championship buckle, a limited edition bronze trophy and a champion’s jacket.

Beane became the first competitor to win back-to-back titles at the Stampede since Grant Moon took his fifth straight win in 1992.

Moon still holds the record of six world titles but Beane’s ambition is to eventually beat that.

He said: “I’m only 32 so I’ve plenty of time yet.”

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